Brookfield Place - Part 2

 After I finished the double spread that I posted yesterday I went downstairs at Brookfield Place and sat with a number of the sketchers from our group. It was lunch time so we took turns going upstairs and getting something to eat. It is always fun to peek at what others have been sketching and the views that they chose. My friend, Janette came in from outside. I think she may have been one of the few sketchers who sat outside to paint...and she did it both in the morning and the afternoon. It was good to see her. I hadn't seen her since back in the spring because she was taking art classes on the weekend and couldn't make our sketch events. She had bought a painting of mine and I was finally able to bring it to her.

After lunch I face the interior of Brookfield Place. It has wonderful high windows like an atrium and tall palm trees. It is really a great view. This was done in direct watercolor.

I had about 25 minutes before we were doing our show and tell. I turned and faced the outside where there was a skating rink. I was able to complete an ink sketch, but was unable to add the color on location. I'm not sure if it will add color or leave it as it is.

After our show and tell I walked with Janette to the Oculus where I caught the E train up to Penn Station and the Long Island Railroad. I had a short wait and boarded the train which wasn't too crowded. I was able to stretch out comfortably in my triple seat and sketch the couple on the other side of the aisle. This was a continuous line drawing.

It was a really good day spent with like-minded people!

Trip to Brookfield Place - Part 1

On Saturday I headed into the city to meet the NYC Urban Sketchers. I took the Long Island Railroad and then the subway to get there. The ride on the LIRR was quite shaky so I did a continuous line sketch of one of the few passengers in pencil. The train wasn't very crowded and I tried not to be obvious while I sketched. I don't think he noticed, even though he wasn't absorbed in his phone like most people.

Brookfield Place is in downtown Manhattan near the World Trade Center. I had a bit of a walk and snapped this photo of the Oculus, a transportation hub and office towers that serve over a million people every week. The building reminds me of a winged bird.

I found the group inside Brookfield Place. Some members were sitting downstairs sketching, but I headed upstairs by the food area with my friend, Sonia, We got some coffee, sat at a table by the window with a great view, and chatted while we sketched. The view is the buildings on the other side of the Hudson River.

10 x 10 Workshop with Julie Kessler

Yesterday I took one of the NYC Urban Sketcher's 30 x 30 workshops with Julie Kessler, who is a wonderful artist. Her workshop was called "Look Here: Finding the Center of Interest." Although I have been painting for a long time, I sometimes feel that I lose my center of interest because of all my details. Julie gave us 4 rules for emphasizing a center of interest...value contrast: have the darkest darks and the lightest lights there; color saturation: use your most intense color there; hard edges: use the strongest, sharpest edges there; and detail: it should be the most detailed area and the star of your composition. Julie suggested that when you find the scene that appeals to you, you should give the composition a name. It will help you focus on the center of interest in that composition.

We were at Brookfield Place which is along the Hudson River. It has a marina, restaurants, lots of people, and a view across to New Jersey. Our first "assignment" was to find a spot that attracts our attention and use the 4 rules as we developed our painting or sketch. I focused on a man sitting under an umbrella. He has the most detail and strongest color and the background is less detailed. We had about 45 minutes to work so I didn't get to take this as far as I would have liked.

"Under the Umbrella" by Joan Tavolott

Next we spoke about lines that lead or flow toward the center of interest. This can include the lines of buildings, streets, objects, or people or animals that face the direction of the center of interest.

This time I focused on the fancy ice cream card that was outside. Again I didn't quite have enough time to complete this but I was happy with it.

"Ice Cream Cart" by Joan Tavolott

There were photos taken while we were working and here are a few.

Julie instructing us before sending us off to sketch.

A photo of me beginning my sketch. (Courtesy of Erin Hill)

Me at "show and tell." (Courtesy of Shawne Cooper.)

Shawne Cooper showing her sketch.

The whole group. (Photo courtesy of Erin Hill.)

City Views Part II

When I finished the previous sketch of St. Paul's Chapel I headed to the cemetery in back of the chapel. That's where I found many of the other sketchers. I had a very short time before we were heading off for lunch so I did a quick sketch with my brush pen.

We headed over to Brookfield Place to meet our other sketchers who were taking part in a collage workshop. Lunch was next and it was fun catching up with some people I hadn't seen in a while and new people too. After lunch we went outside and sketched the views. I focused on the glass building we had been in earlier. All those panes of glass were a challenge. lol

Brookfield Place - Part II

Our day at Brookfield Place's Winter Garden Atrium continued with a great lunch upstairs at the food court. There were some really good choices and I had one of the best BBQ brisket sandwiches! It was so good that I didn't even stop to think about drawing it. lol

After lunch I headed down to the main floor again. This pastry, cookie, candy shop looked so inviting. I knew I would be in trouble if I entered (especially since they were giving out samples of something) so I sat at a distance to sketch this.

Here is a photo of the impressive installation of the luminaries.

The lanterns were so tempting I had to do another sketch of them. This time I included some people. 

I did start a sketch on my iPad going into the city in the morning, but then I met my friend as the train reached her stop and didn't finish it then. I worked on it a bit more after she left the train going home. Most of it was done from memory after we pulled out of the station in the morning. lol

Brookfield Place - Part I

On Sunday the NYC Urban Sketchers met at the Winter Garden Atrium at Brookfield Place in downtown Manhattan. It is a beautiful 10 story glass pavilion with views towards New Jersey. As a special treat there was an art installation that was inspired by the Festival of Lights in Thailand. 650 lanterns were suspended overhead, scattered between the palm trees. The lanterns changed color throughout the day as people put their hands on the touch-sensitive podiums. It was beautiful!

We arrived a little late due to subway route changes and found that several of the sketchers had been stopped by security. We were told that we could sketch but couldn't sketch the structure of the building. lol People were taking photos of the building, but we couldn't sketch it? That didn't make much sense.

I took my chances and for my first sketch I included the arched windows looking out towards NJ. This sketch was done directly in watercolors.

We had quite a few sketchers including some board members from Urban Sketchers who were in NYC for meetings. Here are a few photos of the other sketchers. Wasn't it nice of them to provide tables and chairs for us?

 My second sketch also included the luminaries which had changed color. I sketched directly in ink and then added the watercolors for this one.

At 12:15 we gathered together for a quick "show and tell" because the board members had to leave for a meeting. We each showed our work from the morning and then posed for a group photo.

By that time we were ready for lunch...more tomorrow.