Croquistes de Quebec Inaugural Sketchcrawl

Posted on July 14, 2015 by Larry Marshall

Yvan Breton, our leader. Apologies to Yvan for the poor photo

Last Sunday, the Croquistes de Québec held their first sketchcrawl, randocroquis, urban sketchers meeting, or whatever you want to call it (grin). Whatever the name, we were out en masse sketching on location. Our fearless leader is Yvan Breton and he brought together more than a dozen folks for the purpose of enjoying the company of fellow sketchers.

And wow, did we have fun. They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder and there is no better evidence of that than how Quebecers respond to a nice, sunny day. We got one on Sunday and we all took advantage of it.

The garden, Jardin de Jeanne d’Arc, is part of Battlefield Park and is one of the prettiest places in Quebec City. It’s a long strip of land with a large statue in the middle and a well-tended flower garden surrounds its grass interior. Our dozen or so sketchers spread out and began to sketch. I couldn’t help but notice the various seating approaches used.

Some (Jodie & Larry here) used the local benchware. [photo by Yvan]

Celine brought a comfy chair

While not popular the elevated view was used by some.

While not popular the elevated view was preferred by Joanne.

The most popular approach, of course, was the tripod stool modeled here by Ann.

Some brought an entire studio along with their comfy chair

Yves brought an entire studio along with his comfy chair

In the end, though, we were all comfortable. We broke for lunch on the grass and talked about pens, sketching and how great the weather was. Did I mention that we were impressed by the weather? Then, it was back to our benches, tripods, and chairs and our pointy devices started moving again. We didn’t do a formal show-n-tell but sketchbooks were exchanged, mostly during lunch, and I think everyone went away with a hope that the next sketchcrawl will occur soon.

I started my day with this sketch, of the lady honored by the park, Jeanne d’Arc. I did this one in a Stillman & Birn Beta (9×12) with my Namiki Falcon and De Atramentis Document ink. I also did a more complete pencil under-drawing than I normally do and, frankly, I think the pencil looked better than the ink, probably because it didn’t attempt so many details.

Things sort of went downhill from there when I started adding color as I stuck the side of my hand in red paint and promptly “stamped” a red blotch onto the paper (bottom left). I tried, without success, to cover up with an awful dark green grass treatment. Better luck next time 🙂

I also did this sketch of some of the beautiful rock stairs that lead down into the garden. I didn’t have time to add color so you’ll just have to look at lines, my favorite things.

Last but not least, this was my daughter’s first opportunity to sketch with other people (she’s the one sitting with me on the bench). Like so many, she was afraid she was apprehensive, certain she couldn’t sketch well enough, and that she’d be too intimidated. But, she had a great time and told Yvan just before we left that “I’ll be at the next one.”

Stillman & Birn Gamma (10×7), Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document black

Sketching Louis Joliet

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Larry Marshall

If you’re old like me you remember black and white movies. As a kid my favorites were the cowboy movies, particularly those about people “moving west” to settle the “wild west.” These movies were packed with caricatures, though I was too young to notice at the time. Classic “tonto” depictions of Native Americans, white guys in white hats who were bigger than life and who, I’m sure, could leap tall buildings with a single bound but who never had to because they managed to shoot 30 times with their 6-shooters.

Very often there was a French trapper, always named Jacques, who was either someone’s sidekick, or occasionally stood in for the black-hatted bad guy. As a kid growing up in Arizona, it’s what I knew of the French.

Well, there really were French guys named Jacques and I suspect they were tougher than John Wayne ever thought of being. They were the real deal, though they weren’t all named Jacques. Some of them were named Louis and one named Louis Joliet ranks right up there with Lewis and Clark, when it comes to being a trailblazer.

Born near Quebec City, Joliet became a trapper after bailing out of a path to become a priest. An accomplished harpsichordist and organist, Louis not only spoke French but several of the native languages as well, and he became a trapper and explorer extraordinaire. He and his buddy Jacques Marquette (see, there were real French trapper/explorers named Jacques), discovered the headwaters of the Mississippi River and were the first to map its entire length. Joliet, Illinois, among other places is named after him.

