Say Hi to USk Albuquerque-Santa Fe

Some of you may know I have been traveling in New Mexico this month. I have done a lot of sketching, and I plan to get a post up with lots of sketches soon. But I wanted to put up these sketches I did with the USk Albuquerque-Santa Fe chapter on Saturday.

The first thing I do when I travel is check for a local USk group - and I lucked out here. I had to laugh when the organizer, Jay, said it wasn’t going to be a very exciting sketch outing and, because of the cold, they were meeting at a Starbucks! Just like home, except for the cowboy hats! But I had a great time with lots of chat about art supplies, sketching and I even found someone to reminisce about Porto with.

And it turned out to be perfectly warm if you found a sunny spot outside. So I sketched the lovely view of the parking lot with Domino’s Pizza in the background. Seriously though, if you are in NM, look these guys up ‘cause they are a ton of fun and they love to sketch!

Farewell Viaduct

I think this is the first time I have ever sketched the Seattle Viaduct, and sadly, it is also the last time. Scheduled to be torn down in early 2019, it will be replaced with a shiny new tunnel. I met up with Sketchers Tina and Antonella this morning to commemorate the last weeks of this Seattle icon. I have driven on the viaduct many times, and I know that many Seattlites are taking “last” drives through town on it, documented with photos and video. But this is the view I will keep in my memory.

City Shapes 10x10 Workshop with Sue Heston

I know fall is a busy time, but there are still a few workshops coming up in the Seattle Urban Sketchers Fall 10x10 series. Click on the "10x10" tab at the top of the page for the full list and registration details. Meanwhile, here some sketches I've done and a little description of the workshop I will be teaching on November 3!
I like to think of an urban scene as a jigsaw puzzle of interesting and interlocking shapes. What grabs my attention is not always predictable. It could be an unusual shadow shape, or an irregular glimpse of sky between buildings. In this workshop, we will look at ways to use the shapes of the city to create interesting and effective compositions. The class does not require any particular level of skill or knowledge, but you should have some prior experience sketching and drawing. The suggested materials will allow students to use drawing tools they are familiar with.
The class will meet in the lobby of the US Bank building in downtown Seattle. But, if the weather looks promising, we may move a block east to the Convention Center which has terrific views of downtown Seattle and access to the very sketchable Freeway Park.

Sketches from Porto, USk Symposium

I thought it was too late to be posting sketches from the Symposium in Porto. But, encouraged by Jane's recent post with her post-symposium sketches, I decided better late than never. So here are some of the drawings I did during the Symposium sketchcrawls and the classes I took. It was the first time I have attended a Symposium, but I hope it's not the last. It was amazing to be so immersed in sketching and surrounded so continuously by sketchers! I am posting just a few sketches here, but more are on Instagram. I am Sue.Heston on Instagram.



This is one of the drawings I did in Jose Louro's workshop. I also took a workshop with Joao Catarino, and both of these guys stretched the way I think of urban sketching.



What? A watercolor? Charline Moreau demoed a monochrome watercolor underpainting technique that was all about values and it really resonated with me!



This was the scene at the Final Sketchcrawl - sketchers as far as the eye could see (over 500!).



And one of my personal favs from a sketchcrawl in the "upper city" to wrap up a picture-heavy post.

Drawing People From the Outside In, an Urban Sketching 10x10 Workshop with Sue Heston

This is a workshop for cafe sketchers, for lounging-in-the-park sketchers, for stuck-at-the-airport sketchers. It's for sketchers interested in ordinary people, and their ordinary urban activities. The workshop is appropriate for sketchers from beginners on up, who want to improve their people drawing skills. You do not need experience with any particular media, but you should have some experience sketching from observation. We will be using markers, pen and/or pencil. We will be practicing new techniques with many quick sketches rather than focusing on one or two finished studies. I want to get you to see the unique shapes of people and start integrating them into a scene. The class will be September 29 at the Seattle Center Armory. For more information click the tab above for the 10x10 2018 Fall Schedule.

There's a Tibetan Monastery in Seattle?

Who knew? Not me. I can't tell you how many things I have seen in Seattle because of Urban Sketchers.

I liked this glimpse of the bell shaped stupa through the trees. The monastery's website explains that the stupa is a memorial to one of it's founding lamas. The drawing shows a bit of the surrounding neighborhood, the traffic circle in front of the monastery and a couple of other urban sketchers who are appropriately bundled up for what turned out to be a really chilly day in August!

Setting Up for Folklife

I did this quick sketch last month at Folklife with the Friday Ad Hoc sketchers (who were actually sketching on a Saturday). We were early, and the food vendors were still setting up their tents and tables, which made for an interesting shape-sketch.

Sue’s People From the Outside In

6/2/18 Sue through the donut hole

Sue Heston may have scored the highest weather points of the spring USk 10x10 workshop season this morning at the Seattle Center. Under blue skies and sunshine, her students worked hard practicing Sue’s concepts for “Sketching People From the Outside In.”

As Sue began the workshop outside the Armory, I sketched her through the “donut” sculpture. I hardly had time for this sketch, though, before she moved her students to different areas of the Seattle Center to demonstrate her techniques. In one demo, she got Jane to model for her. During another, I was in the middle of sketching her when she decided to sketch me. Apparently I was a good example as she showed how to determine which leg a standing model’s weight is on – an important element in drawing a convincing figure.

With another appointment to get to, I could observe and sketch Sue’s workshop only for a short time, but it was fun to eavesdrop on her lessons, especially in that sunshine.

Jane models for Sue

Sunshine and blue skies at the fountain!

