Sketching Around Quebec’s Parliament

Posted on August 25, 2014 by Larry Marshall

Moleskine watercolor book, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

It’s the end of August and we’re finally experiencing summer and we Quebec sketchers are determined to take advantage of it. Claudette and I decided to meet in front of Parliament for a sketching session. I got there a few minutes early and decided to spend that time sketching this monument at the entrance to Battlefield Park (the Plains of Abraham to anyone who lives here). I’m not even sure what it’s a monument to but it served as a target for my pen. Claudette showed up as I was slopping on some color.

If you climb onto the wall that surrounds the old city and walk over the St. Louis Gate and a bit beyond, you can see this pleasing view of the Quebec Parliament building sticking up above the tree line. Both of us thought this a good place to sketch. I got a bit carried away given the amount of time alotted, but this was a lot of fun.

Stillman & Birn Alpha (10×7), Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

It was windy and this cooled us down to the point that both of us needed coffee, so a short walk ensued and we got some. After kibbitzing about sketching and consuming our go juice, we decided that we should go out onto the Plains of Abraham, err…I mean Battlefield Park, and find something small to draw as both of us were a bit tired.

Claudette chose a cannon, an infinitely wise choice. I decided to do a quick sketch of a larger scene, the refinery across the St. Lawrence, an infinitely not so wise choice. By the time we finished we were, done, fatigued, worn out, dragging, wiped out, spent, exhausted. But it was a good kind of tired and we headed home quite satisfied with our day.

Stillman & Birn Alpha (10x7), Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Stillman & Birn Alpha (10×7), Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

A Summer’s Day At Berthier, Quebec

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Larry Marshall

It’s been three days since I went out sketching with the gang. It didn’t make it to 60F that day so, of course, as we headed out for a road trip to Berthier, Quebec the prediction was for temps in the mid-80s with a humidex pushed to over 90F. Mr. Jetstream is oscillating like crazy these days.

This trip was timed perfectly as we would be sketching next to the St. Lawrence River, where there’s always a breeze to cool things down. Claudette, Fernande, Yvan and I headed over the bridge with Fernande at the helm. Once on the south shore we turned east along the river on our way to pick up Louise in St. Vallier, half an hour away.

Monologue 9x12, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Monologue 9×12, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Berthier is just down the road from St. Vallier and I’d never been there before. I’ll be going back ‘real soon’, though. It’s a sketcher paradise. There is a small marina with lots of sailboats to sketch. There is a quay with benches so you can sit and sketch either passing boats or the other side of the St. Lawrence, which features Mount Tremblant. There is a large park area with lots of picnic-partaking folks to draw. There are rocks along the coastline and farm buildings if you look in the other direction. And if that ain’t enough, there’s a place to get coffee and restrooms to cycle it.

The five of us headed for the marina to sketch boats. I wanted to capture the height of the masts and chose a scene and vertical format to emphasize their extraordinary height. I probably worked too fast but that’s always the case when I’m with a group.

Moleskine watercolor 3x5, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Moleskine watercolor 3×5, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Monologue 9×12, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Once finished there we sketched a bit more, up in the park area and then set up at a table overlooking the marina for lunch. We’d collaborated and brought cheeses, baguettes, grapes, and wine for lunch. Claudette made some fantastic roasted peppers that were great along side cucumber slices. We were living high. I ate too much.

To be honest, by the time lunch was over I needed a siesta. I sketched some but decided that a coffee might perk me up. I think it did and I sketched some more but the sun and food had slowed me to a crawl.

Monologue A6 sketchbook, Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

Evidence of that is here. I’d sat down on a bench looking out at the river. It was thoroughly enjoyable but there wasn’t much to sketch except for a large ‘other side of the St. Lawrence’ sort of sketch and I didn’t have the energy for that. But, in front of me, on the storm wall was a light, part of a series of them along the wall. Behind, and well below them were rocks and the river. So, I drew one light, drinking coffee and breathing in the fresh air. I was thoroughly content with the day and this sketch was the final drip from my pen.

Get The Point

Posted on August 21, 2014 by Larry Marshall

I most of my sketching with fountain pens so talking about pencil sharpeners isn’t what you’d call my strong suit. At home I have an old, wall-mounted Apsco sharpener that still works well. Still, when I’m out sketching, I do use watercolor pencils, regular colored pencils and, when I’m sketching statues in the museum I often use wooden drawing pencils. So, while I don’t know much about sharpeners, I still have the need to generate sharp points on these pointy devices.

