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Sketchers from around the world contributed to #USKatHome for March 14th. It has been fascinating to get to know fellow sketchers backyards, front yards, in their homes, out their windows, (and for some their cooped up minds, but all in good fun.)
From 🇷🇺 Saint-Petersburg to 🇦🇺 Melbourne,
~ 🇨🇦 Quebec to 🇪🇸 Barcelona,
~ 🇺🇸 New Hampshire to 🇧🇪 Brussels,
~ 🇩🇪 Hollenstedt to 🇸🇬 Singapore
Artists have rallied up to embrace #StayHome in the most natural way of all by reaching for their sketching gear.
Not to make you feel like you've missed out if you did not participate, but to remind you to make the best of what this time away from our typical routines allow us to do.
🎨🖌️ Enjoy your favorite pastime!
The NYC Urban Sketchers have grabbed the torch to further shine the light this weekend, Saturday, March 21st, to help satisfy, as they say,
@ 10 AM EST -- Go toFacebook.com/groups/nycurbansketchers/
Join their FB Group before Saturday 3/21: FB NYC Urban Sketchers
We had quite a laugh with these sketches.
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Her paintings and sketches always convey a vivid and colorful flow of life.
"Colours tickle my senses," as she states.
If I could have a tour guide for New Delhi, Monali would be my first choice.
I'm always amazed by her sketches, everything from still life with a lot of flare, flowers with an incredible pop of color (proof that my palette is not reaching it's potential), to buildings brought to life.
Her artist demos often "aim to get more vitality in sketches by painting watercolors richer, stronger, and more saturated in colour."
And of course, her people, that draw you right into her adventures. Street vendors, cafe patrons, and general gatherings in the most innocuous places that you might not have stopped to notice.
If you join USK Pune Facebook group, you might catch one of her demos, or at least plan a trip. (Psst. they might ask if you know the Urban Sketcher Manifesto
Or maybe you're traveling to Pune next December, you might catch her at the Pune Art Festival (Didn't even know anything about this, but it's on my list now.)
Click through to: See her colorful works
We've been following Patty's sketching journey for a few months now, and I would like to think she has been following ours as well.
Honestly, Patty is one of our first international Adventurers since we've introduced our line of disc-bound journals, so we were keen to see where she would be painting around her world.
Her style embraces a mix of watercolor artists from different backgrounds, and it's been fun to watch her progress through encapsulating techniques into her own works.
One recently you may recognize from@ianfennelly
Dramatic scenes are created with the use of distinct pen marks and vivid pigments that are loose, but carefully placed to add visual interest to often technical architectural scenery.
Whew... a bit of a mouthful.
Simply put these are eye-pleasing works that capture a heck-of-a-lot of detail.
I think we could all learn a thing or two from such a thorough watercolor sketching course. Take a look at Urban Sketch Course
We can tell just from Patty's experience you'll enhance your painting by learning to mix cleaner colors 🍭, where to better place 🥢 color, details, & texture, and how to stay loose 🍃 and create unique 👁️ perspectives.
?? We asked her what she thought might help expectations for other painters taking such a course...
To which she replied, "...it's real time. You can go over and watch it again at a later stage if you forget things. Often there are so many ideas to remember you forget some. The videos are full length so you see the full technique and Ian's take about his reasons and choices."
Ultimately we think it's another great tool to challenge yourself to take a closer look at the world around you to capture details in a new light.
We've been delighted to learn more about Patty and her world radiating out of Perth. 👏 #doctorswhopaint
Click through to: See her latest travels and say hello. Tell her to keep up the good work.
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I've been fascinated by Marion's sketching style for quite a few years now.
Sketching everywhere and anytime, she has a style all to her own and I'm honestly excited to see what she comes up with next.
Her quote,
(roughly translated) gives you an idea of how her style unfolds.
She is a scenographer by trade, but also a theater decor designer, in charge of Urban Sketchers Paris since 2012, a reportage painter and teacher. You can even see some of her work incorporated into plays as part of the set design. Really neat.