A Great Turnout at the Wallingford Center

We had a terrific turnout of about 22-24 people to sketch at the Wallingford Center today. Guest hosts Kathleen Keckler and myself (Sue Heston) managed to herd 18 down to the central staircase for the group photo, but I know we lost a few on the way! There were also 5 or 6 new and newish sketchers, so Welcome!
It was a chilly morning, not quite drizzling, but several people sketched outside anyway. I settled on this view of the main entrance with it's graphic white columns and black trim. Those doors lead directly into Trophy - a decadent cupcake shop which several of us got lured into. Don't say you weren't warned!

Georgetown Steam Plant: Sun and Shadows

Unlike Tina, and so many other intrepid sketchers, I did not even try sketching the chilly interior of the Georgetown Steam Plant. I did a walk through and determined that I could probably spend a week drawing there and not exhaust the possibilities - it's that interesting. But I was dressed for warmer temps, so I headed outside where the sun was casting strong shadows on the white exterior of the the plant.





The Steam Plant is worth another visit, and I hope the great turnout we had indicates that others agree with me - just remember to dress for the chill! #georgetownsteamplant

A Good Day to Draw at Winterfest

The crowd was still small at 10am, when Urban Sketchers Seattle showed up at the Seattle Center Armory to draw the annual Winterfest activities. The big attraction was the holiday village and miniature train display. But I decided it would be much more comfortable to get a coffee and a good seat and draw the people who came and went, meeting, waiting for their kids, and even another sketcher who had a better view of the trains than I.

Christmas Trees with the Ad Hoc Sketchers

I thought about titling this post "Christmas tree photobombed by Starbucks". On the last outing to draw the gingerbread houses - which are sponsored by the Sheraton but located in the US Bank building - I got side tracked by the Christmas tree in the lobby. And then the Starbucks kiosk snuck in.

Global Sketchwalk at King Street Station

Sketches from Urban Sketchers 10th Anniversary Global Sketchwalk. Seattle USk met at the King Street Station and it looked like about 50 sketchers participated, many new (!). I spotted the taxi lineup as I walked in and decided they would be my first sketch of the day. Thanks to Tina for the loan of a yellow pencil! #USkGlobal24hrSketchwalk

Fall Color at Swanson's Nursery

Oh, you were expecting foliage? Even the tractor was seasonal. This is the rig they use for the kids' hay bale rides. I got most of it blocked in before the rides started and filled in some more between rides. The color and some of the hatching happened in Swanson's cafe, though. Even in the sunshine it was a little chilly.

Stay for the Scones...

Once again, the proprietor of the Stonehouse Bakery in Rainier Beach welcomed the Ad Hoc Urban Sketcher group to his cafe for our sketch outing. USk is often made welcome in local businesses when we come to sketch, but Patrick's enthusiasm for our group is personal and genuine and extends to having a batch of hot Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake Scones ready when we arrived!! On my first visit, it was the quirky cobblestone building that fascinated me, but it was chilly yesterday, and I stayed inside and drew several small scenes - my scone, the chrysanthemum on a nearby window, and Tina before she decamped to sketch outside.


Here's my sketch from a few years ago. As Kate and Tina have mentioned, Patrick is moving to a new location in White Center in January 2018, and I look forward to visiting him there!

Ballard Locks (not the scenic view)

Well, I was a kind of embarrassed about posting this sketch. See, I was feeling a little grumpy the last time Seattle USk met at the Ballard Locks. Every time I go to this popular spot, it seems more crowded and more covered in caution signs and barrier fencing (trying to keep the tourists out of the ship canal). So, contrarily, I sat down on a bench with no particular view and drew what was in front of me. Too much realism?

Abstract Butterfly at Jimi Hendrix Park

The last summer sketch outing with the Seattle Ad Hoc group! This is one of Seattle's newest parks, the Jimi Hendrix Park in the Central District. The red sculpture is supposed to be a sort of abstraction of a butterfly. There are many references to flight and wings in Hendrix' songs, and Little Wing especially has butterfly imagery in the lyrics. Some of the other sketchers drew the whole form and their sketches show this better. I imagine the park will also become a good performance space.

An Exercise in Perspective

The recent outing at the Beacon Hill Light Rail Station gave me a good opportunity to practice basic one point perspective. On a Sunday morning the platform was mostly deserted - far different from a busy weekday. It was a little hard to spend a sunny August morning underground, but I am hoping for a few more weeks of outdoor sketching this year!

Best View of... a Water Tower?

The Ad Hoc group met on Friday at Maple Leaf Reservoir Park where, allegedly, the best view of Mr. Rainier in Seattle can be had. I wouldn't know. We waited patiently. Our local guide - Tina - told us exactly where to sit. But, as so often happens, the clouds and haze refused to lift and this is all I got...



On the other hand, I nabbed another water tower for my small collection. This is my third this summer and they are fun to draw!

Heat, Haze and Bradner Park Gardens

Five intrepid sketchers braved a heatwave and the smoke wafting through Seattle from the wildfires burning in British Columbia to sketch at Bradner Park in the Mt. Baker neighborhood. The park features borders designed by Seattle Master Gardeners and Seattle Tilth demonstration gardens as well as a lovely community P-Patch. I chose a shady spot under the pavilion to draw this view of the garden's offices.



We had one new sketcher and one newish sketcher as well as three of the usual suspects...

Me, Nilda, Natalie, Sue and Alane. Apologies for any mis-spellings! Alane was fresh from Chicago, and we were all a little envious of the wonderful experiences she had there!