My Kinda Town, Chicago Is…

Urban Sketchers Chicago is excited to be hosting the 2017 Urban Sketchers 8th Annual Symposium. We'll be welcoming over 450 urban sketchers from around the world to meet, sketch, and share our city! As a teaser of all the sights in store for you next year, over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing some of our sketches (both new and old) of our beautiful, diverse, and exciting Chicago. 

First of all – Congratulations Cubs! 

Chicago is sports. I must add a W flag remarque to this print!

You name it Chicago has it and then some! Sports, music, art, iconic architecture, Lake Michigan, pizza, hot dogs, gourmet food, parades, history and on and on and on!

Chicago is music

Chicago is art and architecture

Chicago is "The Lake"

Most of all for me, Chicago is a great place for Urban Sketchers  to show the world one drawing at a time!

Know It All?

Urban Sketchers Chicago is excited to be hosting the 2017 Urban Sketchers 8th Annual Symposium. We'll be welcoming over 450 urban sketchers from around the world to meet, sketch, and share our city! As a teaser of all the sights in store for you next year, over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing some of our sketches (both new and old) of our beautiful, diverse, and exciting Chicago. 

Morning light in the alley

There's always something new to learn! I spent Saturday in Chicago's Ravenswood neighborhood at the workshop "FEARLESS Sketching in Pen, Ink and Watercolor with Adriana Gasparich."  What a fun day! The workshop was held in Ingrid Albrecht's studio in Ravenswood.

As an artist, no matter how much experince I have or how much I know (or think I know) there's always more to learn. That certainly was the case last Saturday. Thank you Adriana and Ingrid for an inspiring, friendly and encouraging day!

These sketches were done in a Stillman & Birn Zeta Series sketchbook.

Afternoon light 

I'm looking forward to the wealth of knowlege coming our way at the Symposium next summer!

The Hancock Tower – 360° and 365 Days – Chicago

Urban Sketchers Chicago is excited to be hosting the 2017 Urban Sketchers 8th Annual Symposium. We'll be welcoming over 450 urban sketchers from around the world to meet, sketch, and share our city! As a teaser of all the sights in store for you next year, over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing some of our sketches (both new and old) of our beautiful, diverse, and exciting Chicago. 

Northwestly view from Olive Park

The Hancock Tower is the fourth tallest building in Chicago and surely one of the city's architectural icons. I don't know if it's one of my favorite building to draw, but from the number of times I've sketched it, it sure calls out to me. Though sometimes it plays hide-and-seek, it's always there for me to draw. 

It's my directional beacon. It's also my neighbor, greeting me when I look out the window.

Looking East

Good morning, Chicago!

It's always there, calling me home.

Navy Pier– Something for Everyone

Navy Pier, Chicago

Urban Sketchers Chicago is excited to be hosting the 2017 Urban Sketchers 8th Annual Symposium. We'll be welcoming over 450 urban sketchers from around the world to meet, sketch, and share our city! As a teaser of all the sights in store for you next year, over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing some of our sketches (both new and old) of our beautiful, diverse, and exciting Chicago. 

Whatever the season, weather, or time of day, Navy Pier is a great place to draw. In fact it's one of my favorites!  -Barbara

Rainy day at Navy Pier

Winter evening at Navy Pier

Spring at Navy Pier

Glorious autumn day at Navy Pier, even though a boat docked and blocked my view!

Urban Sketchers –Meeting, Sketching, Sharing in Chicago!

Urban Sketchers Chicago is excited to be hosting the 2017 Urban Sketchers 8th Annual Symposium. We'll be welcoming over 450 urban sketchers from around the world to meet, sketch, and share our city! As a teaser of all the sights in store for you next year, over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing some of our sketches (both new and old) of our beautiful, diverse, and exciting Chicago. 

One of my favorite places to sketch – The South Garden, the Art Institute of Chicago, 2009

One of my favorite places to sketch – The South Garden, the Art Institute of Chicago, 2016

Recently, I was going through some old sketchbooks and found myself saying over and over, "Oh, that's one of my favorite places to sketch!" Then it dawned on me, I love sketching in Chicago – anywhere. I hope you will, too. 

– Barbara

Spotlight Sunday – Amy Larsen

Spotlight Sunday is series of interviews designed to introduce and highlight Chicago Urban Sketchers individually. Now that our chapter has reached nearly 500 members it has become more of a challenge to meet every member in person and have a conversation. These posts concentrate on individuals and speak in their own words and sketches.