If you've had the privilege of taking one of her courses at an Urban Sketching symposiums, congrats to you. It's definitely on our lists.
But if you're willing to take the trip...
...She will be teaching again onJuly 9-12th, 2020 for aweekend long workshop and sketchwalk with two artists (Jenny Adam & Sebastian Loerscher) in and around Middle Rhine Valley (Bacharach, Oberwesel & St. Goar / Germany) following Victor Hugo's 3-dayjourney along the river.
[*Quick Reminder: Author of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Les Miserables, and Le Rhin]
You can read more about the workshop here. Priced quite reasonably.
Click through to: See her painting blog or read more about her here.
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If you've studied watercolor sketching for a minute, than surely you've crossed paths with Shari Blaukopf.
Between Urban Sketching, traveling, authoring books, showcasing a variety of online courses, she has likely influenced some part of your sketching world, or the world of other sketchers that influence you.
To us she is well versed in so many aspects of watercolor and painting environments that we know she can simplify and showcase the essence of any scene, which is why we always keepan eye on what she's up to.
She has experienced all the trials and tribulations of learning that we all must go through (or will go through).
As she states "My true love has always been watercolour. I started painting as an adolescent, travelled to many places, took lots of workshops and then put my paints away for a long time. I am thrilled to have dusted off my brushes and to have the opportunity to share my work."
Looking back I'm sure we first learned of Shari through two popular courses: Sketching the City in Pen, Ink & Watercolor and Sketching Landscapes in Pen, Ink, & Watercolor.
Learning online is fun and easy, but you may want to step up your game and learn from Shari in person at one of here many workshops here in US, Canada or even Costa Brava, Spain in June.
Have a look before they all sell out.
There is even a 5-day Urban Sketching retreat in July in La Pointe, WI with a few other well-known sketchers (Paul Heaston, Uma Kelkar, and James Richards)
Click through to: See more of her paintings & sketches.
Both a fine artist and accomplished sketcher, Milind creates atmospheric watercolor scenes. If you've been using and/or following Daniel Smith watercolors you're probably familiar with him, but it's always nice to stop and appreciate some of his fine works.
As he states, "Every work of art is initiated with love and passion, and is an expression of the sum total of the artists personality. Technical skill is definitely required; but it is merely the tool to communicate ones message."
His cityscapes are always a pleasure to look at, full of color and interest, that capture the feeling of being in that place. A passion for architecture gives him a keen eye for perspective, which also allows for a variety of angles that you may not have considered when painting.
He has a variety of tutorial books and classy coffee table watercolor books to appreciate his style. And of course watercolor demos onYouTube that are worth a look. Some of my favorites are Forest House, and Bullock Cart. He has a Bob Ross-ian calmness to his walkthroughs that will surely calm the nerves.
Teaching a variety of classes throughout the year, you might catch him in India via his Facebook page, or here at The Watermill in Posara, Tuscany in October 3rd - 10th for a weeklong artist holiday. Dreaming of a getaway? Check out some of the other Watermill workshops as well.
Click through to: See more of his works
We're always excited by a great celebration and one of our favorites is Chinese New Year.
The energy and spirit of the first day, firecrackers, the food and all the way through the lantern festival is always in great fun.
So we've gathered up a collection of dragons, lanterns, and temples to welcome the Year of the Rat!
What will you paint?
Ekaraj's on-location street scenes are really what caught my eye over the last few months. There is something very magical about a temple and bustling streets in the watercolor scenes that he paints.
They truly capture the magnitude of these places in a dreamy way.
As a concept artist he also createsartworks about the Eastern fairly tales, you can visit at Himmapan Tales. You can see in the last two slides of the animation above some of his fantasy characters like Godzilla.
If you're traveling through Bangkok you might catch one of his workshops on the last Sunday of every month. Here. You can also check out a demonstration of his on YouTube of a floating market. Hope he creates more of these.
