An Old Barn

I saw this boarded up building from across the place where I was having lunch.  Upon closer inspection, it might have been a residence barn at one time, or maybe a factory, or maybe something else.  Who knows.  Sadly, this building is in a state of neglect and moderate disrepair.

The walk path along the right hand side of the road was partly shaded however abruptly terminated at a point where I took position and sketched this building in pencil.  

Location:  Ridgefield, CT

Color added later at home.

The Ridgefield Town Hall

While only three traffic lights exists on the Main Street, last Tuesday's afternoon traffic was heavy.  In fact, a police officer was seen manually controlling the traffic signal lights to better regulate the flow of cars and pedestrians.  I found a nice park bench near the traffic control box diagonally across from the Ridgefield Town Hall where it offered a nice view of the intersection of Bailey and Main Streets.  

A big flag hangs in front of the Town Hall, the corners anchored, so it moves, but not flutter in the wind.  

"Are you sketching?  You should include the flag!" says a lady passing by.  Exactly what I had in mind.

I probably sketched there for more than an hour before calling it a day.  As I walked back toward my car, I ran into the friendly police officer who was manning the traffic signal controller.  His shift was done.  Since he saw me sketching the Town Hall earlier, I thought I'd show him what I had done.

"It's good!  Are you an artist?  Is this what you do for a living?"

After a short reply, we said goodbye and went our separate ways.

The BIG Flag at Ridgefield Town Hall.

Pencil sketch of the scene.

Bailey and Main Streets intersection.

The Keeler Tavern

The Keeler Tavern museum located at 132 Main Street in Ridgefield, CT is almost right next to another museum - The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum.  I was in town last Tuesday and decided to peek into this historic residence once owned by architect Cass Gilbert but learned that the museum visit/tour is only available on Mondays-Wednesdays-Fridays.  

That wasn't a show stopper since I just want to sketch anyway.  Found this nice park perfectly situated diagonally across the house, and at a slightly elevated location from the street level.  A good spot to sketch.

To see how I measure by sight, I did a video time lapse of the process.

UPDATE:  Color added to the sketch.

The unfinished sketch.  Need to add more color.

    

The Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens

Weekends only, from 10:00AM - 4:00PM, the Sculpture Gardens at PepsiCo World Headquarters in Purchase, Harrison, NY is open to the public.  I had the opportunity to visit last Sunday.

Equipped with a map of the landscape, I looked at a few of the 45 interesting sculptures.  Near the Lily Pond, there's a nice view of the "Triad" by Arnaldo Pomodoro, the "Grizzly Bear" by David Wynne and "Hats Off" by Alexander Calder in the distance.  That caught my attention for a direct to watercolor sketch.  Too bad, I only had an hour to spare at this beautiful and serene place.  Until next time!

"Triad", "Grizzly Bear", "Hats Off"
Framed in foliage

My interpretation.

Another variation of the same view.

The unfinished watercolor sketch.

At the parking lot

The idea was to sketch the empty parking spaces as seen from the driver's side mirror.  Maybe throw in a few parked cars in the background and the lamp post with a big parking sign marker.

Using a pencil to mark the lines, I started with the driver's side mirror and branched out from there.  Several things happened as I was doing the rough lines:

1.  A Toyota Prius car pulled in to one of those empty spaces.  Great! there is now a car to be seen from the driver's side mirror.

2.  I forgot to allocate some space for the lamp post.  Oh, well.

3.  A big travel bus pulled in behind my car and blocked the entire view from my side mirror.  Why? It turned out to be the designated pick up place where parents dropped off their children going on a bus tour. 

The final sketch.

The original sketch idea.

The beginning outline with a Prius reflection.

The bus blocking the view!  Interestingly, that Prius was framed dead center into the bus luggage bay.

The rough sketch of what I had in mind.

The Farmers Market

Every Saturday, from 9:30AM to 1:00PM, there's the Greenwich Outdoor Farmers Market at a parking lot off Exit 3 of Interstate 95 Highway. I haven't been to this farmers market in a long time but it would be a nice place to sketch today.  

A parking spot closest to the vendor's stall was just perfect for me.  I know that that supply truck will not move for a while so it became my reference measurement for the scene.  Lines marked with a pencil before adding a watercolor wash.

I must have spent more than an hour and a half in my car.  Once I finished, I walked over to the side of the truck to identify the vendor.  The sign says Riverbank Farm, Roxbury, CT.  The crew were preparing to close up shop.  

"I just want to show you your truck is here" I said to the cashier, pointing to my sketch of his truck.

"Oh, Cool! Is that from today?" he asked with a smile.

"Yes, it is." and then we went on our separate ways.

As I walk back toward the car, my brain just recalled something.  I forgot about my 1:00PM yoga class!  Too late now.  Oh, well....

   

The Kneaded Bread Bakery

Earlier this month, this local bakery in Port Chester, NY celebrated its 20th year anniversary.  I made this cup sketch on June 4th, two days earlier than their anniversary date but remained uncolored until a few days ago.  I turned it into a congratulations "card" and handed it over to Elizabeth and to the delight of other staff.  

