Camano Sketcher Pays a Visit

After reading the news of our Whidbey Island Sketchers Group Show, Camano Island sketcher Lori Brown jumped the Saratoga Passage (well, of course given our crazy Island County geography, it actually took her an hour and 45 minutes to drive around) to see the show and sketch with us this week.

Three of us met Lori this summer at the 1st International Urban Sketching Symposium.  We were thrilled to meet another Island County sketcher.

Here's Lori's cool sketch of the cafe. 

After sketching with us, she was off to drive back home to Camano but not before saying:  "Congratulations to the Whidbey Island Sketchers for your exhibit at Whidbey Pies Cafe.  I just had to drive over from Camano Island to see it, and it was great to time my visit with your weekly sketch meetup.  I am a regular with Urban Sketchers Seattle, but it was fun to meet a whole new group of sketchers on Whidbey.  Thanks again for making me feel at home."

Thank YOU Lori and come on over anytime!!  Click here to see more of Lori's sketches on flickr.

The Woodstock of Sketching

Class of 2010 (photo © Urban Sketchers)

Me with Pete Scully at Pioneer Square (photo:© Kumi Matsukawa)

82 sketchers from around the world gathered at the 1st International Urban Sketchers Symposium in Portland last week. Lisbeth, Faye and I were among them. We sketched our little hearts out, met the amazing Seattle Sketcher, Gabi Campanario, and many of our other sketching heroes from Urban Sketchers and had a total blast. Some called it the Woodstock of Sketching, some called it a religious experience, some called it a privilege and an honor. For me, it was definitely an inspiration and a thrill to hang out and sketch with so many who share my passion and obsession for sketching. I'm saving my pennies for next year's symposium in Lisbon. These are just a few of my sketches from the trip.

Faye & her friend, Barbara, sketching at a cafe in Tia Boon's Urban Color session. I did this sketch using Tia's "color splash" method. I splashed paint randomly on the paper and sketched over it when dry. It's one of my favorite drawings of the trip.

Cellist at the Saturday Market.

My first field sketching session of the symposium - Urban Line with instructor Lapin (in the straw hat) and Kurt Holloman (in baseball cap.) We stopped to draw a building Lapin liked, but I liked the street lamps.

This was Urban Nature with instructor Jason Das at Union Station. Our assignment here was to combine some sky, some building and some plant material in the same sketch.

I drew a hanging basket of purple petunias near Union Station for my next Urban Nature assignment.

The Irving Street Kitchen was right across the street from Pacific Northwest College of Art, where the symposium was held.

Pacific Northwest College of Art

I drew Jace in Amtrak's  Bistro car  on the way home from Portland. When I finished the sketch, I asked "Would you mind if I draw your picture?" When he said okay, I said, "Good, cause I already did!" and asked him to sign it. I told him I would post it on the blog. He seemed very pleased.

More people in the Bistro car on the trip home.

A World of Knowledge at International Symposium

me on left in Urban People session (photo: © Elizabeth Alley)

Three Whidbey Island Sketchers attended the 1st International Urban Sketching Symposium in Portland, OR last week.

What an amazing experience to learn from and sketch with Urban Sketchers from every continent (except South America and Antarctica)! 



Here are four of my favorite sketches.  To see more, go to my Urban Sketching Symposium set on flickr. 

We gained lots of practice in twice-daily field sketching sessions.  Here are two of mine from Urban Architecture sessions (this was a fabulous store, Cargo, in the Pearl District)

More challenging architecture on final afternoon sketching a private party with band at Irving Street Kitchen in the Pearl District. 

... and Urban Color (this was my favorite field session where I tried a new color technique used by Tia Boon Sim from Singapore while sketching at Portland's Saturday Market)

... and Urban People (this one was on the train home).

For lots more about this 1st International Urban Sketching Symposium, go to the symposium blog or the symposium flickr page. 

Whidbey Sketchers Go International

Three of us are headed to Portland, OR tomorrow to attend the 1st International Urban Sketching Symposium being held at Pacific Northwest College of Art.  Sketched my supplies before packing.  Off to join sketchers from around the globe!

Portland Sketches

We shared the lunch bar with these at a pasta deli on Hawthorn Street in Portland. So much to explore there....

And of course, time at Powell's.