By Wesley E. Douglas, Urban Sketchers Chicago
Some people text or read, daydream,
some meet with friends, while others eat or nap on the train. There is,
however, a group of artists who sketch a wide range of passengers on various Metra
routes. They represent a local group known as Urban Sketchers Chicago (USk Chicago) and they are part of a global community of
artists that enjoy drawing on location in cities, towns, and villages in which
they live, work, or have visited. Examples include but are not limited to
cafes, street scenes, buildings, houses, shops, landscaping, people, domestic
animals, transportation centers (i.e. airports, train stations and buses) as
well as what you see while you are traveling.
Illustration: Brian Wright Illustration: Wes Douglas
Sketching people
on public transportation is a favorite subject of these artists because they
are always different and interesting. In our own way, Urban Sketchers are
quietly doing our part to elevate the current Metra Rail “Ride Nice” campaign
#metramanners. Who knows? Maybe the more smiles we can create with our sketches
the less riders will be throwing digital jabs at one another about
inappropriate behavior.
Urban
Sketchers do not sketch from memory or photographs but by direct observation in
person. This becomes particularly challenging because people on trains move
around a lot. But it is also rewarding when those being sketched discover how
their likeness is elevated to a fresh new perspective by these artists.
Wes Douglas
remembered hearing one lucky passenger exclaim, “When someone snaps your photo
on the train, it’s a little creepy. But when someone sketches you it is a
relief.” These artists capture many different positions, colorful clothing and the
expressions of commuters on paper.
Our urban
sketchers are located all over the Chicagoland area and depend on public
transportation for traveling between work and home as well as gatherings with
fellow urban sketchers. And since a large portion of their day is spent on
commuting, urban sketchers make the most of it by knocking out a few sketches
to pass the time.
To learn more
about Urban Sketchers Chicago and where they will be sketching next go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/UrbanSketchersChicago/
To learn more about Metra
Rail’s Ride Nice campaign: https://metrarail.com/about-metra/newsroom/metra-customers-select-new-subjects-courtesy-campaign
