Construction

It seems like there is a lot of construction going on around here. This was spotted in Bayport but I'm not sure what they were doing since there were no signs around. 

Ending at the Bay

 This was sketched in Sayville heading south on River Road by the Fire Island Ferries. I like sketching there at this time of year because you can actually park there. In season you can only park in the paid parking lots.

Port Jeff Boat

 I don't know how this painting escaped being posted since it was done probably two weeks ago. There is a big boatyard in Port Jeff. Most of the boats are covered but there are always a few that aren't like this one. 

Gelli Printing

My closet and brain are filled with different projects I keep saying I'm going to try. I've watched a lot of videos on gelli botanical prints and thought I'd give it a try. I collected some dried flowers and leaves to use. I got mixed results with this technique and it seems that dried flowers and leaves tend not to be the best items to use. They tend to leave behind seeds and residue that stays behind in the paint and affects the print. I'll have to try again with fresher items. Here are the prints I did.

This one was my favorite because the dark undercolor showed the most.

This one didn't have enough of a design from the items.

This was done with dried flowers but I couldn't press them down enough to get paint between the individual flowers. The flowers were too tick.

This one was done with more pliable leaves but it didn't leave enough of an imprint
inside the larger shapes.

Parts of this came out better than the others, but the technique still needs work.

            I will have to give this another shot. I kept the paints and gelli plate out so I can try again.

Sheep in the Field

 I'm always looking for something different to sketch. I was over by the Smithtown Historical Society and figured I would sketch one of the buildings when I noticed that there were sheep in the field AND they were staying fairly still. I pulled my car up over by the fence and started with one...and then another and I continued on. At times one would get up and walk away, but most of them were staying close by and seated. It was a good way to sketch some of them.

Sotheby's

 When I got off the LIRR on Saturday I headed uptown on the Q train. My destination was Sotheby's New York to meet the NYC Urban Sketchers. Sotheby's is basically an auction house, although it looks a lot like a museum, but here you can touch the artwork and merchandise that is being sold. People come with flashlights to examine the objects carefully before the auctions start. The staff there is always very accommodating and let us use any of our materials and our stools. The building has 10 floors but I think I've only explored 3 or 4 of them and the auction objects are always changing. 

I headed up to the 3rd floor where I found one of two "Allegorical Heads of a Woman" done in stone, probably Flemish and from the 18th Century. my first sketch of one of the "Two Allegorical Heads of a Woman" done in stone. Probably Flemish from the 18th Century

Making a turn of about 30 degrees I noticed another sketcher, Ken, in front of a painting. He was standing and sketching it.

We took a break from sketching to have lunch. That was one of the few problems of the day. The cafe is small and there was no way we could accommodate all the sketchers who had turned up. About a dozen of us clustered together for some food before w went back to sketching. The woman seated next to me showed me her sketches and when I saw the grasshopper weathervane below I knew I had to find it. So I headed up to the 6th floor. According to the label the Grasshopper Weathervane 

is attributed to Stem Drowne of Boston, Mass, circa 1740. It was beautiful!

Our day ended with a "show and tell." I am always amazed to see the quality of the sketches produced. It was also great to see some of the objects that I had missed in other areas of Sotheby's. A few of the sketchers actually sat in on some of the auctions. I've never been to an auction so maybe the next time we go I will check it out. I am so grateful that Sotheby's is so welcoming to us and the staff is friendly and willing to let us create.

Train Ride

On Saturday I decided I wanted to go into the city and join the NYC Urban Sketchers for the day. My friend whose husband usually drives us into the city couldn't go. It was a big decision to go it alone on the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) and subway (the Q train). The train only leaves Ronkonkoma (my station) once an hour on the weekend. That meant I either had to take the 7:31 am train and get there at 9:10 before the location opened, or take the 8:31 am train and be a little late. I opted to be a little late. 

When I got on the train there was a family already seated in the middle section where the seats face each other...yay...that is the perfect spot to sketch people if I sit on the opposite side in the next row on the aisle. There weren't too many people on the train and a few of them were masked. The group I was facing included 2 grandparents and 3 kids. They were all busy eating breakfast when I got on so I sat down and had my bagel and coffee as we started to pull out of the station. They rode as far as Jamaica and then got off to switch trains to Brooklyn. It was just enough time (about an hour) to finish my sketch. I didn't sketch grandma because the seat blocked her.

 

The Bean in Patchogue

 Last Friday our weather wasn't so great. We had a rainy, chilly day but I really wanted to go out and sketch. It was raining too hard to sit somewhere and paint from the car. I tried to come up with an indoor location where I would have a view that I hadn't been to recently. Thank goodness for coffee shops. Unfortunately we don't have too many nearby. I decided to go to The Bean in Patchogue. I hadn't been there in a while. The only problem is you have to park in a parking lot behind the building and walk around, so I was a bit wet when I got there. But the staff was very welcoming, there was a dry empty table with a view, and good coffee too (much better than Starbucks). I was happy!