Ok…I’m back. This is a blog post about sketching after all. I sometimes get lost in Quebec’s history. In short, he was a big deal and one of Quebec’s best sculptors, Suzor-Côte created a wonderful bronze statue of the man. It resides against the walls of the Quebec Parliament with other statues of famous Quebecers, each with their own place in history.

On this day, I only sketched one of them, otherwise you’d have to endure more history lessons. Instead I’ll just tell you that I sketched in a Stillman & Birn Beta (6×9) using my Namiki Falcon and DeAtramentis Document Black ink. If you follow this blog you know that I’m really partial to the Falcon/Document Black combo. It’s fantastic for pen and wash, though in this case I got lazy and didn’t put any color on the sketch. The sketch is probably the better for it.

Sketching At Chalmers-Wesley United Church

Posted on July 12, 2015 by Larry Marshall

Yvan and I got a chance to sketch at the Chalmers-Wesley United Church last Wednesday. Sketching the many carved surfaces in these churches is excellent hand-eye coordination exercise but, for me, the big deal is that with so many surfaces going in so many directions, it’s good experience in trying to see and replicate tonal variation. I still struggle with capturing this in ink so I like to do it when I get the chance.

We set up around a baptism urn (apologies if that’s not what it’s called). This one had a triangular base with three panels of stone engravings, each of them unique, and we set our sights on drawing them. We were going to draw for a couple hours, listen to a scheduled organ recital, and then head to the museum to try to sketch moving targets in the form of dancers. That’s what Yvan did, I think. For me things didn’t go so well.

I got a migraine as I was drawing. I finished up the sketch below, packed up and went home. No more drawing, no organ recital, no dancers. Not all sketching days go well.

Stillman & Birn Beta, Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document Ink

Hanging Out At Bassin Louise

Posted on July 11, 2015 by Larry Marshall

Bassin Louise is the the largest marina for private boats in Quebec City. Because of the significant tides in the St. Lawrence River, there is a lock that protects it and a bridge that goes over it. The seaway tugboats are on the back side of this and behind them is a large loading area where large ships dock to take on grain products. The result is a very cluttered scene and for some reason I was crazy enough to try to stuff all that into a 3×5 sketchbook. It seemed like a good idea at the time (grin).

Field Notes (3x5 - 2-pg spread), Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document Black

Field Notes (3×5 – 2-pg spread), Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document Black

After I finished that torture test, I wandered down to the opening of Bassin Louise to the St. Lawrence. Faced with a more simple view I did a quick sketch of the scene. The building complex across the river is a ship-building company, which is why they have so many large cranes.

Stillman & Birn Beta (6x9), Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document Black

Stillman & Birn Beta (6×9), Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document Black

Sketching At The Zoo Park

Posted on July 10, 2015 by Larry Marshall

My wife, Chantal, took a vacation day and I coerced her into going sketching with me. She’s quite good at sketching but is convinced otherwise so it’s a special treat when I can get her to go out with me. I think it was my sneaky approach of suggesting a nice, relaxing time sitting in the shade at the Zoo Park that did it.

I really have no idea what name is currently slapped on this park. It may be the Parc des Moulins but don’t quote me on that. What I do know is that it’s a sad reminder of a bad political decision that resulted in our city losing our zoo. The park that remains is nice but not nearly as nice as when the trees had to share space with monkeys, bears, and eagles.

But we did find that shade, which disappeared half-way through our drawing. I think the tree we were shaded by moved. We took a break, ate a nice lunch and then continued to finish our sketches while sitting in the sun. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.

Stillman & Birn Beta (6×9), Namiki Falcon, De Atramentis Document Black

When we finished up I suggested we stop and get an ice cream cone, knowing this would be get a positive response. We went to a store that’s in a house that looks exactly like the one the Adams Family inhabited and sat outside, in the shade of course, and enjoyed a slight breeze that kept the high humidity at bay. There was a nice, tall clock in the courtyard and I did this quick sketch of it in my Field Notes “scribbler.” I continue to be impressed with the paper in this new Field Notes issue.

Field Notes (3x5), Platinum Carbon Pen, Platinum Carbon Ink

Field Notes (3×5), Platinum Carbon Pen, Platinum Carbon Ink