Bold Random Line Series #3

Here's an instance where I was looking down the intersection of 42nd Street and 6th Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) from the up corner steps at Bryant Park and decided it was too busy for a quick sketch.  I made my way down near the corner subway entrance and noticed the warm glow of the subway entrance.  That was it!  I put down the marks and finished it at home.

Bold Random Line Series #2

I saw something at the NY Public Library structure that could work this other pre-marked sheet.  The ceiling curve of the doorway entrance and the warm light coming from the chandelier was the deciding factor.  It was just a matter of filling in the details.  Another scene captured on my way home toward the Grand Central Terminal.

 

Bold Random Line Series #1

It struck me to further explore the sketches with bold random lines I was making on a little Muji pocket sketchbook size.  So I marked five sheets with no specific use for each.  The challenge I have is to make something that makes sense of the lines.  Here's what came out of it on the first try.

Further West

Between Broadway Avenue and 6th Avenue,  on 37th Street, I found this spot that captured my attention.  The bright neon signs and the crazy traffic at that moment.

Another commuter sketch

In most instances, waiting is not a problem for me.  I find pleasure in doing quick sketches.  Here waiting for the train to arrive and sketching a commuter on the train.

The Foot Combat Armor

I wanted to finish my day sketching an armor so I settled on this:  The Foot Combat Armor of Giuliano De' Medici - Austrian dated 1515, made of steel, leather, and copper alloy.

The Garment District

Another sketchbook page that I experimented with blocks of dark lines from this colossal permanent marker.  I used a white brush pen and gelly roll pen to create the scene as I saw fit on this sketch.  Looking North of 37th Street and Avenue of the Americas (6th Avenue).

Corner 5th Avenue and East 40th Street

Monday evening after work, weather was cold and misty but the scaffolding at the corner of 5th Avenue and East 40th Street provided a shelter and turned this pre-marked page with a sketch of the scene.  Note that I had to turn my sketchbook the other way around to make sense of the pre-marked random lines and make the scene fit into it.  Talking about adaptation.

Finishing the sketch once I got home.

Random line pre-sketch

After making a 20 minute sketch, it looks like there is something developing here.

7 Hour Draw-A-Thon

My second time doing the High School of Art and Design Draw-A-Thon fundraising event (first one was last year).  The most recent one was on Saturday, Nov. 16th from 10:00am - 7:00pm.  Although not an Urban Sketching event, quite a number of us showed up to brush up our observational skills.  For me, it was a good practice to draw human gestures.  The first sketch I did was of the sketchers in the room trying to get a sketch likeness of their chosen model subject.

Then I moved to the other room where the "nekid" models were.  I did one of the sketchers scene too.  The rest of the captured sketches came from several different models.  There is one stand-out model who delivered some dynamic poses including facial expressions to the sketcher's delight. Overall, I really enjoyed this event and look forward to the next one in spring next year.

The GCT Chandeliers

If you look up the restored ceiling of the Grand Central Terminal and survey the general area, you will notice the grand chandeliers that illuminate the hallways leading to the lower level.  My train usually arrive at the lower level.   I was looking for something new to sketch and this view looking up proved to be a challenge but I think I managed to get the lines just right.

That hat!

I was looking for some innocent subject to sketch on one of my morning commute to work.  I recall this gentleman with a matching patterned hat and suit.  He stood by the car entrance/exit doors the whole time and his back against me.  I drew the outline and made mental notes of the patterned hat.  Once I got home, I added them as I recall it.

The Astor Court

Last weekend, I visited the MET Museum and explored other areas I've not seen before which led me to the Astor Court on the second floor.  How I love the peace and tranquility of that area!  Well, groups of people in a guided tour would occasionally show up but the overall zen of the place is just soothing, I think.  I had to sketch this place.