Sayville Beach

Sometimes the sky is just so pretty that I have to stop and paint it. The best place to do that is usually by the beach or the bay where there is nothing to block the views. This was done down by Sayville Beach.

 

Suffolk Theater

 Riverhead has a restored Restored 1930s art-deco venue featuring big-name concerts and shows. The Suffolk Theater is great on the outside, but I haven't seen the inside. I'll have to check it out.

Fabric

The Patchogue Sketch Club met this week and our theme was fabric. Mark set up two stations of draped fabric for us to draw. I find it super hard to do fabric in watercolor so I resorted to using graphite and shading with a stump. I was pleasantly surprised at how these came out.

 

Posillico Materials

Before Christmas I passed this location and thought it would be a fun place to sketch. I made sure I went back on the weekend so there wouldn't be trucks pulling in and out blocking my view. Posillico Materials in Farmingdale makes paving products. I liked the challenge of the tanks and the strange items around it. It would probably be fun to get inside and really explore but I don't think they would be happy with me roaming around. lol 

Whole Foods

It is a challenge to find a sketching location when the weather doesn't cooperate. I went over to Whole Foods in Lake Grove because I knew they had a seating area. I purchased a cup of coffee and sat at a table by the window. That made it possible to see customers at the tables by the half wall and see over the wall to the customers and clerks at a few of the checkout stations. Although I was really very close to these models none of them noticed that I was sketching them. People seem to be in their own little worlds. 

Bobbins & Buttons

 On Saturday I joined the South Bay Art Association Sketch Group at the Brookhaven Free Library. Once a month they have been sketching a still life setup. We were supposed to sketch a vintage Singer sewing machine and items to go with it. There was a problem however. The cover of the sewing machine was locked and there was no key available. The member who owns it had it in her storage locker which had been broken into. Whoever broke in took the key and left the sewing machine. Linda didn't realize that once the cover was on it was locked. We played around with it a bit trying to unlock it but we had no success. Luckily Linda had brought along some jars filled with bobbins and buttons. We arranged them into an interesting still life and sketched that.

Do Not Enter

When I am driving along a street near the water I always check out the side streets to see if there is something interesting down there since so many places here have docks and buildings that go with them. Somehow I've missed this spot, even though I've been to several of the Patchogue marinas nearby. This was past a business that didn't seem to have anything to do with marinas or docks. I went a bit farther and parked my mobile studio with a view of these ramshackle sheds. I definitely did not plan to enter...I was fine where I was. 

Shells

On Wednesday the Patchogue Sketch Club's theme for the night was tiny objects. I have a lot of shells around and most of these are not even an inch long. I sketched the shapes of the shells before adding watercolor. 

Shellfish Marine

This spot at the town dock in Sayville is usually an interesting spot to sketch. There are always big boats that are being repaired or painted. These two guys were sanding the hull of the ship and were pretty much covered in white dust. I hope their masks were actually respirators. 

Country Corner Tavern

 I love when I find something new to sketch like this rather worn building. The plus was having the traffic signs right in front of me too. The Country Corner Tavern looks like a fun place. Maybe I should have gone in for something to eat and some guitar lessons. This was sketched from my mobile studio in East Setauket while it drizzled.

Oyster Bay Houses

Why sketch one house if I can do two and 2 halves? This was sketched in Oyster Bay. I liked the row of houses and couldn't decide which one to sketch. I started sketching the yellow one and I slowly added a second and they looked like they needed a bit more company on the sides.

Oyster Bay Harbor

When I was in Oyster Bay painting the row of houses I had time to ride over to the harbor where I found this scene to paint. 

For the last Creative Spark Scavenger Hunt there were several types of vehicles on the list. I sketched a truck that was parked in the lot.

Right in town there is a motorcycle shop, 20th Century Cycles, where apparently Billy Joel has several of his motorcycles. I haven't been inside but there were two motorcycles parked across the street from it. Figuring that the people were probably in the motorcycle shop I thought I would have enough time to sketch the entire thing...WRONG! I still had the back wheel to sketch when the two men came out. Luckily they had to don their helmets and gloves which gave me just enough time to sketch the back of the cycle. Whew! I'm glad I only started the one motorcycle.

Gilgo Beach House

One of the beach areas here on Long Island that was always popular with surfers is Gilgo Beach. Unfortunately it was one of those places where you had to be a resident of a particular town to gain access and park without paying a high price. Since I didn't surf and there were so many wonderful beaches I could go to I was went to Gilgo during the season. I have visited off season when you can park without a problem. There is a small area with a road and maybe about a dozen houses. I drove over there the other day with my Strathmore Toned Tan Sketchbook, my pens (including my white Signo gel pen), my watercolor pans and watercolor pencils. I sketched this house on Cottage Lane.

I wasn't really happy with the way the white looks. It seems too bright for the other colors. I tried going over the white with a dry watercolor pencil, but it didn't do much to tone it down. As much as I love having a white pen that works I do wish they made it in more of a cream color too. I've checked at Blick when I've shopped there but didn't see any other light colors. I'll have to check online.