Click through to: See more of his Facebook page
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Combining the essence of people, their interactions and place into one simple scene is Oliver's specialty. Both drawing for fun in the Urban Sketching community and for business, he keeps his technical skills sharp, but playful.
Would you also have guessed he holds a PhD in Life Sciences?
Well just as importantly, he has honed a skill to teach others this passion for sketching, that started at 9 years old, when he knew he wanted to be a painter, a scientist, and a pirate.
As he says, "I teach a fearless approach to drawing... that allows you to capture life as it happens from your personal point of view."
Maybe you have been lucky to have caught one of his previous intensives around the world, but if not you can get an online experience from hisDesign on the Fly course here.
And while you're at it... Sign up for Studio 56's (home to all things urban sketching) newsletter to keep in the know for a variety of vacation workshops around the world.
Click through to: See Oliver's creative website
Sticking with our technical theme for the week, when I think of highly detailed buildings in watercolor I think of Horiaki.
I love the angles and colors he's able to capture of these historical buildings. The dedication to recreating such a beautiful scene is really remarkable. It will have you searching for your passport in no time.
Maybe you've seen some of prints on the streets of Paris, but if not take a look at the whole collection on his personal site.
Click through to: See his online shop.
I've actually only seen MV's work just a few weeks ago, but when I saw his art, I knew I wanted to share this. The bold and dramatic scenes he portrays in his watercolor work really warm the soul.
By trade he is a concept artist at Ubisoft, Abu Dhabi, but his ability to craft a scene really shines when he brings those skills over to watercolor. You can get a quick example of that from hisFB page here.
Fantasy art isn't personally my first choice, but I love the way MV uses water in these large formats to create such a colorful futuristic and fantastical background for his characters in scene. Something worth trying out. His process alone makes me stop and reconsider how I choose to lay out my own scenes. What do you think?
Click through to: See what he's working on next
Do you remember a time when you took a long break from painting only to pick it up years later?
Well, that's Danny. Art fanatic as a kid, but then college and life-after-college took over and he hadn't picked up a pen or a brush in over 10 years. He moved from rural Ohio to Germany in 2012, to explore life abroad.
As he states:
From the looks of his artwork, I think he's right back in the groove. Painting on location and continues to fill up his sketchbooks.You can check out his personal site here.
And if you like his style and want to experience Urban Sketching in Germany, you can attend one of three workshops he has coming up in March 14, July 5-11, & August 10-14.
Click through to: See what he's been up to lately.
How'd we do all?!!
Another great holiday and we hope it was the same for you.
As we close out the year, we're so impressed with our Adventurers out there. When they ask who your favorite artist is, we hope you choose yourself first.
Have you chosen your Top 9 paintings for the year?
We'd love to share them with the group, so don't be shy and email them over.
We really want to thank all of you Adventurers out there for all your support and feedback over the last year and the last few years.
Health and happiness, safe travels and good paintings to you all.
This is some serious dedication to the craft. I saw this video a few weeks ago, and of course it screams winter, but it really is something else.
Thumbnail sketches and a couple second tries may be the extent of my painting the same scene again and again. But never have I considered creating an animation via watercolor.
Seems so simple, but I can only imagine the hours and hours of work that went into creating this animation for the Alaskan outfitter, Filson.
Click through: To see this watercolor animation directly
So vibrant and fun, paired with unique angular buildings as of late, you immediately want to visit the places she's painting.
As she calls it a deliberate distortion of the scene; we always look forward to wherever she is traveling next.
By now you realize my discovery of new artists is both a matter of fun scrolling social media and serendipity. So learning more about the back story of each artist just locks them into my radar and gets my mind stirring for our next travels and trying out new techniques.
Rae just happens to hail from Sydney Australia, with a 12 year stopover in Maui, and now resides in Texas. She's previously owned a 400-student art school on the beaches of Sydney and two galleries in Maui. Pretty sure she has a healthy passion for art.
