fineliner pen and watercolor in field watercolor journal
I’ll go for the tugboat to sketch any day, and this was a beaut! I hadn’t heard of the place Pastol Bay, so I looked it up. It’s up in Alaska, right across from the Russian mainland. No wonder it looked weathered and exotic to my eyes. I’m finding that whenever I’m at one of our Olympia marinas, my father, Lester (long gone since 1989) is with me, perking up, sniffing the sea air and looking for a fisherman to ask about the prospects.
So I asked permission to set up my stool outside the fuel station office next to the pumps, a good vantage point across from this tug and within earshot of any sailor/boater talk. Briefly met a young man who was employed doing an ecological survey mapping the bottom of the south sound or something like that.
No fishermen. My Dad might have moved on, but I was content to sit there sketching the boat, the background forests and to exaggerate the size of the snowy Olympic range to more closely reveal the impact the mountain make on the human observer.
The South Sound Urban Sketchers, together with the OAL Paint-Out group, will be meeting now every Thursday morning at a different location here in Olympia or neighboring towns through September 26, and I plan to be at most of them. If you’re interested in joining us, please email me and I’ll send you the schedule, and welcome!!
Oh, and since I mentioned him, here’s Lester, where he always was happiest, on a boat with a fish in his hands.
Thursday was one of those with non stop spring drizzle days. So only Jenn and I showed up at the Capitol for sketching.
The legislature is not in session now, so the Capitol building was hosting tours for the public. The yellow school buses were lined up outside. We wandered the halls and found an exhibit of the model by Haiying Wu for his statue of Billy Frank Jr., which will be installed at the National Statuary Hall in the other Washington (D.C.) next year. Billy was a Nisqually Tribal member who fought tirelessly to ensure that the U.S. government would honor the promises made in the treaties with Washington tribes.
As I sat down in a poorly lit spot where there was a bench, I noticed a bronze statue of George Washington, eclipsed by one of the marble columns, and I happily pondered how many of our white men historical heroes are now being slowly upstaged by indigenous ones.
fountain pens (gold and black ink) and w/c in beige toned Nova sketchbook
While Jenn did a spectacular rendering of the Capitol dome from inside, getting a real workout for the neck with constant looking up, I sought the fresh air outside sketching the dogwoods and lightposts under a bus shelter overhang.
And meanwhile elsewhere outside, such scenes tempt me to come back when the rain has stopped, or to bring an umbrella set up!
A merry band of nature journalers showed up at Point Defiance Park in Tacoma onThursday to see what was happening with the buds and blooms of spring. Some of us had our mini accordian sketchbooks and all were ready to enjoy one of those all-sunny spring days in the park. We refreshed our memories about John Muir Laws‘ three principles/steps for entering into a dialogue with nature: 1) I notice… 2) I wonder. . . and 3) This reminds me of. . . which got us ready for what was to come.
At Point Defiance Park in Tacoma you are first greeted by the ducks in the pond. Turtles too, but they were so still that I mistook them for copper sculptures. Crows too, or maybe they were Ravens, definitely the big noisy, formidible sort that could shame you into handing over your last bit of sandwich. And all of this was punctuated by a noisy blend of lawn mower, honking Canada geese, and a variety of exotic animals from the zoo “next door” that whooped like they were enjoying a really good joke. (I imagined baboons)
I had a solemn purpose which was, by hell or high water, to fill one side of my mini accordian folded book with bud and bloom sketches. (see my post about preparing for this)
Off we went beyond the pond, to find our buds and blooms.
Golden ink and watercolor on 3″X8″ double page in accordian book
My plan was a simple line sketch with 2 or 3 watercolors and to keep track of the time/temp/other meta indicators. 30 min max per sketch.
So as not to lose time looking for only the most spectacular new blooms, I stayed in the same place for this second one, an abundant groundcover in the grass beneath my feet, which involved leaning way down to examine the micro-view. My leaf snap app was not specific about this rugged form of daisy underfoot. Certainly it’s a distant relative to the showy summer daisies in my garden bed. Fleabane was one possibility and the word calls up images of fairy incantations, which I like! Not very scientific, I know.
Next I walked through the rose garden, discovering that of course it’s too early for roses here in the PNW. But the next garden included tulips, and we were in luck.
Except I think watercolor is my last choice for trying to get a natural red. So my choice of the flippin Miss Flippins tulip soon turned into a humbling lesson. I mean, how many different pigments do you need to make a convincing deep red in bright sunshine? Well I never found out, and then my 30 minutes were up.
Right around this time I started to experience the familiar sun-blindness where the light dims and shapes become be less distinct. But there was still time for the white bleeding hearts!