At Fort Greene Park area

A few weeks ago, the NYC Urban Sketcher's meet was held at the Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn.  It was a chilly morning but the sun was out in full as I sat on a park bench sketching what was before me.  Younger children excitedly tried to conquer and lay claim to triumph as they reached the top of this big rock.  Parents were on the periphery and at the ready to take photos of this feat.

Later in the day, a fellow sketcher had this bright idea of going to a nice coffee shop with a nice view of the Fulton Street corner.  Good place to warm up a bit.  It was a good day to be outside!

the top.

Reproduction sketch?

I took a photo of this iconic building on my way to work one summer morning.  This became a handy reference picture for a workshop I did with Carlo Stanga last Saturday.  Ballpoint pen and pencil.

Recent commuter sketches

It feels a little bit incomplete when I don't get to do a sketch on my commute to and from work.  Here are a few of what I've done recently using an ink brush pen and/or felt tip pen.

The Amore Breakfast

We drove four and a half hours heading north to Maine last weekend and spent Saturday evening at the beautiful city of Ogunquit, ME.  The following morning, we were ready to dine at the famous Amore Breakfast restaurant.  From the outside, you can't tell what it has to offer but once you step inside, you're immediately thrown back to a happy setting where the decorations evoked the vintage 1950's era.  They have quite a collection of period signs and posters, too.  It's a classic!

It didn't take long before we got seated at a corner area of the room where I had a nice view looking toward the front entrance.  Once we placed our order, I sketched this scene before me.  That was a good Sunday morning!

A commuter and the Flat Iron Building

Another double spread sketch done on September 17, 2019.  He sat diagonally across from my seat so I was able to sketch him.  The Flat Iron Building was done after work but since I biked that day, it took not much time to do this sketch and head back to Grand Central for my train ride home.

Nathan's Famous Hot Dog

Before leaving Coney Island on the day I visited, I made sure I stopped by the famous Nathan's Hotdog building at the corner of Stillwell Avenue and Surf Avenue.  My first time experience coming to this place was when I did Dr. Jeffrey Levine's Subway Sketching workshop a year ago.  How could I not come back to this famous hotdog place?  The waxed pencil sketch was meant to be colored but I'm not finding time to color it.   Maybe it will happen one day in the near future.

The Stillwell Avenue Train Station

Last month, on a Labor Day holiday weekend, I went to see the Coney Island Beach front and boardwalk.  Sketched a couple of spots and then tried to capture this view of the Stillwell Avenue station where I arrived at and took off from having a fun day at the famous ocean front place.

The opposite page shows a man on the same Metro North train I took going home.  He was trying to catch a nap on the ride home until he detrained at Mamaroneck, NY. 

The water towers

The view from the 19th floor room of the hotel where my relatives stayed two weekends ago was just amazing.  Looking north of Cedar Street, the shorter building next to us offered a nice view of the rooftop patio and water towers.  Too bad, I didn't have enough time to sketch more of the scene.

#62 Pearl Street, NYC

Parking in NYC is still difficult even on a Sunday especially the downtown area where I wanted to park at a nearby church neighborhood.  Alas, I found one spot but it was quite a distance from the church where I dropped off my visiting relatives from TN to attend a Sunday Mass.  I wouldn't mind waiting as long as I have a sketchbook at hand.  This was the scene where I parked my car.

The original line work was fine but I wanted to practice adding colors to my sketches.  Here are the two versions.

Coney Island Beach: Part II

This was actually the first sketch I did while on the Coney Island Beach boardwalk but it sat for several days at home until I added some greyscale lines using Tombow markers.  Then this evening I wanted to add some blue color to the sky.  I pictured in my mind the easier way to get a wet-on-wet effect is to water spray mist the part and splash the color.   Well, to my nightmare, the second the mist interacted with the grey lines, the bleeding oozed everywhere!   It was surreal to watch it but there was no turning back.  I tried to brush it off but no use.  In the end, I came to accept the happy accident.  It wasn't what I had in mind but hey.....

The eerie after-effects of desiring that blue sky color.

The before look when I was ok not having a blue sky color.