Midwest Buddhist Temple - Amy Larsen

Meet Amy Larsen!

Interviewed by Barbara Weeks

Amy Larsen

Barbara Weeks: Hi, Amy. You’ve been a member of

Urban Sketchers for a long time! I remember sketching with you in 2012 at the Buddhist Temple. It’s more than time for the spotlight to shine on you! Tell us a little about yourself.

Amy Larsen: I’m a freelance graphic artist, mom and grandma. I’ve always loved animals, nature and art. My interest in drawing and painting started as a young girl and stuck with me through the years. I have studied watercolor painting at Dillman’s where my teachers include the very talented artists David Taylor, Rose Edin and Ken Hosmer, and various classes at The School of the Art Institute.

BW: What prompted you to join USk Chicago?

AL: I discovered Urban Sketchers online before there was a Chicago group. So as soon as I saw the group forming I joined up. I sometimes search online for sketches and sketchbooks, because I love looking at them, which led me to the Moleskine sketching groups, and then to Urban Sketchers.

BW: I think there are as many different reasons to sketch as there are sketchers. Why do you sketch?

AL: Three things come to mind. I enjoy time spent losing myself in the activity. The challenge of depicting a scene. And the beauty of light and shadow on form.

BW: Do you have a favorite subject? Why?

AL: I’ve been enjoying painting botanicals lately. Flowers and plants have the qualities I like; beautiful colors, graceful forms and the effects of light and shadow.

BW: Do you have a favorite sketching medium? What do you like about it?

AL: I have always loved watercolor. I love it for its simplicity and luminosity. But I love markers and pastel and oil paints too! I think it can be beneficial to switch it up sometimes.

BW: I agree, it's beneficial and fun. I sketch to get away from the computer, but your work on the iPad is making me rethink that idea and try a new medium! What do you like most about sketching on the iPad? Are there drawbacks? (HA, no pun intended.)

At Architectural Artifacts – iPad sketch

AL: Well, I love being able to bring any medium and every color on my sketching trip in one slim package. The new apple pencils pressure sensitivity has made drawing on the iPad much more fun. I haven’t even scratched the surface of all it can do. It’s just a matter of one’s own creativity. Drawbacks? I wouldn’t want to drop it!

BW: If you could sketch anywhere in the world where would that be?

AL: No specific place. Traveling anywhere with other artists would be a dream come true. River cruise down the Rhine anyone? Someday I will.

BW: That river cruise is on my list, too. When you’re not sketching what do you enjoy doing?

AL: Fooling around with the iPad! Scrolling through my Facebook feed. Snuggling with my dogs. Watching movies. Listening to music. Taking pictures around the area. Cooking. Gardening.

Wrigley Building Courtyard

BW:  A Renaissance Woman! We know you’re on FaceBook, do you have other social media accounts where we can view your work? (Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest etc.)?

AL: Yes, I’m here:

• Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/amdovsen/
• Blog:  https://amdovsen.wordpress.com/ 
• Online Gallery:  http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/amy-larsen.html    
• FaceBook:  https://www.facebook.com/amdovsen?fref=ts

BW: Thanks, Amy, for sharing your sketches and thoughts with all of us!

Spotlight Sunday – Cathy Turley

Spotlight Sunday is series of interviews designed to introduce and highlight Chicago Urban Sketchers individually. Now that our chapter has reached nearly 500 members it has become more of a challenge to meet every single member in person and have a meaningful conversation. These posts concentrate on individuals and speak in their own words.

Meet Cathy Turley!

Cathy Turley

Interviewed by Barbara Weeks

Barbara Weeks: Thanks for agreeing to this interview, Cathy. Tell us a little about yourself.

Cathy Turley: I’m originally from Kalamazoo, Michigan. (“Yes, there really is a Kalamazoo!”) I came to Chicago to go to Moody Bible Institute. I’ve lived in Chicago for the better part of 25 years. I am a graphic designer/production artist at an advertising agency. I’ve always considered myself artistically inclined, but not something I have developed regularly.

BW: What prompted you to join USk Chicago?

CT: Somehow I stumbled across the Instagram feed of USk Chicago (@uskchicago) just before the Sketch Seminar last summer. I liked the sketches I saw on the feed and when I heard about all the giveaways for the seminar, I thought, that’s a really great deal! Then I attended the seminar and I got excited about drawing again.

BW: Why do you sketch?

CT: I love it. I like trying to accurately represent something I see. It uses a different part of my brain – a different type of focusing. Plus, I like getting better and meeting other artists.