Then we had our picnic lunch back at the pond, where the turtle sculptures were in slow motion, the raven showed up for a handout, and we shared sketches from the day.
I hadn’t quite succeeded to fill my sketchbook pages on location, so I snapped a picture of the show stopper crabapple tree and finished this at home.
But the book is only half done! Time to turn it over and continue on the other side. My white irises just bloomed and it will be a steady flow of blooms in the yard until the sunflowers and lavenders do their final show and. . .
ink, watercolor and white gouache in beige toned Nova sketchbook
Who goes to a nursery to sketch in the spring, and instead of sketching blooms heads back to where piles of soil, bags of compost and trucks are? But there was just something about all that beautiful soil! And Bob and I had been talking about the need to buy soil for our vegetable garden at The Barn Nursery and have it delivered. And then there was the steady chorus of birds to entertain.
Olympia Art League and South Sound Urban sketchers meet up
Happy faces to be (just barely) warm enough that day to enjoy sketching outside, what we’ve been waiting months for!!
What little girl doesn’t want to be a mermaid at some point? Well, clearly not all little girls, but really, who wouldn’t want to explore the ocean with built in flippers and breathe without a tank? Last week I met some grown up mermaids, and saw a fire dancer and aerial acrobats and even unicorns at the International Mermaid Museum Festival in Aberdeen, WA.
Five of us were there to do some sketching, but were pulled into the festival drama as soon as we stepped in.With
We were greeted at the door of the Mermaid Museum by Olive the Alchemist Mermaid on her throne. Instantly she started to beguile us, mermaid style, with her oceanic, alchemical charms, inviting us to sit with her on the shell strewn shore.
With so much to see we soon moved on, determined to catch the performances on the garden grounds.
Across the garden we found the unicorns, dryer under their tent than we were. . .It was one of those cold rainy days where the precipitation never lets up.
And watched the children enjoying a steady stream of bubble magic to rival any seen in ocean waters!
And as we found shelter in the open barn, another spritely performer entertained us with her fire dance. Remarkably the steady stream of rain did not put out the fire. The cold which had us shivering didn’t seem to faze her at all. Neither did her long hair catch fire though it swung in a constant arc as she moved. And she ate the flames repeatedly, dousing them in her mouth without the slightest cringe. . .while carrying on a monologue with the wincing audience.
Next from inside the barn where they’d set up their trapeze triangle, we watched the Aerial Acrobats at the silks from almost close enough to catch them if they fell. At times my hands twitched in preparation but they were spectacularly relaxed and synchronized.
Our last stop outside was to see Una the Mermaid who performed several times a day in a tank not much bigger that a gypsy caravan and very like that in appearance, with an awning attached so that we could stand with a bit of shelter from the rain. She was magnificent, blowing her starfish kisses and her seaweed appendages and flipper, undulating with each dive and turn. No oxygen tank here. No gills. Just athletic breath-holding ability and performance magic.
ink and watercolor in beige toned Nova sketchbook
But, yes, we were there on a sketch-venture! So back in the museum, where it was warm and there was lots of mermaid movie memorabilia, we took some time to sketch and to learn a bit more. The International Mermaid Museum describes itself as dedicated to teaching ocean ecology from seashore to sea floor, immersed in mermaid mythology unifying oceanic cultures. The festival provided ample opportunity for us to immerse ourselves.
Back in another tent, where the mermaid and ocean arts and crafts were located, I met Caspian, king of the sea! By that time we were all wondering if there were mer-men and I was glad to find him. With ocean colored pants but no tail, it was still easy to imagine him on a throne beneath the ocean. A very jolly king indeed!
Next to Caspian and nestled in between the booths selling shell earrings and mermaid hair (sparkely streams to braid into your own) were these lovely beached mermaids, willing to bare skin on this damp cold day to celebrate the ocean mystique and show off their spectacular custom made skins!
So that was our day. We walked next door where the restaurant served us seafood with a view of the garden, wet but lovely. We’d save the winery for another day.
fountain pen and watercolor in beige toned Nova sketchbook
Urban sketchers tend to be very adaptable folks. When I arrived in the wind and cold rain last Saturday the Tacoma UsKers were all lined up warm and cozy at the windows in the student union building where there was a decent view of the buildings and landscaping.
Coeds were going about their business of visiting, eating and studying their smart phones. The other kind of study was probably going on in the library? A pod of girls were nesting in a group of sofas by the window where they’d piled up delicious plates of hot food and coffee, warm clothes and other items of domestic coziness to facilitate punctuated chatter about people who were not present. We couldn’t help trying to remember what we sounded like back then a hundred years ago or so in college.