She also has an upcoming watercolor course she's hosting in Portugal next October. Not the least expensive, but it includes accommodations and you will for sure learn a thing or two. There may still be some spots availablehere.
Click through to: Take a closer look at her website here.
And we're glad she has started sharing some of her process on YouTube as well. Here's a great video below for you to get a little intro into her love of color. Subscribe!
We've been following Son's posts for a few months now and love the detail and use of dark against light in so many of his paintings. This week's theme of weather fit perfectly with some of his latest winter landscape scenes he's showcased.
Just like many of us, Son is self-taught, but his passion for watercolor really shows to the rigor of an education he has taken on for many years. As he states, "I'm a self taught painter, I paint for pleasure and just hope some day to be better and who knows how far I can go with this?"
We love seeing what he's working on next on Instagram and he's even documented quite a few step-by-step paintings on his Facebook page (linked below) in case you were wondering how he is creating these magical moods.
His professional website is also well organized with any number of scenes from barns, boats, winter landscapes, street life, the Pacific Northwest and a huge variety of types of scenes. Check them out here.
Click through to: See where what he's working on next
Here's a little clip from his process. (Click through to Facebook)
If you haven't seen Jennifer's super creative pet sketches, you need to click through and take a look immediately.
We're always amused by the creativity she comes up with and the pets that she paints, collages, and sketches always bring a smile to our faces.😎Her unique use of watercolor, brush pen, ink, colored pencils and scrap materials bring together some of the freshest animal portraits we have ever seen. Love it!
(You can even have your pet custom painted as well.Here.)
She is a well-rounded sketcher, so don't think it's just pets in her life. Her regular portrait work and landscapes have an amazing style and looseness about them that you will be studying closely for new ways to enhance your own work.
An illustrator, author and design director, with 20-yr stint as creative director at LL Bean, sure show through with her style. But she's sketched all over the world, so we always like to see what she's been up to from time to time.
You can even purchase a great book of her sketch adventure with her friend during their 500 mile walk along the Camino de Santiago.
Click through to: See where she's been travel sketching.
Here's a little clip from her process. (Click through to Vimeo)
We have always loved the way Stacy's work jumps off the page.
Her subject matter from animals to rock faces to whatever is lying around to amazing desert nightscapes makes us envious. Some of the most simple subjects take on a whole new attitude and dimension that draw you right in.
The work that first caught our eye includes a loose splatter and multi-colored aura, we're sure you will be wanting to test out on some of your next sketches.
And of course great penmanship & layout to include all her adventurous tales of the day. We're glad she shares these fun stories with all of us.
Her personal blog also details a variety of her step-by-step paintings you may find inspiring and helpful as well. Click through and say hello. You might even take a course at Art Verve Academy from her while passing through Arizona. Reach out or see what her schedule looks like here.http://artverveacademy.com/stacy-egan
Click through to: See her painting process in action
Let me guess, you haven't been keeping up with your people sketching practice? Yes we know, it's tough to seriously keep at it, so we wanted to circle back with a few key people sketching styles that might stir your creative mind. So grab your pen and pencil and get ready to stare at some new faces.
Fred immediately caught our eye a few months back with a style that we had never even considered. Hopefully he will do the same for you as well.
Click through to: See his latest faces.
His watercolor art is like looking into the past and the future at the same time. He's listed as contemporary & figurative.
It's both fine art and urban sketching mixed together, so although it may appear next to impossible to achieve such a style, I bet if you study just a few of his paintings, you will quickly discover a technique you've never thought of.
Click through to: See his latest works & exhibitions
A pair of shoes... A watercolor pair of shoes first attracted us to Kasiq's amazing painting style. His paintings appear to be very simple, and elegant, but after studying some of his YouTube tutorials (links below), we quickly realized the level of detail that go into some of his works.
We're always looking for a quick win, but we know that if you take a moment to see the way he develops his layers, you will surely up your people game in no time.