BW: Do you have a favorite sketching medium? What do you like about it?

CT: I enjoy using pencil, followed by watercolors and then black ink. Right now I’m using a student watercolor palette and LePen Drawing pens. I had tubes of paints in college but they're all dried out. I figure it’s good just to sketch with any medium at hand. I, also, like the watercolor sticks we received in our swag bags at the seminar. I want to try the Velasquez palette, just three colors, Ultramarine Blue, Burnt Sienna, and Yellow Ochre. I like the portability. 

CT: "I enjoy ornate buildings and architectural details."

BW: If you could sketch anywhere in the world where would that be?

CT: I would be a tourist artist in Paris: little folding seat, travel easel, beret(!), sitting on the Seine sketching the city. My husband and I went to Paris for our 5th anniversary. When I saw the green booksellers booths and artists along the river, I got choked up. I said, “it’s just like the movies”. It would be a dream come true to travel through Europe and sketch. Oh, Rome!

BW: What artist(s) have had the most influence on you? Why?

CT: My watercolor instructor, Jim, at the Lansing Community College in Michigan. He gave us an overview of art history, as well as teaching us watercolor techniques.

BW: We know you’re on FaceBook, do you have other social media accounts that you’d like to share?

CT: I love Instagram. Take a look: @CathyTurley. I like graffiti, architecture, knitting and drawing.

CT: "I'm working on drawing people more accurately."

BW: Cathy is a loyal attendee at our monthly sketch meets. She’s introduced herself to us, so be sure to say hi if you see her at our third weekend of the month sketch meets!

Wonder where we’re meeting next? Click on the “Sketch Crawls” tab in the toolbar. I hope you'll join us! 

Where Would You Like Your Art to Be a Year from Now?

Tuesday Tips &Tricks:

At the end of the year, many of us look back and take stock of the past year, what we’ve done, what we didn’t do, and maybe, what we wish we had done. I like to page through my sketchbooks and see how my sketching has changed over the year. What worked? What didn’t? What do I need to work on more? Looking at your work after not seeing it for a while, and looking at it chronologically, is interesting. There’s always a surprise or two!  Then there’s the look to the new year, where would I like my work to be a year from now?

Looking Back Over 2015

Tuesday Tips & Tricks posts have covered topics from architecture to Zen doodles and a whole lot in between! We talked about how to sketch, why to sketch, and what to sketch. We looked at color and shades of gray. We covered sharing your work on-line and in shows. and so much more. We even advised you to ruin your watercolors!  If you found a post helpful and would like to review it check out the Blog Archive in the sidebar and click on your topic of choice. The same goes for TT&Ts you may have missed.

Looking to the Future

Looking to the new year, where would you like your art to be a year from now? What are your goals? (It’s good to set them, but that’s another post.)

The next question is, how can we, at the Urban Sketchers - Chicago blog, help? Do you have a topic you’d like us to explore? Let us know. Leave a comment here with your suggestions and questions.

May we all have a Happy and Artful 2016!

Why and How of the Waterbrush

Tuesday Tips & Tricks:

Have Brush, Will Travel

There are countless little things to be thankful for every day. One of the little things for me is the waterbrush. I don’t know who invented the waterbrush or remember who introduce it to me, but I owe them a debt of gratitude! It is my go-to-brush whenever I’m traveling or sketching on location. In the studio, I use a variety of brushes, but out-and-about, it’s a waterbrush for me. There are quite a few brands out there. They all work in the much the same way, similar, though not exactly, to a fountain pen.

How to Use a Waterbrush 

The brush has three main parts:

1. The plastic barrel that contains the water reservoir.
2. The screw on ferrule connects the bristles to the water supply
3. The cap keeps the water from leaking.

Need more water to moisten the paint in the pans, to make the paint run, or to wet the paper to paint wet-on-wet? To increase the flow of water to the brush just squeeze the plastic barrel! It’s that simple. Want to change colors and clean your brush? Squeeze the barrel and wipe the brush on a tissue or paper towel. I use the cuff of an old white sock. I wear it on my wrist. With a little practice controlling the flow becomes second nature.

Filling the brush varies a little from brand to brand. Some you just unscrew the barrel and hold it under running water. Others use the suction principle. Squeeze the barrel, submerge the opening in a glass of water and release. Easier yet, hold the barrel under running water, squeeze and release. It’s surprising how much water the barrel holds and how long it lasts.