The Reflected Image

A small regular coffee and a sticky bun - that was my breakfast of choice this morning at my favorite bakery in Port Chester, NY.  Took the corner table spot as my eyes wandered around looking for that one thing to sketch.  

I know I tried the shadows before but need a new one today.  It is right there in front of me.  The reflected image on the stainless steel bullet shaped garbage can!

Sailor Fude de Mannen with De Atramentis Document Brown Ink.
Strathmore Toned Tan sketch paper 80 lb.

55 Mott Street

Since the South Street Seaport is very close to Chinatown, I thought I'd grab a nice bowl of Vietnamese Pho soup at a favorite restaurant on Mulberry Street before heading back home.

Satisfied with a hearty meal, it was just fitting to walk around the neighborhood until I found this nice spot to sketch.  That young lady sat there long enough as I was starting to draw the fence lines.  Once I had my fill, it was time for a Passion Fruit Slush drink with tapioca bubble pearls and a Sesame Ball with Red Bean Paste inside.  Yum!

And that was how I spent my day in the city yesterday.

The Three Bridges

I joined the weekday NYC USK outing at the South Street Seaport venue yesterday.  As soon as the show and tell for the morning program concluded, there were several of us that stayed on to do more sketching in the afternoon.  

Julie & Shawne suggested to sketch at the other side of Pier 17 where a fantastic view of the three bridges - Manhattan Bridge, Williamsburg Bridge, and Brooklyn Bridge - are in full display.  Not to mention the convenient restroom nearby and plenty of shaded areas to choose from.  

We also met Dewey, an architect from South Carolina, who also is an Urban Sketcher.  All four of us gathered at this one spot and sketched the same scene.  You know that nothing will be interpreted and sketched the same way even though you're all looking at the same view, right?  

West 181st Street

The second part of the outing two weeks ago was an hour stop at the bottom of West 181st street where a scenic/panoramic view of the Hudson River and the George Washington Bridge delighted us.

At the time, I only managed to sketch it in pencil but found time yesterday to apply some color to it.  That was Ronald in the middle ground doing his sketch of the scene.  I rediscovered the GoPro camera and filmed my coloring process with a 1 minute interval between shots before compiling them into a short video.  It was fun!

After the watercolor wash.

A pencil sketch of the scene.

John Jay Homestead

Last weekend, on Father's Day, we packed our lunch sandwiches and headed north to Bedford, NY where the historic John Jay Homestead is located.  It's free to get in and to enjoy the landscape tour on your own.  There's the Herb Garden, Fountain Garden, Sundial garden and a picturesque setting complete with the structures as it exists like it was in the last century.

There were 30 visitors that day, I was told.  A lady at the gift shop keeps her counter clicker at the ready.  Between the Coachman's House and the Carriage Barn is an open space dotted with several round picnic tables.  A big tree behind the Coachman's House offered a nice shade to an inviting scene: the Red Barn and the sloping field beyond.  

Muji Mechanical Pencil #03 and partial watercolor wash on-site.
Additional color later added at home.   

The Red Barn

The pencil sketch.

First pass watercolor.

Partial color added on-site.

Thinking how to color the sketch.

A screen grab from the website.  Coachman's House to the left of the Red Barn.

Mirror sketch

The day before Father's Day, I went to the barber and got a haircut.  The haircut was overdue anyway.  Why not add a hot towel shave treatment, too?  Sure, never had it before so that's what I did for experience.  It's a very nice feeling to be pampered.

I went home feeling good and looked at the mirror.  It struck me that I haven't sketched my face in a while.  Here's what came out of the sketch and after applying a watercolor splash on it.  Not necessarily a likeness of me but it was a fun exercise.

Bulls Bridge

After I finished sketching the river scene, I hiked back up toward the road just several yards away from the covered bridge.  One of the boulders guarding the edge of the narrow road has a somewhat flat surface.  It was good enough to sit on for a semi-comfortable spot in sketching the bridge.  Color added later at home.

Bulls Bridge, Kent, CT

The on-site sketch.

Terra Cotta Roof Tiles

At 22 Locust Avenue in Rye, NY there exists a small cottage building with a colorful set of roof tiles.  I didn't take a photo at the time I sketched it last year but there's always Google maps to the rescue!

Pen and Ink
Platinum Carbon Ink Pen

 

Direct WC #3

The Bull's Bridge is a single-lane vehicular wooden covered bridge in Kent, CT.  There's a trail that runs alongside the Housatonic River it crosses.  I know there's a way to get down to the bottom of the river past that bridge that offers a very nice view of the thunderous water spilling out from a small dam upstream.  

That was what I tried to capture yesterday and being adventurous with watercolor, I did it without drawing the lines.  Just having fun.  I started with the light grey line indicators and built it up from there. Additional color added later at home.  Oh, and a video clip too!

The Avon Theater

There was a good 30 minutes left in my parking meter the other day.  Should be enough time for me to sketch this wonderful landmark theater in Stamford, CT.  I miscalculated.  Got the lines for the most part but I had to add more money to the parking meter.  I came back to the same spot and took a picture of the scene.  Here's the still unfinished work with watercolor splash on it.  Another work in progress.