Still Life

A challenge was posted for a still life of at least 3 items on the scavenger hunt list over at Creativespark.art. I managed to get a bottle, a bowl, a fruit, a veggie and something yellow all into my painting. 

Sayville Boat

One of the items in the Scavenger Hunt for Creativespark.art is a boat. Since I am surrounded by them I have no excuse for not getting one done unless I am stuck in the house for 10 days. lol This boat was docked behind the Lands End Catering. I wonder how you get on and off the boat if there is no loading and unloading. lol

Karen Abend (who organizes Sketchbook Challenge) did a New Year's Challenge with prompts this week. I had planned to participate...after all it was only for 5 days, but I couldn't get excited about the prompts. I did the first two and then bailed on the others.

The first one was a rounded shape and you could do anything inside of the shape. I did a head.

The second prompt was the words "bunny + flower." For this one at least I tried something different. The bunny was done in watercolors and the flowers were done in colored markers. I'm trying to mix things up and use different materials if I can. 

The third day was too similar to the first day and I had a lot going on this week, so I stopped. That is unusual for me. Usually if I start a challenge I finish. What can I say? lol I created something every day anyway.

 

East Quogue Shop

Going back to the 70s I rented a summer house with friends in the town of East Quogue which is part of the Hamptons. I have very fond memories of that time and every once in a while I take a ride out there and see what is still around that I remember and what is new. There are a number of new shops (even bagels...yay!) and this is one of them. I like that they have retained the original buildings and have not gutted them and turned them into a strip mall. 

Port Jeff Water View

 I like wandering in the towns out here that are along the water. Port Jeff (Port Jefferson) has a lot of old, quaint houses in the town and overlooking the water like this one. I sat in the empty parking lot of one of the town marinas to get this view looking up into the hills. 

Converse All Stars

Last night the Patchogue Sketch Club met and our theme was "shoes." Another member, Christina brought in her son's red Converse All Stars. I saw the red and just had to do them!

 

Odd Couple

 Yesterday was a damp day with showers most of the day. I had a few errands to run and then looked for something outdoors to sketch. I've been to Bello Poultry Market in Holbrook to sketch before...but only from the outside. On the side of the parking lot there were two statues, one of a rooster and one of a cow. Now how could I pass that up? I angled my car a bit and needed to use the wipers so I could see, but I did sketch both of them. Some day I will go inside the market and check that out too.

Wildlife Center

 Yesterday I took a ride to visit my sister, Mickey in NJ. It was a fairly nice day so we headed over to the James A. McFaul Wildlife Center in Wycoff, NJ to sketch and to take a walk. It was nice to be able to enjoy an outdoor art day together.

Mickey took a photo of me sketching. It was nice to have a table to spread out on.

Catching Up

 With the holiday excitement there are a few sketches that never got posted.

Avocados in a Mexican-American Grill in Bayport. It was a cold day for sketching so my mobile studio came in very handy. Haven't tried the restaurant yet.

Here are two sketches done for the Scavenger Hunt at Creativespark.art...

an angel

and a poinsettia done in red ballpoint pen.

Out With the Old - In With the New

 Yesterday was New Year's Eve and although it was a dreary, wet day I had to go out to pick up a painting from an exhibit in Patchogue. While I was out I decided to do a sketch. I found this view of the back of some buildings and sat in my "mobile studio" to sketch. At times I did have to put the wipers on to see the view. So here is my last painting of 2022.

2023 arrived today and luckily the weather was much more cooperative. It was sunny and mild (somewhere around 55 degrees) and I headed to one of my favorite places...Robert Moses State Park where the Fire Island Lighthouse is located. It is amazing to me to see the number of people who come here on January 1 each year. The boardwalk to the lighthouse was crowded with people and many of them had their dogs with them. I walked to the lighthouse which I believe is just under a mile. There were a lot of people outside, a long line to climb to the top (no way for me) and they were giving out free hot cocoa and cookies to the visitors. I parked myself against the railing in front of the lighthouse and sketched some of the people. I was able to sit down for a while when someone vacated a bench, so I was able to comfortably add watercolors. This is my first sketch of 2023. When I walked up to the window to get some cocoa the ladies there wanted to see what I had sketched and asked me to post it to their FB page.

On the walk back to the parking area I found a bench facing the lighthouse and did a small painting. This is the last page in this particular sketchbook which I started back in 2014. The paper is definitely not meant for wet media, but it is small and fit in my bag. A family came along and the kids were really interested in watching me paint. The parents asked if I minded and I said no. It was really nice talking to all of them. One little girl loves art and asked if she could see the other sketches in the book. The mom had majored in art in college but hasn't sketched or painted anything in a long time since she's so busy raising her family. I told her to find time, even if it is only a few minutes, and do something art related for herself. It was a nice way to spend the day and share my art on the 1st day of the year.