Benefits of the Waterbrush 

“Keep it simple” is one of my mantras and when you’re sketching on location you can’t beat the convenience of the waterbrush. I don't leave home without it. There's no need to carry around an extra water supply for clean water. The cap protects the bristles and fits on the end of the barrel to lessen the chance of losing it. Waterbrushes are available from art supply stores including Dick Blick, Cheap Joe’s, and Jerry’s Artarama.

Do you have an art supply that you’re really thankful for? Tell us about it!

Ten Reasons to Draw and More

#inktober

Tuesday Tips & Tricks:

Everything Old is New Again

Did you know that until the late 1920s - early 1930s drawing was part of the regular school curriculum? While not one of the 3 Rs, it was considered an important tool for developing concepts, sharpening thought, and sharing ideas. What happened? One of the major factors was the development of photography made drawing seem like an unnecessary skill. In more recent years, computer advancements in the visual communication field made drawing appear to be unimportant even unnecessary but things are changing. Whether it’s called drawing, sketching, or doodling, today, we’re rediscovering the benefits of drawing. If you're an experienced artist looking to reboot or a newbie looking for kindred spirits, this is for you.

Why Draw?

1. Improves eye-hand coordination
2. Improves memory
3. Improves communication skills
4. Relieves stress (Have you seen all the coloring books for grown-ups that are in the stores?)
5. Increases creativity
6. Increases observational skills
7. Increases attention to detail
8. Increases positive emotions (Why do you think restaurants give crayons an paper to children?)
9. The more you draw the better your drawing skill
10. It's fun

And this is just a partial list!

Drawing relieves stress, preserves a memory, and conveys ideas.

Draw More

We know the benefits of drawing; it only makes sense to draw more. Want to draw more but need a nudge? It’s funny that two of the causes for drawing less are big helps to start drawing more – the computer and the internet. There’s an internet group out there made just for you and your sketching needs. FaceBook offers an almost endless list of groups that unite like-minded sketchers for encouragement, inspiration, to share information and sketches. There are drawing quests issued on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to challenge you to draw more. Post your work, add the proper # and join in the fun. 

Here’s a small sampling of groups to get you started. Don't hesitate to explore others, too. Be sure to read the groups’ guidelines and join those that are a good fit for you.

On location sketching:

• Urban Sketchers       Click here for Regional Chapters  (edited 10.24.15)
• Urban Sketchers-Chicago
• Plein Air Artists Group
• SketchCrawl
• Urban Watercolorist Group

Sketchbook work:

• Everyday Matters
• Artist’s Journal Workshop
• Inside Your Sketchbook
• In the Artist’s Studio: Daily Practices and Procedures

Hashtags:

The challenges vary and crop up seasonally. Search these hashtags for ideas:

• #inktober
• #everydayinmay

Enjoy and share sketching online communities – Sketchbook Work, Urban Sketching, #EDM2015

Working for years as a graphic designer, I reached a point when I felt handcuffed by the computer and missed the creative boost of sketching by hand. That's when I discovered Urban Sketchers and Everyday Matters. They were the beginning. There was no turning back! I found I didn't need  an excuse to draw, I had reasons to draw. How about you, why do you draw? Do you have a favorite group?

September Morn – Nudging the Muse

Sea Grass, Long Boat Key

Tuesday Tips & Tricks:

It’s been a long time since I’ve gone to school or even had children in school, but to me September is still the beginning of the New Year. It signals not only the end of summer but a fresh start filled with growth and possibilities.

Here on the USk-Chicago blog September is the beginning of a new round of Tuesday Tips & Tricks, aka #TTT. We’ve added two new contributors to our Tuesday ranks. Welcome, Angie Hauch and Ted Gordon! If you were a participant in their workshops at our summer seminar you know why we’re excited to add them to our roster!

A September Ritual

For me, September is the time I examine my creative rituals and make sure they haven’t become just unproductive habits. Dancers have warm-up routines before taking the stage. A singer vocalizes before a performance. Athletes have rituals, too. Think of a golfer, getting ready, stepping up to the tee or batter to the plate. Each goes through a ritual and the swing follows. Why do I have rituals? (I mean besides keeping me from falling down the social media rabbit hole of FB, Instagram, Twitter, and email.) They act as warm-ups for the day or project and flip the creative switch to ON. Do they always work? No, just ask the golfer in the sand trap, but it’s good to have a familiar process to help face the blank page.

Nudging the Muse

Here's a ritual I've followed for a long time when sketching and painting on location. It’s a four-step process.

