Cathedral of Saint John the Divine - Part 3

 A musical rehearsal was scheduled for 2:00 so I headed back into the main part of the cathedral. There were a number of people setting up and doing sound and lighting checks, but no performers ready to rehearse. That was disappointing because hearing music in there is heavenly. I sketched until our meeting time for show and tell at 3:00 focusing on the piano and the area around the main altar. Due to limited time I didn't finish all of the color on site. I made sure to do the ink lines and was able to do a little of the color, but the rest was completed at home.

Cathedral of Saint John the Divine - Part 1

On Saturday the NYC Urban Sketchers met at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine on Amsterdam Ave and 112th Street in Morningside Heights in Manhattan. We've sketched there a few times. It is VAST and really a beautiful place. It is the cathedral of the Episcopal Diocese of New York and construction was started in 1892, but the building is unfinished with only two-thirds of it completed due to style changes, work interruptions, and unstable ground on the site. It is often used for events and art exhibitions.

For my first sketch I focused on the stained glass window over the entrance to the cathedral. I had just finished my sketch when a woman on the staff came over and told us we couldn't use watercolors. That was a surprise to many of us because we have used them there in the past. I put my watercolors away for the moment, but planned on using them in one of the back chapels.