Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas! Thank you for your visits and comment throughout the year. You are all greatly appreciated. It's been an eventful year. I'll fill you in soon!

Not Just Another Day at the Field Museum

Bird Habitats – Field Museum Chicago

Last Sunday, Urban Sketchers-Chicago went to the Field Museum to sketch. What a day it was! When we planned the outing to the Field we didn't realize that the Bears would be playing the Ravens at Soldier Field which is right across from the Museum. The buses, trains and parking lots were jammed, noisy and loud! And, I might add, fun. This was only the beginning of our adventure.

 It seemed we no sooner settled into sketch the Bird Habitat when we evacuated to the lower level. A tornado watch had been issued (that means a tornado had been spotted near by) and for safety's sake we were asked to stay in the Siragusa Center, the Museum's indoor picnic area. During our forty-five minute stay everyone celebrated a fellow evacuee's birthday by serenading him with Happy Birthday. We sketchers also worked on our barely started sketches from upstairs. It wasn't until later that I realized that I had totally missed a unique opportunity to sketch this rare urban experience in the Museum.

After we were allowed back upstairs we were treated to a behind the scenes tour of the Zoology Department.  Giraffe vertebrate, elephant pelvises, assorted creepy rodent pelts, it was quite a sight and experience. Thank you, Rebecca!

USk-Chicago had an exciting time but my thoughts and prayers go out to those in our area whose day was filled not with adventure but with tragedy.

Poetry in Motion

The Lilac Fairy from Sleeping Beauty

This is an early sketch for a series of ballet illustrations I'm working on. It's in the reject pile but it's one of my favorites and I'll use it sometime I'm sure!

Urban Sketching in Chicago

Lyric Opera - Corner of Madison and Wacker -A peek at Madame Butterfly set

Chicago Temple -  W Washington Street

The Palmer House Hotel -  E Monroe

Last Sunday, Urban Sketchers-Chicago joined the (CAF)  Chicago Architecture Foundation to tour and sketch. What humbling fun! We walked to three different venues, toured one and sketched all three, in three hours! Whew!

While I was disappointed in my resulting sketches, the day was great fun. I came away with a smile, some new sketching friends and resolved to brush up on my rapid sketching!

Sunshine and Sketching - An Urban Sketcher's Delight

What a gorgeous day in Chicago! Our Monday sketch group chose the Lincoln Park Conservatory as our sketching destination today. We figured we'd be ready for what ever the Chicago weather had in store. It won't be long before we'll be limited to inside venues. The was a touch of fall in the air but the sun was warm. Time flew by!

I usually don't sketch the architecture. People are more likely to catch my attention. But today I decided to give it a shot. It's a little overworked but I had a good time doing it. For me, that's what urban sketching is about – enjoying sketching the moment.

I'm down to the last to pages of my Stillman and Birn hardbound Beta series sketchbook. I prefer the hardbound but no one around here carries them.

Look What I Found!

In the spring we were in California for a wedding. We drove from Malibu, the site of the wedding, to San Francisco to visit family. We made many stops along the way to enjoy the sights.

While I was doing a little computer file maintenance I came across these sketches that I never posted. They're not all winners but the sights and the trip were!

At the Santa Monica Pier

The Page Museum, a.k.a. La Brea Tar Pits -The bird skeletons intrigued me, so elegant in a strange way

This looks like fall but it was spring and these were the colors I saw.

Vermeer is one of my favorites. I was delighted to catch this exhibit.
Like I said not every page is a winner! 

Too Hot to Roar but Not to Draw

 The Lincoln Park Zoo is under a massive redesign. It's a beautiful place that they're making even better. The noise didn't seem to bother Sahar, the lion, or the four Monday sketchers who showed up to draw on a HOT (90+°) September afternoon.

With school open now the zoo was almost empty. It was a very relaxing afternoon. We had a great time chatting about methods of sketching and ideas of what to draw. There may be one or two new converts to Every Day Matters (EDM) list. 

Sahar is about two years old. His mane is just growing in and he's very proud of it. In between his quick naps he strutted his stuff around the enclosure.