1. Take a few minutes to look around the area, to walk around if possible.
2. Focus and ask, “What jumps out at me?” “What’s the story of this place?”
3. Scribble two or three quick thumbnails of step 2.
4. Choose one of the thumbnails to be the basis of a larger sketch and begin.

Long Boat Key, thumbnails

Sometimes I don’t get to step 4. I don’t even think about it. The switch has

been flipped. The ritual has done its job. I’m lost in the process and enjoying the ride.

Long Boat Key, thumbnails

#TTT

Research shows that performance and creative rituals have real benefits for those who practice them. They give us focus, create a positive mindset, and help win the procrastination war. If you don't have one give it a try. Do you remember something you did before a particularly fruitful creative session? That's a good place to start. It can be as simple as lighting a candle or listening to a particular piece of music.

In planning a creative ritual:

1. Keep it simple and easy
2. Make it unique to the action you want to trigger
3. Use it. Repeated use reinforces the connection with your desired endeavor
4. Enjoy the process

If you do have a creative habit that works for you, share it here! I love reading about the creative habits of others. 

 Recommended Reads:

The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

Weekly BobBlast by Robert Burridge

Anything by Danny Gregory           

One Requirement for a Successful Art Workshop Experience

Tuesday Tips and Tricks:

Sketchbook Skool Klass with Jonathan Twingley.

It’s that time of year when art workshops and seminars abound. We’re less than a month away from the USk-Chicago Sketch Seminar 2015! There are some great things planned and we’re putting the finishing touches on the details to help you to get the most out of your workshop experience. 

How about you? Are you getting ready for a workshop? Whether it’s an online class, a local workshop, one that involves travel or even if you’re working you way through a self-study book there are certain things that will help you get the most out the experience. Over the years I’ve given workshops and taken many classes both on-site and online.  I’ve found my mindset is the most important factor in what I take away from the class.

• SET A GOAL – Why am I taking this class? What do I hope to learn?

• KEEP AN OPEN MIND – Pay attention and follow directions. It’s easy to fall into the attitudes of “that isn’t the way I do it” or “that isn’t the way so-and-so does it” but leave those notions behind at least for the duration of the workshop.

• THINK PROCESS NOT PRODUCT  (I know, I say that all the time) –  It takes practice to learn new techniques and methods.

• ASK QUESTIONS – Your instructor wants you get the most out of your time in the class.

Last week, Wes gave us excellent advice about what to bring and what to wear. Remember, whether your a novice or a working pro, there is another thing you need for a successful workshop experience, that’s a positive and open workshop-state-of-mind.

The opening sketch of this post is an assignment from a Sketchbook Skool Klass with Jonathan Twingley. The goal was to draw not think.  At the end of a week we cut up the sketches made a mixed media collage to surprising results! 

What's your "must have" for a successful workshop experience?

Links
Richard E. Scott
David Becker 
Veronica Lawlor
Sketchbook Skool

People Who Need (Watercolor) People

Tuesday Tips and Tricks:

Often in urban sketching we focus on the architecture or landmarks we encounter to tell the story of our surroundings. There are times though, when we add people to the scene, even when they’re not the focus. They add an element that can make it easier for the viewer to connect with our visual story. People give scale, energy, life, and an invitation into the scene. When you need or want an extra spark in your landscape or cityscape including people can be the trick you need. In this post I give you tips for using watercolor to add figures to your work.  

Carrots and Rectangles

There are many approaches for quickly adding figures to watercolors. I use a combination of two different methods – carrots and rectangles. Both ways employ similar mind sets.

• Think simple.
• Think shape 
• Think gesture

The Carrot:

     1. Start with simple carrot shape            2. Add a head                     3. Add a little gesture  
                                                                                                                    and shadow

The result from just four strokes, a simple basic figure!

Repeat the process and add a little embellishment. 

Now try playing with just slight changes to the gesture and size of the carrot shapes. Add more, create a crowd or a parade!

The Rectangle:

1. Paint a rectangle    2. Add two strokes for legs    3. Two strokes for arms   4. One for a   
                                                                                                                              head

Tah Dah! A person!

Urban Sketching

 Saturday Morning at the Green City Market, Chicago

Using these simple methods as a starting point you can add the attitude, personality, the
 character of a place, through it's people.

Character Builders:

• Paint a group of carrots and rectangles together.
• Let a few overlap and let the paint mingle.
• What happens when the head stroke touches the shoulder line? When it doesn’t?
• Experiment, add line to emphasize or embellish some of the shapes.
• Try adding just a little detail.

As always, have fun!