And for a street sketcher, who has to carry everything on his back, size and weight matters. I also need to be able to sharpen very soft colored pencils (need short tip) and my drawing pencils (like long tip). When I’m in a museum I need a sharpener that not only captures the shavings, but also keeps them inside. All this adds up to a tough set of criteria – until I wandered into a Quebec “dollar store.”

I found this little device. The blister pack says it is made in China and packaged by a company called Selectum in Montreal. I’ve always been disappointed by these inexpensive sharpeners because they always yield short points. KUM long-point sharpeners are an exception and I’ve been carrying one of those and a short-point sharpener but this single sharpener replaces both of them.

Each of the inlets, for the short and long sharpeners, has a slide cover so the shavings don’t fall out. The top is spring-loaded and pops open when you slide the main latch to the right. It’s small. It works. The long point isn’t as long as the KUM sharpener but it’s sufficient for my needs and best of all, this little guy only cost me $1.49. I wish I could provide a place to buy one but other than driving to Quebec City, I can’t really point you to a source. Anyone know of an online source?

Great Approach To Watercolors By Marc Taro Holmes

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Larry Marshall

Marc Taro Holmes is one of my favorite street artists. I doubt he would brand himself that way as he does art in many venues – everything from quick sketches to fine art. But it’s his street paintings, with pen and ink as the base, are what I like most.

Because of this, I’ve directed a lot of people to his Tea, Milk and Honey blog post, where he outlines a 3-part approach to developing a watercolor. So, I just have to direct everyone to his latest blog post, where he’s sharing a fold-up PDF “cheat sheet” for his TMH system. I’ll say no more. Go to his blog, The Citizen Sketcher. Download the PDF. Thank Marc while you’re there. I’ll start. Thanks, Marc.

Off To The Aquarium Again

Posted on August 17, 2014 by Larry Marshall

My goodness. It’s the middle of August and we didn’t make it to 60F yesterday. Seems the arctic is warming faster than the equator, as predicted by scientists, and causing some ‘interesting’ trends around our old planet. While those around 30-degrees north are experiencing extreme droughts and high temps, those of us closer to 45-degrees north are losing our summers and getting an excess of rainfall as jet stream oscillations are increasing…as predicted.

And so it was yesterday when Fernande, Claudette and I needed a place to sketch. The Quebec aquarium is an ideal spot for sketchers because it is full of both indoor and outdoor subjects. And stupid me, in spite of the weather, I still wore shorts. For the most part, on this day, we remained indoors.

I want to master sketching sea anemones. I find them quite beautiful. Members of the Coelenterata, these guys feed themselves with tentacles full of tiny little spears that capture plankton in the water. They’re a paradox of an animal as they don’t move and yet are in constant motion. Their foot is forever attached to the substrate and they wave their tentacles constantly, giving this sketcher fits trying to draw the tentacles. Here’s my meager attempt.

Stillman & Birn Alpha (10×7), Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

One of the amazing creatures of the sea is the Nautilus. No, not the submarine, the animal. They are Cephalopods, related to octopuses (octupii?) and squids. And while the octopuses and squids have mostly lost their ‘shells’, the Nautilus seems to want us to know that they went to math school by sporting a shell that follows a beautiful Fibornacci spiral. It’s truly an animal designed to be drawn. Here’s mine. I was cold when I finished. Darn shorts.

Stillman & Birn Alpha (10×7), Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

As we ate lunch we noticed the skies clearing a bit. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but Claudette wanted to sketch outdoors so we did. Claudette and Fernande were dressed properly. Did I mention that I was wearing shorts?

I don’t function well when I’m cold so I knew I couldn’t sketch anything too complex but there are a bunch of really fun playground toys and most look like great subjects for sketches so I tried this one, a little submarine that kids get in and ‘drive’. It was fun. I was cold.

Stillman & Birn Alpha (10×7), Pilot Falcon, Platinum Carbon Black

In all, we had a great day. We’ve got annual passes to the aquarium and we’ll be using them a lot over the next few months. It’s a great place to draw. Why don’t you come along?