There is a memorial at Smith Point Park to TWA Flight 800 that exploded and crashed into the ocean near Smith Point Beach in 1996. It is a beautiful memorial with wonderful plants and flowers. I've sketched there many times and did so recently. These beautiful irises were clustered together near one of the walls. The dunes and the ocean are beyond this area.
The small buildings at The Sayville Grange need some repairs, but apparently the town doesn't have money in their budget for repairs...although the gazebo on the property was just replaced with a new one that is nearly double the size of the original one. I've sketched this building many times in the past. It was done in the Venice sketchbook. As you can see the pages work a lot better with the watercolor ground on them. I'll have to cover another group of pages soon.
I did this digital sketch down by the beach in Sayville. These three ladies had a front row spot to watch the water. I had a hard time using Procreate in the sun on my iPad. There is such a glare and the colors and work don't look correct in the sun. It is sort of like seeing what is on your phone in the sunshine.
Most of the houses in Sayville have been updated, especially after the storms that have battered the area in the past. This house still looks a little worn and weathered and is right near the beach. I think it needs a little TLC.
My plein air group visited the Peconic River Herb Farm in Calverton recently. I can always find an interesting view with the small buildings and structures they have on the property.
There are some interesting pine trees near the beach in Sayville. I love the tiny pinecones that grow in clusters.
The NYC Urban Sketchers headed to the Fort Greene area of Brooklyn, home to the Brooklyn Academy of Music and the Barclay Center recently. The area has really changed since I was there last (about 12 years ago.) We met at a small plaza on Lafayette Street. Directly across was Fancy Free, a Brooklyn Pub which has an incredible crowd of people on line outside. At 10 AM the line went all the way down the block. Why? To begin with they were displaying the trophy for the Premier Soccer League and visitors could go inside and take photos with it. Then a crowd stayed and watched the Arsenal team (the local team) win the Premier League championship. Also inside at the time was the current NYC Mayor Mamdami as well as Spike Lee, the filmmaker and director who is from the neighborhood.
Although I had no interest in the game I was up for the challenge of sketching Fancy Free and the huge crowd watching the game.
