Historic Carriage House in Montlake

Montlake has some beautiful historic houses.  Here is a sketch of a carriage house that is across the street from where we live .  It was originally the carriage house for the adjacent house to the right but was subdivided with the property it is on.  I have always loved the character and quality of this building.  People walking through the neighborhood always pause to look at it.  I am glad our neighbor chose to renovate it rather than tear it down.

Sketch Outing in Columbia City

Seattle sketchers met for a sketch outing in Columbia City.  Though it was cold and damp we still had around 19 people show up. Some were new to the group.  I was looking for a place that captured the light and shadows typical of this time of year.  I found it along a side street off of Rainier Ave.

Practicing

Joe's Gardens from photo

Just practicing on the new Arches watercolor block.

The Pumpkin House

Have you ever seen a house made of pumpkins?  One of the features at Fall City Farms was a little shed with a roof and siding that was comprised of pumpkins. 

Pumpkin House at Fall City Farms

Fall City Farms

Fall City Farms,  a great place to take the kids before Halloween.  They have a wonderful set up... selling produce, u-pick pumpkins, homemade donuts, apple cider, music.

Fall City Farms for the 37th WW Sketchcrawl

About 15 Seattle Urban sketchers made it to Fall City Farms to sketch the 37th WW Sketchcrawl.  This was a great spot for sketching as well as picking up fall pumpkins and fresh produce.  I used Arches watercolor paper for the first time.  It took the color and watercolor  differently.  My colors came out more subdued and the watercolor tended to sit on the top of the paper and took a long time to dry.

JM Cellars Study

I am also reading "The Artist's Guide to Composition" by Frank Webb.  This book was recommended by Urban Sketcher Don Low.  This was a painting done using layers of flat washes and simplifying forms and areas. 

In the Manner of John Blockley

Going back to basics.  I have only taken a handful of watercolor classes. So I am now looking at the basics again and have started reading "Getting Started with Watercolor" by John Blockley who is a watercolorist from England.  This is a book that Frank Bettandorf gave me.  Anyway this is a painting I did of JM Cellars from a photograph but really working on values limiting the use of color and following the process that John Blockley uses.    What I like about this is that it gets me beyond sketching exactly what I see.  But works on observation of light, value and simplifies information.  It is not so literal.  Restricted use of color also pulls the painting together.  It looks great behind glass by the way.

Joe's Gardens in Bellingham, WA

I drove up to Bellingham today to drop off a some things to my son  who is studying at Western Washington University.  He lives right next to Joe's Gardens, a local farm and produce stand that has been around since 1933 (at least according to their grocery bags). 

I walked around a bit first before finding this great view that included these old farm buildings, the produce and the fields beyond.   I loved the long shadows  and the bright colors of the pumpkins against the stone wall of the building...and the contrast between the shaded areas and the areas in direct sunlight.  It captured the whole essence of the place.

The drawing and the first washes of light colors  and midtones were done on site.  I took and photo of the view before leaving and reinforced my dark tones from photos.  

 Here is the sketch looking towards the fields and the produce stand with piles upon piles of pumpkins.

Capitol Hill Library

Capitol Hill Library located behind the QFC on Capitol Hill Seattle, WA.  This view if from the second floor looking toward the entry. 

Second sketch at Olympic Sculpture Park

Here is the second sketch I did at Olympic Sculpture Park. It was a quick gestural sketch of the park before meeting up with the group.  Took me between 5-10 minutes to finish the ink lines and another 20 minutes at home doing the watercolor and pastel.  I was caught by the dynamic angles of the Park.

Sketching At Olympic Sculpture Park with WSU students

Saturday we had an adhoc sketch outing with WSU Interior design students and Faculty Bob Krikac, Kathleen Ryan, and Linda Johnson. About 40+ students, their instructors  and a handful of Seattle Urban Sketchers dotted the Park.  I walked around for about a half an hour trying to find a place I haven't sketched.  I found this spot near the Claes Oldenburg Typewriter Eraser.  A view through the trees.  I was intrigued by the peek-a-boo view of the sculpture and the trail beyond.

It is interesting to see how technology has changed what we understand and know.  When bringing my sketching class here this summer, one student said they didn't want to sketch the weird wheel.  I was wondering what they meant.  I realized later that they  didn't know that this object was a typewriter eraser.  Of course!  These students have never used a typewriter, they grew up using a computer!  Well I remember using this type of eraser....shows my age.