Just Lines For This Clothesline

Staedtler Pigment Liner on Moleskine Notepad - Click to Enlarge

For us North-Americans accustomed to hiding our drying laundry as if it were something shameful, seeing clothes drying from balconies in Europe is one of the charms of the old continent.

That morning, I was going to go out to find an interesting clothesline to sketch, when I realized that I had a fine one right under my nose, or rather, right on my own balcony. I hadn't noticed it because in my mind those clotheslines had to be captured from the outside.

I decided to follow Miguel Herranz's suggestion and use no colour for a while, concentrating on the drawing instead. It was just the advice I needed at this juncture...

I had to take the necessary time to draw the lines as faithfully as possible, and to get the proportions and the perspective right. I realized that, for me, speed is definitely the enemy of straight lines, and so I drew these ve-e-e-e-ry slowly.

Now I have to practice drawing curlicues; I never seem to get those right.

Meet Miguel Herranz

I've often spoken here about how much I enjoy Urban Sketchers*. One of the reasons is that the members are so darn nice and if you travel to their city, chances are they'll be willing to meet you even if you're just an amateur like me.

While in Barcelona, one of the sketchers I wanted to meet is Miguel Herranz. Yesterday, that wish came true and I had a chance to practise my Spanish during our three-hour chat at a terrace cafe. Miguel is every bit as nice in person and he gave me some very good advice and even a signed copy of his book, Here & There.  You can see it in this video:



But this only shows a tiny part of this multitalented artist's accomplishments. Check out his blog (it's bilingual) and don't forget to click on the links in his "Otherwise" section in the sidebar.

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 * Here is the link to the Urban Sketchers blog: http://www.urbansketchers.org/

The Search For A Personal Style

I complained earlier about my lack of a personal style, which is obvious to anyone who sees any two pictures of mine. Here is some more proof:

"Purple Garlic", Ink and Wash, 5" x 5"

This is the style that I have the least trouble with, and I find it works well for this kind of subject. Except that I don't really want to be painting still lifes all the time!

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"Four Friends in Port Vell", Watercolour in Moleskine Notebook, 5" x 8"

I fell in love with this scene, and took a photo, then tried to paint it at home. Those are boats and masts beyond the fence... I'll bet you hadn't guessed!

The foliage was extremely delicate, so I used a sponge to stamp it... I think that worked out quite well.

When I get home, I'll try a larger, more detailed version.

I'm In Barcelona... Now What?

I don't promise to do much posting from Barcelona. I brought my old iBook, which is slower than a snail, and my iPad, which, for mysterious reasons, refuses to connect to the internet, except for the built-in Mail.

But the main reason is that I haven't been painting that much. First I had to get my bearings, then I bought some paper but I don't like it (entirely my fault -- one is supposed to like Arches rough paper but I don't, only I didn't know it!) Worse than that, my Moleskine watercolor sketch pad has only a few pages left, and I can't find another one...

Excuses, excuses... I know.

I tried painting in situ but found it too intimidating. I must keep trying, because that's the whole point of suffering through a nearly 24-hour trip under inhumane conditions. Otherwise, one may as well copy photos from the web.

But I did paint this scene from the safety of my tiny balcony, away from prying passers-by. The narrow house is very similar to the one I live in; it's about 10 feet wide, and it's typical of most houses in this part of the old town.

So I took a photo of my sketch and here it is.

(Those are only the top 4 storeys of the building. On the ground floor there is a bakery that makes cakes with photographs on them (honest!), and the second storey consists of a highly modernized façade that is mostly glass.)

An Essential Tool For Sketching in Barcelona

My trip to Barcelona was only two weeks away, and I had a nice travel palette, but no portable stool. You just can't sketch on location without some sort of seat, and when travelling, a light, portable stool is an essential tool.

Last year, I had bought a decent small one at an army surplus store, but I had left it in Montreal because I already have a very good portable seat back home, which I keep in the car in case the urge to draw something or have a picnic strikes me. It's portable but too big to take on trips abroad.

