Sunday, October 23, 2016

Third Wednesday Outing: November 16 at Sanford and Son Antique mall


Sanford and Son Antique mall
743 Broadway, Tacoma, WA 98402

Only web presence now is the Facebook page


Meet at 10 am at Tully's Coffee - Bostwick
764 Broadway, Tacoma. WA 98402
 



Because Sanford and Son does not open until 11am, we'll begin by meeting at 10:00 am at Tully's to sketch and have coffee to pay our 'rent' for use of the space.  We can also socialize and maybe pass our sketchbooks around...then troop down to Sanford & Sons together for its 11 am opening and sketch to 1 pm. After sharing sketches, perhaps we'll have lunch at a local place.   


There are also several other antique stores nearby.  


Parking:  An easy place to park is the paid lot by the History Museum, then hop onto the trolley and get off at the Theater District trolley stop. That way folks aren't worrying about 2 hour parking or parking tickets. Paid Street parking with a 2 hour limit.  If you take light rail, you can walk back down Commerce to 9th and then up the hill to Broadway. 



Saturday, October 22, 2016

Second Thursday Outing, November 10th at Gig Harbor History Museum

Second Thursday, November 10th at Gig Harbor History Museum

4121 Harborview Dr, Gig Harbor, WA 98332



The Harbor History Museum is a regional maritime and history museum in
Gig Harbor, Washington. It hosts exhibits on regional culture and
history, and Midway Schoolhouse, a one-room schoolhouse built in 1893
and moved to the museum's grounds in 2009.

We will meet in front of the Museum at 10am (or inside the lobby if
the weather is really cold).

Entry to the Museum is Adults $7, Seniors $6


There is a parking lot at the Museum, however, please be aware that
November 10th is a very busy day for them – school groups, meetings,
etc.  After the initial meeting, we can be on the grounds, front and
back, and in the lobby area but not in the exhibit areas unless you
want to pay admission ($7). 

Because there will be a lot of people there, please make yourselves as unobtrusive as possible.  In the morning, half the school field trip group will be in the schoolhouse and the other half in the exhibit area on a tour.  They will switch after lunch. 

Lunch possibilities across the street (Gourmet Burger Shop) and further up Harborview (TheDevoted Kiss, Anthony’s, Morso’s).



Directions:  Cross Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Exit to Wollochet/City Center
Go across the intersection (Pioneer) and onto Stinson.  (If you are
coming from the north, take the same exit and turn left at the light
and cross the freeway, then take the first left after crossing the
freeway onto Stinson.)
At the T, take a left onto Harborview at the bottom of the hill
Follow Harborview to the Museum (on the right just before Harborview
turns to the right)




First Saturday Outing, Nov. 5th, 2016: Pacific Lutheran University Campus

First Saturday Outing, Nov. 5th, 2016:  Pacific Lutheran University Campus

Locations: the Mortvedt Library and the University Center

Meet at 10 am at the Mortvedt Library (
See building # 14 on the campus map, below)  in the lobby near the entrance. The library is located at the corner of 121st. South and Park Avenue South., but its entrance is on the inner side of the building, facing building #13. There are lots of interesting sketching opportunities indoors, including the building itself, many displays around the building (including an African Mask Collection, and, students who make wonderful figure models while studying.

Sketch Sharing and Lunch: We will share sketches at the University Center (Building # 34 on the campus map, below). We will meet at entrance lobby at 12:30, find a location to share our sketches and do a group photo, then have lunch there. 




Parking   All the parking lots require a pass which requires visiting the the Campus Security office.  Instead, it may be more convenient (and recommended) to seek close-by on-street parking along  121st, Wheeler, Garfield, 122nd.Bring an umbrella (or your preferred protective wear) in case the weather is a bit wet.



Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Unexpected Sun in the Garden

Our Wednesday outing was to the Windmill Gardens in Sumner, WA.  I've been there twice before to sketch but there are always interesting subjects.  I'd thought of some options for sketching out of the rain.  But we had warm sun instead!

I was amused by "Don Dirt," the leafy sculpture that greets arriving customers, so I made him the subject of my first sketch.   He's very cool with his shades.  







There were several patio-like tableau around the garden center.  I picked this one for its pumpkin-colored chair.

.  


We gathered in the gazebo to share sketches.





More photos:  https://redharp.smugmug.com/SketchOutings/2016-1019-Windmill-Gardens/

Sunday, October 16, 2016

Travels With a Strathmore Toned Tan 5.5 x 8.5 Sketchbook

Last month, a few days after our 4th Annual West Coast Urban Sketchers Sketch Crawl, we left Washington state for a driving trip to San Francisco CA. It was great R&R for me, after the experience of some REALLY busy days leading up to our well-received event.

On the way to California and on the trip back home, Eli and I pretty much spent all of our time together. However, after we arrived in San Francisco, I had a lot hours alone during his attendance at an annual conference which is one of the highlights in his life each year. As a result of the two 'kinds of time': time together & time alone...I became aware that I enjoy both of the extremely different types of sketching I do under the two extremely different conditions within which I sketch .

Eli has come to understand what sketching entails...and, has learned he values my devotion to sketching and wants to support me in having time to meet as many of my sketching desires as possible. He always brings along 'things to do' when we're on a trip, because he is SURE I will want to sketch. He will  go off happily and sight-see alone, if I desire some 'extra' minutes of sketching time. It has become typical for him to say things like: "The last couple of days were pretty much to fill MY agendas, so, why don't we make tomorrow and the next day all yours to decide on locations and lengths of time you want to sketch." I know. I have a very supportive husband.

