Miramar Beach

Last Wednesday the Patchogue Sketch Club met at Miramar Beach in East Patchogue. It is a small beach on the bay which isn't too exciting. I liked this house that was next to the beach and the fact that by the time we were leaving there was some color in the sky from the sunset.

Beach Sketch

This was the first beach sketch I've done in a long time. Luckily I had a sleeping model in front of me.

DUMBO

My first weekend back the NYC Urban Sketchers went to DUMBO which is short for Down Under the Manhattan Beach Overpass. It is an area that right now is a big tourist destination. This first sketch that I did of the Manhattan Bridge had so many tourists standing in the middle of the street taking selfies. I think the street will eventually have to be a pedestrian only street because the people posing are an accident waiting to happen.

After lunch I went a few blocks away and sketched this view of the Brooklyn Bridge.

In the park in front of me was an interesting couple so I sketched them too.

Workshop with Pat Southern-Pearce

Believe it or not, I think I am down to a final post from my trips to Amsterdam and Paris. I am skipping back to Amsterdam for this double-page spread. The first workshop I took in Amsterdam was with Pat Southern-Pearce. She does these wonderful spreads that usually incorporate sketching, lettering, and writing. They are a very unique style and I am not sure how I can incorporate her teachings into my own work, but I am going to attempt it from time to time. One of the important things about Pat's work is that she uses toned paper. For our workshop Stillman & Birn supplied their new 3 toned sketchbooks for us to use...grey, tan and black papers were included in one sketchbook. It was fun to follow along with Pat. She usually begins with a skyline sketch of the area and then includes small sketches (very often in boxes) to show other details of the area. She has a wonderful font of her own that she uses when doing any kind of lettering or writing. I finally finished the spread that I started in her workshop. Yay!!

Around Paris 2

Since I only had a short time in Paris to sketch I planned to make the most of it. The same day that I sketched from the cafe and did the fountain I kept going. Most of the Paris sketchers took a break for lunch at a restaurant but I kept going. I sketched this everyday market on the street.

 

Next I wandered back over toward the Seine and came across this interesting building that I just had to sketch.

And I just had to sketch outside Shakespeare & Company.

This is my farewell to Paris...one last photo.

Around Paris

My hotel in Paris was near Notre-Dame and I passed it quite often. One morning I got up and went out to get a croissant and coffee for breakfast. I went down along the Seine to sit and eat. I was facing the back of Notre-Dame where a lot of the scaffolding could be seen. I did a sketch of the view.

My friend, Lois, had met a few of the USK Paris sketchers at the Symposium and they let us know about their gathering on Sunday. We met up with the sketchers at a cafe and sketched from there until most of the group arrived. We talked, shared information and had coffee. I did this sketch of the view from my cafe table. There was a cute stuffed bear sitting there so I included him too.

The group moved to the Luxembourg Gardens next. There was a beautiful fountain with far too many horses to sketch....but I did them anyway.

Here are a few more photos taken around Paris.

More of Monet's Garden

Full disclosure...these were NOT painted completely on site in Monet's Garden in Giverny. I had the very beginnings of two small paintings and I decided to finish them. I will show you the painting and then what it looked like when the guard stopped me. lol I used photos and my memory to finish these.

I had very little done.