Sunday, April 30, 2017

First 10 x 10 workshop on vignettes at the Oregon Historic Society

The first 10 x 10 workshop on sketching vignettes at the Oregon Historic Society Museum was a total success. Looking forward to 9 more with these and other sketchers. The first three workshops are sold out but there are still spaces in the ones coming up later this spring and summer. 



Sunday, April 23, 2017

March for Science / Government Buildings

I got soaked riding downtown to meet with the other sketchers.

After coffee and breakfast we wandered out into the rain.   Which had settled down to, at best, a drizzle.   I hung out in front of the federal building all morning.

I started out doing the sculptures at the entrance while waiting for the March for Science to get started and reach us.





 













Then a motorcycle cop who was directing traffic out of the way of the march.




















And finally, I caught Andrea lost in her own creative process.

March for Science and Government Buildings Sketchcrawl

To mark a new chapter in the Resistance movement I made a new accordion book to take to the March for Science on Earth day, April 22, 2017. 



Every time I would find a good vantage point to sketch rain would start and I would have to scurry for cover. I did spot my favorite Unpresidented Brass Band right away who were tuning and prepping ahead of the march.


Sketching from the top of the of Morrison bridge allowed me to capture the crowd listening to the rally speakers ahead of the march. Congressman Earl Blumenauer addressed the enthusiastic crowd about the dangers of the government who does not believe in facts or science. 


Always a crowd pleaser–a group of Raging Grannies. 



As the rain intensified I found cover in a parking lot on Columbia Ave. that allowed me to see the crowd as they were turning off Naito parkway. I used the same trick during the Women's March in January.  



Most of color had to be finished at home, as I wasted too much time running away from the rain. 


Science March / Government Buildings

A small crew gathered at the Good Earth Cafe, cozy inside while it rained hard outside.

I sketched a few people in the cafe who seemed to be about to march.



Then we all went outside.  The rain let up.  I focused on a view of the Portland Building.  There are a lot of protected views from the awning in front of the Justice Center.


Finally we met up at Rock Bottom Brewery for lunch.  It was another delightful time.

Friday, April 21, 2017

Government Buildings / Science March Sketch Crawl tomorrow!

APRIL 22

This is a reminder about our sketch crawl tomorrow!

With so many critical things happening politically right now, it is good to know where government functions are, and to sketch them. There are a lot of government buildings clustered around this spot. We will sketch around Lownsdale Square, at SW 3rd and Main, near the Elk Statue.  If there is a protest that day, we can sketch that too.  The Science March is happening tomorrow - so it will be a great thing to sketch.

Rain is predicted so bring your rain gear.
  • 9:30am - 10:00am 10:00am - Meet at Good Earth Cafe () for coffee, snacks, and socializing.
  • 10:00am - Option 1 - sketch the rally at the Morrison Bridge
  • 10:30am - Option 2 - sketch government buildings, statues, cars, and marchers possible protesters.
  • 12:00noon - Optional lunch and sketchbook sharing at Gandhi Indian Restaurant (
See you there!

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Monday, April 3, 2017

Cherry blossoms again

One last try for the cherry blossoms on the waterfront.  Still blooming away.  But there's a rain of petals now, and a tinge of green as the leaves are starting to come out.


On this one I was trying for pen and ink for the tree and rocks, and for serendipitous splatters for the blossoms.

Granted, it took a while to find random splatters that I liked.










This was going to be a value sketch.
But the sun decided to leave us at this point and all of my shadows disappeared.






Finally, I remembered the brush that I'd brought to experiment with.  I used it to put down the vertical lines of the tree, and then used my finger to smudge in the faint horizontal lines of the bark.