So I checked several Canadian art supply places.

Curry's, my regular online supplier, had something called "mini sketch stool"; it looked a little flimsy but at $9.53, the price was right, but the shipping was $12!

DeSerres carries the classic wood and leather tripod model -- at $60. The Art Shack has a similar one, for $37, and they ship by Canada Post for just $7. With tax, that climbed to just under $50 -- a bit steep for my budget.

Several US art suppliers also listed that nice wooden folding stool, and the price varied from $30 to $60.

Cheap Joe's had a fabric and aluminum one, at $19.99.

But shipping to Canada made all US suppliers out of my reach.

Eventually, I realized that I was using the wrong search word. When I switched to "camp stool", I got results like these.

One of those pictures led back to my local Canadian Tire store, which carried not one, but two models -- and at great prices!

This green tripod stool was $8.

And this "camo" model with carrying strap was $10.










I settled for the "camo" one, because of the carrying strap.

It's light, very sturdy and highly portable. The quality is amazing. And it looks great -- very Canadian with its hunting camouflage pattern of autumn leaves and birch bark!

When deployed, the seat is 15" (38 cm) high, and it will fit in my suitcase.

Barcelona, here I come!

Cathy Johnson Sketching Workshop for Strathmore

Along with 2,415 other people (the number grows every time I go to the site!), I have signed up for this free watercolor sketching workshop that Cathy Johnson is giving for Strathmore Papers, part of their Online Workshop series.

Since I've been really remiss in my watercolor practice lately, I thought this would be a good way to get "in shape" for Barcelona, which is now only three months away!

We got the first videos and the first lesson today. Cathy is a very good, easygoing teacher.

There was no assignment required as such, but after Cathy demonstrated how she painted a favourite basil plan, the message was to paint a favourite thing and to try spattering and lettering -- two of the techniques that she demonstrated today.

My favourite "thing" these days is my piano, so I think I'll try sketching that... wish me luck!

June 2012 in Barcelona

View of Barcelona from the top of the Sagrada Familia Basilica.

I hadn't yet returned from Montreal this summer that I had already planned to spend June 2012 in Barcelona, with a side trip of one week to the south of France for a watercolour workshop.

I am an unconditional fan of Antoni Gaudí, the wild architect who designed the Sagrada Familia Basilica, which I visited in 1969 when it was still a shell (though its construction had begun in 1882). Now that it's almost finished -- it was inaugurated about a year ago but construction is expected to continue for several decades -- I want to see what his successors have done with it, though I already like what I've seen in the pictures.

I also look forward to revisiting Gaudí's other buildings and Güell Park, with its mosaic dragon -- all perfect sketching subjects.

Because of my newly-found passion for sketching, this is going to be quite a different trip. Add to this the fact that I now speak Spanish fluently, and you have a different person visiting what must be a different place after forty-some years... no wonder I'm excited about this!

I had tentatively booked a place in a workshop in the South of France for the last part of the month, but after looking into travel insurance I realized that I couldn't make that commitment at this time. They required a large deposit and a final payment a full two months before the workshop, and the refund policy was not generous at all, and travel insurance did not cover the kind of circumstances that had me worried.

There were other things that bothered me about that particular place, such as having to rent a car because they no longer wish to provide transportation to the painting sites. It makes sense from their point of view, since most of their clients drive in from other parts of Europe. As of next year, they're even opening a campground for those who come with their RVs. I'm not sure I'd like to vacation in a trailer park, and the thought of driving in France isn't something that brings a smile to my face.

As for Barcelona, there's a very tempting apartment that I could rent for the whole month of June for 750 euros -- that's about $1,000. Since sketching is my new passion, I could easily spend a month sketching there, with the occasional side trip to other Spanish towns.

But could I resist flying to Paris once I was over there? That's my dilemma right now.