Click through to: See his recent styles.
As Rari and I ready ourselves to transition up to the Oregon Coast for the winter, when we start to think about painting on the move, no one comes to mind more than Andrea England.
We have been following her works for years now, and we're always fascinated with the level of detail, emotion, and colorfulness Andrea expresses in her watercolor paintings.
Originally we thought, surely she is using a masking pen or even white acrylic to create such crisp, sharp, rippling lines in between her varying color schemes in her coastal creations, but we assure you she is not. As she states, "Swirling fine white lines of untouched paper give my paintings a sense of life, light and movement." This technique relies solely on her brushes and a steady hand. And layers of vibrant translucent pigment create the sensation of looking beneath the water. Quite remarkable!
As she calls it, "Sailboat life and coastal watercolors." Living and painting on a little yellow boat (36' sloop/single mast) built by her husband's father. Currently touring around British Columbia, her floating home and art studio allows her to find inspiration from each days/weeks anchorage. Not such a bad life for an artist.
Her art blog is basically a log book of her and her husband's sailing adventures. You can surely see her work during #worldwatercolormonth in July, but feel free to peruse the full collection of her quick sketches in her Log Book here.
You can support her work and even buy a set of unique cards, giclee prints and originals from her new shop online. Sailing around finding great inspiration in the naturally changing skies & waters of each season sets the stage for an ever expanding collection of works.
We hope to see more of her techniques in the future.
Click through to: See her latest anchorage
She's quite a popular Urban Sketcher, so we're sure you've seen some of her persistent mini-sketches around New York City and beyond. What really caught our eye is her night sketches and her growing skill representing neon signage in those night scenes.
We personally know the challenge of conveying night time in our own paintings, but we love the work she has been creating and her persistence to develop such a skill in creating these depictions
And also to see that classy little thumbnail sketches should be a part of your weekly practice. Granted the level of detail she can tuck into her mini-sketches can range from what appears to be a lengthy sit-down to a quick coffee sketch...
...know that you too have the time to create a beautiful thumbnail painting no matter where your day takes you.
Of course if you're a keen admirer you can pick up one of Katie's original paintings (ranging from 2x2s, 3x3s, 3x4s, 4x4s, etc.) from her Etsy store. You can also check out her 👹 monster mini 34-color palette that she uses & sells on her other Esty site Woodward & Father, as well as some of her other key sketching tools in her 2019 kit in a full breakdown on her personal site here.
We especially like her dual LED clip light she uses for "nocturnes," as she calls them, that you can pick up for under $15 on Amazon. https://amzn.to/2NpaKa3
[ #paintallnight ]
Click through to: Follow her latest rambling sketch here.
David McEown seriously put the adventure in adventure artist. A phenomenal watercolourist, photographer & conservationist who puts new meaning to getting close to nature. His colorful art is immediately recognizable for its crisp clean style, it is a wonder how he is accomplishing this en plein air.
From capturing penguins in South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands near Antarctica to run-ins with grizzlies on the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia, to a variety of icebergs and glaciers he expands the possibilities available to the traveling artist.
You can take a closer look at his art and travels directly on his website linked below. And even travel with him for an artist workshop on a trip to South Georgia, which hosts the most wildlife per square meter in the world, or to the Antarctic through One Ocean Expeditions.
Click through to: See David's majestic remote watercolor journeys.
Seattle
We're always fascinated by where people take their watercolors into the field and Nikki Frumkin is no exception. She's a Seattle-based alpinist and artist explorer who always amazes with her depictions of her mountain travels.
What originally made us pay close attention were her enormous sheets of watercolor paper strapped to the outside of her pack. Painting from remote summits, ridges, and alpine lakes we are inspired to tuck our excuses (for not getting out there to paint on any given day or regardless of weather) away for another day.
Nikki hosts the occasional backcountry artist workshops through the year, but they sell out quick so you have stay tuned and be ready to jump on the list.