During 'together time'----On the way to San Francisco.
If Eli is across the table from me reading a newspaper and savoring a cup of coffee, and we plan to leave the shop fairly soon, I do a linear contour sketch. I begin with the contour sketch of one object and then I work, directly in ink, moving outwards from the first object, drawing  the location and size of everything else  relative to it. I have come to trust, that for the most part, this works...though occasionally things can get wonky. I'm o.k. with that.

15 minutes---Micron 03. Closest chair first.


20 min.-half hour---Micron 01 + Graphite added later. Eli first.

During 'time alone'----In San Francisco
When I'm free to sketch alone, without time constraints, I luxuriate....really looking intently at everything of interest, fully and intimately relating to it, while savoring the relationships between things. I decide up front what my composition will be. Because I work small when sketching in a sketchbook, I usually sketch 'tightly'...rather than doing several looser sketches in the same time frame. I like the peace of doing that...I get in the Zone...am fully present to the subject. Details, cross hatching, taking the time to wait so I may draw the same person or animal twice, letting them function as a 'second person/animal' in the scene I am capturing.

45 minutes-1 hour (lots of  time spent waiting until the proper moment to capture in my memory what I needed for 'my cow' from each cow that passed me on the way to the milking machine.).--Graphite and white Prismacolor.  First I did a fast outline of first cow's 'pose' as my armature for the 'sketch' of my amalgam cow. They ALL wiggled constantly....and each looked as intently at me as I did at them.  :-)
Two hours...I intended to do ALL of downtown San Francisco that was in my view, but I needed to leave the 12th floor  restaurant so they could set up their tables for the dinner hour. RATS! Reality is so inconvenient at times. Drew the domed bldg. first...used it as a gauge for all other relationships. Micron .005 Intended to go back, but, was having too much fun sketching elsewhere.


 This took me however long it took me to stretch--out--eating--my--breakfast (food +coffee = rent) while I did the sketch....probably an hour +. None of the people were in the restaurant at the same time. No pencil sketch underneath the ink, so note the wonky perspective of the people and booths on the right. In ink, there's no going back. My advice: only show the wonky sketches to  your friends who have no clue about perspective. They will think your sketch is just fine...and you are too. Micron .005 + white Uniball Signo.


Hours: Two very long lunches on consecutive days at the same sidewalk cafe table....plus, on the second day, arriving an hour before the restaurant opened. The streets were crowded, so I had to wait for 'views' of my topic until there were moments without visual impingement by humanoids. A close-by group would entirely cover the scene. (Another lesson in perspective.) This was a very fun challenge....complex roofs....street going up hill....restaurant diplomacy...people coming and sitting at my table to chat with me....letting interested folks know about Urban Sketching: an extrovert's dream. By the second day, as the sketch progressed, the waiters were really sweet to me. Nicely asking permission to stay longer (and big tips) will help smooth over commandeering a tip-producing table. Micron .005

Ahhh! The sketcher's life is usually, if not always, very satisfying. A sketcher's confession: my sketches are no more wonky than I am. Really. So may it ever be.

Best,

Frances Buckmaster

PS The rest of my sketches from this trip will be on our USk-Tacoma Facebook page and on our Flickr page.  (www.facebook.com/groups/UrbanSketchersTacoma) (www.flickr.com/groups/tacomasketchers/)

Saturday, October 8, 2016

Urban Sketching, more than just a drawing...


My name is Daisy Abreu. I am a licensed psychotherapist working in the healthcare industry, a disaster mental health relief volunteer for the Red Cross and I am also an Urban Sketcher. I came across Urban Sketching accidentally in my search to learn more about art, watercolor painting and drawing. I have no formal art education other than a strong background in photography which I completed during my bachelor’s degree three decades ago in Puerto Rico. For many years I had wanted to learn watercolors and finally about a year and half ago after the loss of my parents I decided to embark myself in this fantastic journey. One thing led to the next as I realized that painting will require me to learn how to draw, what a discovery! In my search for some drawing instruction I came across some of my favorite urban sketchers such as Stephanie Bower, Paul Heaston, Hugo Rocha or Alfonso Garcia and many others. As my research intensified I came across the Urban Sketcher blog and website, searched for a chapter and to my surprise there was a local chapter here in Tacoma! I joined immediately and became addicted to urban sketching. I felt in love so much with this organization that became a volunteer working with the blog and helping in all I possibly can.

I believe that Urban Sketching has different meaning to every urban sketcher. To me urban sketching works as a process in which I can reach the “flow.” A concept developed by Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi that states creativity is a central source of meaning in our lives. He states that "When we are involved in [creativity], we feel that we are living more fully than during the rest of life." Flow is the creative moment when a person is completely involved in an activity for its own sake. To me Urban Sketching is a form of mindfulness practice that helps me be grounded, relaxed and experience joy. It teaches me patience and acceptance. It helps me see my mistakes and flaws in the drawing and embrace them as learning opportunities. This process translates into daily life experiences as well. Urban sketching also serves as a way to record time, place, experiences and my life as a whole. Life is like a fleeting thought, what is here today is no longer tomorrow. Everything changes and creating a record of our experiences thru the process of art is magical.

As follows I will share with you some of the sketches I have completed during the past six months with Urban Sketchers - Tacoma.


This is my very first urban sketch done at Chambers Golf Course in University Place, WA

This sketch was done from my car while having a lunch break. This lady and her children caught my attention as they were asking drivers from financial support.

Most of my sketching opportunities happen during lunch as you will see over time. This was done in Tacoma and this is Tacoma Community College or TCC.

This is a view of the Tacoma Dome from the Glass Museum during our West Coast Urban Sketchers Sketch Crawl.

 As you can see Urban Sketching has become part of my life and I hope to share this journey with you all along with the USk-T blog correspondent team.

Happy Sketching,

Daisy