What to Do on a Cold Chicago Day

Garfield Park Conservatory, Chicago

Sunday USk Chicago met at the Garfield Park Conservatory for our regular sketch crawl. It was a cold day but the Desert Room was the perfect place to warm up. I was really taken by the textures and colors. What a delightful place to spend a cold afternoon! 

It's been a busy time! Urban Sketchers 8th Annual Symposium will be held in Chicago in July 2017. Admin for USk Chicago have been helping the international committee with the planning. There is so much that goes on behind the scenes to bring a successful symposium to fruition! I'm honored to lend a helping hand, but it does cut into blogging time. I'll try to do better.

Chicago's Chagall Oasis

Chase Plaza, Chicago

It was a beautiful day in Chicago today. I sat in Chase Plaza with a couple of other Chicago Urban Sketchers and was taken by the color and texture of the garden. It almost over powered the Chagall mural. You can see a hint of it here, peaking out among the trees. The plaza is a beautiful oasis in a bustling city.

Of course, I can't sketch the city without a few quick reminders of the endless cast of characters that add so much to the city's story.

The Halloween Gathering!

Reportage – Chicago's Longest All Souls Train 

What a great time I had at the Halloween Gathering brought to us by The Chicago Cultural Mile! USk Chicago gathered there to sketch and join in the fun… and boy did we! 

This is my sketch of  Chicago's Longest All Souls Train, just one of the many colorful events of the day. Thank you to Allisu Geriach, the producer of the Halloween Gathering, for using my sketcher for her post gathering FB cover photo! 

You CAN Teach an Old Dog New Tricks!

Morning light in the alley

There's always something new to learn! I spent Saturday in Chicago's Ravenswood neighborhood at the workshop "FEARLESS Sketching in Pen, Ink and Watercolor with Adriana Gasparich."  What a fun day! The workshop was held in Ingrid Albrecht's studio in Ravenswood.

As an artist, no matter how much experince I have or how much I know (or think I know) there's always more to learn. That certainly was the case last Saturday. Thank you Adriana and Ingrid for an inspiring, friendly and encouraging day!

I'm a big pencil fan. I love the feel of it on the paper and the expressive lines you can draw with it. It was great to challenge myself and just jump right in with ink. These sketches were done with a black Sharpie in a Stillman & Birn Zeta Series sketchbook. The watercolor was my usual "out and about" palette you see in the blog header.

It was typical Chicago fall day, warm in the sun and chilly in the shade. The changing light was fantastic.

Afternoon light

360° and 365 Days a Year!

Recently I was discussing my favorite places to draw in Chicago, places that I return to and sketch at least once a year. I have quite a few! It dawned on me, I also have favorite things that I draw over and over again. The Hancock Tower is one of them.

Northwestly view from Olive Park

The Hancock Tower is the fourth tallest building in Chicago and surely one of the city's architectural icons. I don't know if it's one of my favorite building to draw, but from the number of times I've sketched it, it sure calls out to me. Though sometimes it plays hide-and-seek, it's always there for me to draw.

It's my directional beacon. It's also my neighbor, greeting me when I look out the window.

Looking East

Good morning, Chicago!

It's always there, calling me home.

Seasoned Seasons

The Newberry Library, Chicago

Where has summer gone? This is a quick sketch of the Newberry Library from Washington Sq. Park in Chicago. I walk through this park often. I think I've sketched there in every season. Every corner gives you a totally different Chicago vibe, skyscrapers, quaint townhouses, highrise condos, traffic, bikes, the homeless, the wealthy and always dogs and squirrels!

What simple graces will autumn bring for me to discover and sketch?

Can You Keep a Secret?

Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool, Chicago

The Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool is one of the best-kept secrets in Chicago. Our Monday sketch group makes sure to go there at least once a summer to sketch.  Peaceful, quiet, (well, except for the birds, frogs, and breeze through the trees) and uncrowded, it's definitely the pause that refreshes. I was thinking about that as I was drawing. It seems no matter how tired or crabby I am if I stop to sketch a little my smile comes back!

I couldn't resist a quick sketch of the heron that briefly came into view!

All in a Day's Work

We just got back from San Francisco. Bob and I spent a week babysitting for our three grandsons, one 7-year-old, and twins, 2½ years old. Needless to say, there wasn't a lot of time to sketch and paint! In between naps (I use the term loosely,) laughter, tears, hugs, kisses, kites, and treats, I did manage a couple.