Click through to: Find out more about Drawn to High Places
Based out of Boise, Idaho (obviously), Kara creates dreamy, surrealist versions of her escapades in the surrounding mountains. She only picked up a brush just 3 years ago, by way of a gift from her mother, to include during her backpacking trips to the mountain trails. Now you can join her on a variety of events she hosts throughout the year. Keep your eyes peeled here if you happen to be making your way through the area.
And like any good artist with a passion for painting, you can grab a set of unique prints and colorful stickers representing all that is outdoor lifestyle in the mountains of Idaho through her online store.
Click through to: See Kara's latest outdoor pursuits.
Paintings full of color and emotion, from cityscape to seascape, she really captures the spirit of a place. You can also see a unique blend of colorful people in action that she sometimes mixes in with white silhouettes that definitely has us re-imagining some of our compositions out in the field.
Delphine is an architect by trade, but she is definitely a traveler, as well as an Urban Sketcher and art teacher based out of Chelles, France. (East of Paris for quick reference). Her studio and instructional facilities, L'Atelier de la Salamandre, (roughly translated the Workshop of the Salamander) house a few artist instructors ready to teach at any level. You can get more information if you're interested in learning more from her website. https://atelier-salamandre.net/
Her travel diary books and courses are worth a look as well if you want to improve your sketching skills and are traveling through the area. She hosts a few intensive travel courses during the year. Morocco, Taiwan, Lanzarote, Tel Aviv, Porto to name a few upcoming. https://atelier-salamandre.net/carnets-de-voyage-stage
Currently, she's hosting a course in Morocco, which you can see some of the daily activities in her Instagram account.
As Rari and I get ready to move up north to our winter destination at Seal Rock on the Oregon coast, we really felt right at home with Delphine's sketches on a number of rocky shorelines & seascapes in France. A few look remarkably similar to Oregon coast that it has made us keep an intent eye on her work to see what else she discovers. Especially with how difficult it can be to capture the essence of rock in a landscape scene. We love what she's been up to!
Click through to: Follow her travel diary in watercolor
Lena Sen is a phenomenal artist & illustrator who fell in love with watercolor just six years ago. Her simplicity in still life sketches brings her subjects to a new level of appreciation. Anything and everything that she comes across during her days have been sketched with a unique pop and vibrancy.
You could likely learn a thing or two by taking a look at her daily Instagram posts. What caught our eye recently has been her food and coffee sketches, which we all know we have 5 minutes in our morning to practice.
We can't wait to see what else she has to teach us down the road, but you can get a glimpse here.
Click through to: See simplicity in watercolor scenes in action.
PK Lee is a self-taught painter and artist. Trained as an art director, she moved from graphic design and turned her career towards art for more creative freedom in visual storytelling. She's an avid sketcher in Kuala Lumpur. And we want to eat, love, and sketch everything she's putting in front of her.
Click through to: See more of PK's amazing food sketches.
Based out of Hong Kong, the group meets a few times per month to sketch and enjoy a good meal. Their translated motto "We are passionate painters that never dine alone."
Quite a novel idea really.
We hope to meet the group for next year's Urban Sketching symposium in Hong Kong in April. But until then having a food specific sketch group in Los Angeles (or any city here in the US for that matter) sounds like a good idea.
Click through to: See more their CravingSketchers FB group.
Alicia Aradilla is a skilled travel sketcher from Spain trekking all over the world and simplifying her stops into stunning journal sketches both filled with color, sharp architecture, and a flowy, vibrant style that makes us envious of every trip.
We've been an admirer of her work, her homemade tools, and her tutorials for which she graciously presents on Instagram and step-by-step through her monthly Patreon editions.
It may be the best $10 you've spent all year. We love her DIY sketchbook travel board, we know you'll want to create immediately.
Click through to: Treat yourself to some serious travel sketching education.
Sabadell - Barcelona - CatalunyaJoan Medel is a problem solverWe had quite a laugh with these sketches.
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