Urban sketching in the garden of Marion

 

   Last summer I was again  invited to take pleasure in painting at the Gig Harbor Garden Tour for my 5th year in a row. Although I did find a place to do my usual oil painting on a vast property on fox island, there was a place in town with narrow paths that I knew most painters would not be able to set up and work. I didn't want the garden to be missed so I only took a small work kit the next day I call my Urban Sketcher bag.
   On day two, I tried to visit new gardens so that everybody had at least one artist in the garden for the weekend so decided to work out of my lap in a small (7 x 9) watercolor sketchbook at the narrow path place. Afterwards I snuck across the street do a quick study in Marion's garden -another tour garden hostess and fellow artist who has invited my plein air group to come paint last summer. Strangely it looks more like my Urban Sketcher work -fast documentary for a sense of place then my garden tour work. The entire scene seems so reflective of the owner... the gate wide open to welcome any and all in the comforts of her home so I feel I captured the essence of how the place spoke to me, just as an urban sketch should be. -Feather