Ahhh!

Yay, our Monday Sketch Group didn't get frozen or rained out! Yesterday was a glorious day to be out sketching at Navy Pier! At long last, I traded my jacket for a hat and sunglasses! It was a three exclamation point day.

Dream or Nightmare?

Bahá'í House of Worship, Wilmette IL

Wow, I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've posted here! It's been a crazy busy time. There are some good things coming. I'll keep you posted!

I did manage to catch my breath last Sunday with the Chicago Urban Sketchers, at the Bahá'í Temple. The sun was shining and the hospitality was warm so I hardly noticed how chilly the air was. The building is beautiful, covered in intricate designs that look like stone calligraphy. The details are an exercise in drawing negative space. I kept changing my mind between "This is a dream," and "This is a nightmare." I decided to go for the dream rather than the reality.

The Great Outdoors…At Last!

At long last, a gorgeous spring day in Chicago! And what a great way to spend it, sketching outdoors at the Art Institute of Chicago! What first caught my attention when I walked into the park was how the trees were bare but the grass and ivy were green.

Pick Your Battles

One would think that after all these years I would pay attention to the paper! I took this sketchbook on a recent sketch outing and fought the paper with watercolors the entire time! The Lincoln Park Conservatory stick-on covers a spot where the paper won.

Actually, the paper (Hahnemüehle) has a beautiful hand and I look forward to working on it with pencil and markers. 

Surprise!

Pods like these fall all around our neighborhood. The other day I picked up these two. My intention was to practice painting subtle dark values. I accidently step on one. Whoa! What a surprise! It's incredible how something can appear so plain on the outside and, on the inside, be so colorful and bright. I think people are often the same way.

If Winter Comes Can Spring Be Far Behind?

Well, in Chicago it can be W A Y behind!  This is a sketch of Washington Square Park. It looks more like autumn. Note: I didn't sketch it while the snow was falling.

Occupational Hazard or Happy Accident?

This is a sketch I did last month while I was listening to a think tank panel discussion. I used my usual mini-travel kit. Lately, I’ve been using a larger sketchbook on my treks about town.  Surprise! Yesterday, when I went to use this little orange-covered Hahnemüehle sketchbook (nice swag from last year’s Chicago Sketch Seminar) again, this is what I found. The package of Wet Ones at the bottom of my bag leaked all over the book! More than fifty percent of the pages are covered with varying shades of bleed-through orange. At first, I just chalked it up to an occupational hazard, but when I looked at this sketch I decided it was a happy accident. I think the splash of orange adds some life to a rather mundane drawing.

Another Good Afternoon

Architectural Artifacts, Chicago

What a fun afternoon with Urban Sketcher's Chicago at Architectural Artifacts. So much to see, it's hard to focus on what to sketch.  I decided to sketch the story– artists from all over the Chicago area and artifacts from all over the world sharing their unique styles.

More fun days on the calendar, registration for the Urban Sketchers Chicago Sketch Seminar, July 9-10, opens on May first.

You Can See Forever!

Looking south from E Randolph 

Our Monday sketch group is back in the swing after a brief hiatus for the holidays. Last Monday we met at a member's condo and sketched the view from her 29th-floor window! What a view! We could see Lake Michigan, Adler Planetarium, the Aquarium, the Field Museum, Soldier Field, and on, and on, and on!

Remember Paris

Paris, in my thoughts, in my prayers, and in my memory

A Little Monday Reportage

The Thompson Center, Chicago

The Monday sketch group met at the Thompson Center. It's always a whirlwind of activity. I'm a great admirer of the art of reportage drawing and this is a great place to practice. That, along with working on sketching larger, had me lost in the process and thoroughly enjoying it. Even the challenge of the Dubuffet sculpture wasn't quite as frustrating as past attempts.

This sketch is done in my 8x8 Hand•Book sketchbook.

No Excuses, But…

It's been a busy September. Yesterday, I managed to spend a couple of delightful hours at Ping Tom Park in Chinatown. It was the USk-Chicago yearly sketching visit. The weather was perfect (not always the case) and the company was fun (always the case). It was good to welcome sketchers who first joined us at the July seminar and some new faces from the Evanston outing last month.

Chinatown has many interesting views and places. This time, I looked to sketch things I haven't done.  I already have some ideas for next time! I've been using this 8x8 Hand•Book sketchbook in hopes of encouraging myself to work larger when on location. As you can see old habits die hard, but I'll keep at it!