Date Night

This is a quick sketch from Twelve West, a local  nightclub in Chicago. The band was Rhythm City and this is Conrad Black – Motown and Soul - great for dancing and great for listening!

Monday Sketching Outside!

Our Monday sketch group met at Nookies in Old Town then ventured out into the still-chilly Chicago spring. The temperature was in the 50s but the sun was glorious! This is a sketch of a florist on Wells Street. It expresses my sentiments after the long gray winter.

Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

A couple of years ago one of my granddaughters taught me a song with a line in it "Mr. Golden Sun, please shine down on me." Well yesterday I could have sung it all day!  Our Monday sketch group went to the Lincoln Park Conservatory to sketch on the off chance it might be warm and sunny enough to sketch outside. If not we could sketch the spring flower show going on inside.

This is done outside in the glorious sunshine, in my Stillman & Birn Beta sketchbook. Love it! Today it's back to gray and rain. Ah, but yesterday there was sunshine and sketching!

Food…Glorious Food!

For many years I was the art director for Food Product Design and Culinology, two business-to-business magazines that are concerned with bringing good tasting and healthful food to our tables. As a city folk, my husband and I frequent the Green City Market and belong to a CSA.  He shops. I sketch. So… needless to say, I was delighted when one of my sketches from these outings was chosen for farmer ID button for the Good Food Festival in Chicago. Bob and I attended the Festival in March–he shopped, I sketched.

I really enjoyed hearing Chef Rick Bayless talk about his involvement with local farmers to use fresh and local ingredients at his restaurants. We all win in that scenario–the farmer, the restaurant and the consumer!

I'm looking forward to further involvement as Urban Sketcher meets Urban Farmer!

As Chef Bayless spoke he did a cooking demo - a delicious spinach salad!

Remains of the Day

I have no idea where March went! It just flew by! This is a quick sketch of the remains of the last day of March - Easter Sunday. It was a marvelous day filled with prayer, family, friends and chocolate.

Note the color of those shells- I forgot to buy dye so we improvised with food coloring. The colors were bold and bright. Just my speed. I think we'll improvise again next year! It did make a mess and get all over your hands. LOL.

I Have Good News and…

Not long ago my daughter-in-law and I were lamenting the close of "our" Starbucks, the one where we both seemed to gravitate to when out running errands etc. – not that there aren't at least four others the same distance from my place. The good news is it didn't close it just moved two blocks north! The better news is in the evening they serve wine!

Can Spring Be Far Behind?

Urban Sketchers-Chicago met at the Garfield Park Conservatory today. I haven't been there since the Chihuly exhibit ten years ago! In the gray Chicago winter, sketching, sun and color made for a great day!  

"If winter comes, can spring be far behind?"  Percy Bysshe Shelley