In my post of yesterday I mentioned that I could “improve them by adding some shading” but that I was posting the quick sketches ‘raw.’ I’ve had a couple requests, asking me what I meant and/or what I did. Truth is, there are a lot of things one can do but in this case I kept it very simple. Here are three of them with some color added. Doesn’t change things much but it adds a bit of spice I think.
I’m as close to a musical know-nothing as you can get but I really enjoy most classical music. Spare me the Schoenberg’s 12-tone scales and other modern attempts at cacophony but the rest is great. Sadly, I’m so ignorant of music that I can’t identify composers by ear, and can’t wax eloquently about how Beethoven’s 9th is such a great piece because… I just listen.
And so for me, it’s more about particular instruments. I love cello music of all kinds. I think classical guitar is sublime. But give me Bach played on a harpsichord and I am enthralled. So it was exciting for me to show up at the chapel for draw-the-carving session to find a guy practicing harpsichord. What could be better than listening to harpsichord music while sketching? Maybe sketching a harpsichordist while listening to harpsichord music and that’s just what I did. Unfortunately, when I finished I had to run off to the Musee de la Civilisation where there would be dancers to sketch. More on that tomorrow.
Canson XL watercolor paper, Pilot Prera, DeAtramentis Brown (and black)
18th Century armor – Canson XL watercolor, Pilot Metropolitan, DeAtramentis Document Black
Our small group of “Thursday sketchers,” met at the Musee de La Civilisation. I put the name in quotes because there’s nothing formal about us except that we meet at the museum on Thursdays. Not surprisingly, we were there on Thursday (grin).
We scattered around the Quebec exhibition, which is part of the permanent collection, they’re planning on shutting it down for reorganision ‘real soon.’ Nothing motivates sketchers more than being told they weren’t going to lose access to something and so it went that day.
I’d made a short list of things I wanted to sketch before this happened so I set to work, not wanting to spend too much time on any one subject. It was a great day and we had a lot of fun together.
This goofy-looking, sheetmetal rooster came from a Church Steeple. Pilot Metropolitan, DeAtramentis Document Black
Half of a cannonball mold. Pilot Falcon, DeAtramentis Document Black
I love drawing the ornaments and carvings in churches but confess that I find most churches to be pretentious. Still, there I was, in the chapel associated with the Musée d’Amérique francophone when I got the bright idea to sketch the huge, monolithic, altar. Because of the complicated nature of it, doing a proper, accurate drawing would have required many hours. I only had two.
So I “steeled” myself (i.e. tried to channel Liz Steel) and set to work. My eyes crossed several times as I tried to draw all the bits and details of this 30-foot high structure. It was both fun and tiring, and it humbled me a bit, which I guess is the goal of such structures.
Fabriano Artistico CP (7.5×11), Pilot Metropolitan, DeAtramentis Document Black
Sometimes my sketches don’t work out. Yvan and I headed to the south shore of the St. Lawrence to sit in the new ferry terminal and sketch the Quebec City skyline on the north shore of the river.
The view is great but the buildings are small from that distance. On a clear day the morning sun provides sufficient contrast to allow one to make out the building relationships but on this morning, Mr. Sun was sleeping in and the buildings sort of blended into one another. We tried to sketch and while Yvan was successful (he always is), I struggled with a couple false starts and I never did get a decent sketch done. This was the best I could muster.
Platinum 3776, DeAtramentis Document Black
The results may suggest that this wasn’t a great sketching day, but exactly the opposite was the case. Yvan and I went downstairs and got coffee at the newly opened Tim Hortons. I did a small sketch out the window but the real fun was that we got out some watercolor paper and started discussing color, mixing and matching. I’m sure this is how kids feel when they finger paint but, of course, we were very adult about it and we had a lot of fun.
small 4×6 sketch – Platinum 3776, DeAtramentis Document Black
As we played with my paints, we talked about drawing, my favorite subject. Yvan is a veritable fountain of drawing knowledge and I’m finally experienced enough to understand what he’s telling me most of the time. His mentorship is priceless. It was a spectacular sketching day. Tomorrow we’re headed back to the museum. I love it that I have to maintain a calendar of my sketching sessions.