Persimmons

It's persimmons season. And thanks to Lidl, we have plenty of them here at reasonable prices. I don't know where they come from. I should enquire, but not until I have sketched and eaten them!

I struggled with my first attempt, even managing to damage my Stillman & Birn Beta paper, which is supposed to be so strong it cannot tear no matter what you throw at it! Moved to a lighter paper and worked in direct watercolour. Then I decided to try lots of different views and media. I should definitely do more of that. My favourite version was done in Ecoline marker and water. Which one do you like best? And did another version again, using a different orange pigment. 

Cross-currents prep

I was struggling to find what to do next after my solo exhibition. It's finishing today, 26th November, by the way, so if you're reading this at 6am, it's still time to go to Walters in Dun Laoghaire and see it !

And then, I realised I have a project I need to be working on already, a collaborative exploration of the Beara peninsula through urban sketching (me), poetry (Cathy) and sound (Brendan). It's a longer-term project, but I will be working in a concertina sketchbook on location on the Beara peninsula. And I won't get that many opportunities to go there, so I want to be ready to hit the road when we're there. And I'm new to concertina sketchbooks, so I need to practise. And remember to bring clips, or the pages will unfold in the wind! I'm quite an intuitive sketcher. I don't like to plan when I sketch. But here, I will need to have an idea how I will connect the double-spreads, without applying a wash on all the pages before I start. Why don't I want to apply a wash in advance? That's too constraining for me. What if I apply a wash in the colour of the stones, but I decide I want to sketch the fields, or the sea, or the sky? It's generally one of those four things, or all of them, but the landscape can look so different depending on the light! 

So I'm going to work from Google Maps for a bit, dropping random pins and hopefully I will find what I need, connecting the views to Cathy's words, and Brendan's sounds, which are resonating in my head as I work. And I'd better start practising drawing sheep!

Hairdressers

I always bring a sketchbook with me when I go to the hairdresser's. I do my own colour, so I only get a cut with Eddie. He's an artist too, so we always have something to chat about. And he's always happy for me to sketch while he's cutting my hair. This time, I used Ecoline markers to block in the shapes before I drew. I can't keep up with how fast his hands are moving!

Sumi as he is

From a photo, because he just moves too much, and I need to practise. And it's actually a good likeness of him!

 

Weekend in Dublin with Federica

(This was from 14 to 16 May. I'm always behind with my blog. )

OK, this is going to take me a while to write, but I want to put it all into the one post, or I'll never get it done!

You might remember a few months ago, last October I think, that I participated in an event with Urban Sketchers. It was called Sketch Together, and the idea was to bring urban sketchers from all around the world and interview them on Instagram. I was assigned as an assistant to Federica Marinaro, who interviewed sketchers around Europe. We had never met before. We had never worked on a project together before. But we got on like a house on fire. You know that wonderful feeling, that we got each other's back and worked in similar ways, and immediately trusted each other! And when it was all done, we promised to meet soon. A trip in December had to be postponed due to Covid concerns around Europe. And we rescheduled. And this time, it worked.

I don't know where to start. So the easiest thing will be to follow the sketches and tell the story from there.  You can also go and check Federica's Instagram page. She's a whizz with Instagram stories, reels and posts! (I couldn't keep up!!). We had great weather. We enjoyed each other's company. It was like we had known each other for years. We talked, we ate, we sketched, and we also got to sketch together with the Dublin team! All in all, a perfect weekend!

Day 1 Saturday 14th of May

I'm always early at the airport, even when I'm picking someone up. So I had time to sketch the people standing in the arrivals hall. It was a while since I was there.

After a cuppa and a scone in Bewleys, we settled in Saint Stephen's Green, watching the world go by. It was sunny, but not that warm. The trees have that lovely fresh green colour. But most people were still wearing their warm jackets.

We dropped Federica's bags to her AirBnB, then went on to Dun Laoghaire. We wanted to see the sea. Well, the fog was so thick that we didn't see much. But we had a late lunch and we sketched each other. So much fun!

Undocumented by sketches - we went back to my house, looked through each other's sketchbooks over a cool drink, ordered via Deliveroo, and watched the Eurovision song contest!

Day 2 Sunday 15th of May

We met in town, walked around Trinity College, then went to the Kilkenny Design café, where there was Sunday morning music. The age profile is older than when I was in Trinity. Except for these 3 lads. We met up with a friend of Federica's, who is also living in Dublin, and who is called, guess!, Maria-Helena! 

After a quick bite in KC Peaches on Nassau Street, we headed to Saint Patrick's Cathedral, where our fellow urban sketchers from Dublin Sketchers were meeting. Lots of sketching, lots of chatting and looking through sketchbooks, discussing pens and colours and paper. Perfect afternoon.

After that, we went to Yamamori South for dinner, tako yaki, some sushi, umeshū, and lots more chatting!

Day 3 Monday 16th of May

Started with a sketch of the interesting buildings across the way from the Avoca café

A beautiful tree in Trinity College

Front Square, Trinity College Dublin. Didn't get to finish it, but you get the idea!

We had an hour before our visit of the Book of Kells and the Long Room, so we went to the Museum Building (Geology Department). The door was open. We went in, then up the stairs  and we started sketching. It's not an easy interior. But it's amazing. Someone did enquire about what we were doing, but I confidently said we were with Dublin Sketchers and we'd been there before, so we were able to continue with our drawing of this fabulous interior, reminiscent of Venice, or the Ottoman Empire!

After visiting the Long Room, and having a lovely lunch, we had time for one more sketch, before Federica had to head to the airport. The Dubh Linn garden in Dublin Castle didn't disappoint! And did I mention that we had wonderful weather?

It was sad to say goodbye, but I am already thinking about going over to visit Federica!

Federica took lots of amazing photos. And do check her amazing Instagram page - If you look at the Highlights at the top, you will find some gorgeous videos of our time together!

I don't have the energy of the patience to sort these photos here in chronological order. Enjoy!