This Thursday was another world tour from the comfort of my studio, led by the delightful hosting pair of urban sketch teachers, Eleanor Doughty and Jenny Adam, with a special appearance and demo by my old friend Oliver Hoeller. If you had to miss this one, you can always watch the recording and make sure you’re in the Zoom room with over 100 urban sketchers on the first Thursday of the month. Check it out here. The theme this month was statuary and we “traveled” to Europe, the Pacific ocean, Asia and Africa, changing location every 20 minutes.
. . .starting with a 10 minute warm up on Easter Island.
Next Oliver did a demo sketch of a statue on top of a building in Austria. I’ve taken several workshops with Oliver and always learned something not only useful but also just plain fun.
This is my drawing along while watching his demo, copying his one-warm-and-one-cool color combo. I liked the way he used a white Posca paint pen to lighten up areas and lose edges at the end. You can see his demo sketch on Instagram
All that was in less than 90 minutes, and with lots of great dialogue about all those things urban sketchers geek out about when they get together. . .art materials, travels, workshops, techniques, etc.
Both Oliver and Eleanor will be teaching workshops at the Sketcherfest in Edmonds, WA in mid July, and they will be showing their sketchbooks and be available to talk with participants at the Sunday all-day event. It’s not too late to make plans to come!
There are folks here who keep track of cherry blossom activity for all of us sketchers here in the South Sound, because it’s our version of the groundhog story – time to sketch outside again! I got the message from Loretta Monday night, that we better get out to the Capitol the next morning or miss the last of our warm sunny weather for who knows how long. . .I jumped, and so did others!
This lovely old grove behind the legislative building was the view I picked last year. So I tried another vantage point this year from the east side of the building.
fountain pen, watercolor, white gouache and gel liner in beige toned NOVA sketchbook
The magnolias were are also in bloom. Some Californians like to call them Tulip trees, which is very fitting at this time before they open wide and snow their enchanting petals. This may be a Kobus Magnolia, but time will tell as it opens more. Please help me identify if you can!
I live only ten minutes from this spot, so I’ll likely return for more sketching, and the Capitol gardens will have steady blooming as the weeks go by.
some of the South Sound urban sketchers
The rain is back again, a good thing for this time of year. New projects in the garden will need the natural irrigation until danger of frost is past and we can turn on the outside water lines. Time to plan ahead for more of these sketch meet ups we all enjoy so much, and to get them posted! Everybody I know is planting something in their gardens. I’m thinking it’s time to get my herb garden planted. A very noisy tree frog has been serenading me during this writing. Got to get out and join him!
Lamy Joy fountain pen and watercolor in 9 X 12″ Canson mixed media sketchbook
If you’re an Olympia resident, chances are your favorite event of the year is the Procession of the Species on Earth Day in April. This year will be my first! and also the return of the event from a break since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. The Procession is described as “a joyous, artistic celebration, intended to inspire learning, appreciation, and protection of the natural world”. And it begins way before the actual day, April 26 and 27 this year.
Some friends and I stopped by the Armory arts building where they’ve set up preparations for the procession. Anyone and everyone is urged to participate! Surrounded by papier mache species of all sorts the prep was joyfully underway. I was a fly on the wall, sketching the activity and listening to conversations about plans and just trying to wrap my mind around what this is all about!
It was hard to not pick up a paint brush or glue gun and pitch in, but I’ll come back for that. Meanwhile I just turned around in my chair to catch whatever was going on, and later tried to glue it together with paint and more line!
kakimori dip pen, India ink, water brush in 9 X 12″ Canson Mixed Media spiral sketchbook
It’s #oneweek100people week! Actually sort of the last day, and once again I didn’t make it anywhere near 100 people sketches. But even a few is worth the effort. Coffee shops and restaurants are good bets when not living in a bustling city, which Olympia definitely is not. I actually started last Friday at a lunch in Olympia with Paige where we lucked out and got a high table facing the the tables in the dining room tables which were full. Sitting securely with a table in front of me I felt safe opening my ink bottle and dipping the kakimori pen, which is so great for holding a lot of ink.
Then on Monday morning at 8am I tuned into Suhita Shirodkar’s zoom room for a half hour of sketching Indian market workers from pictures she’d taken on a trip to her homeland. If you want to check out her live workshops in India and more, or catch her workshop at Sketcherfest in Edmonds, WA this July.
That was so much fun, just seeing how fast I could work with a dip pen to get the essence of movement without much detail.
Next: Procession of the Species in the workshop! People sketches and some papier mache creature creations in the mix.
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