14 Henrietta Street

Dublin Sketchers were invited to 14 Henrietta Street a couple of weeks back. Due to safety reasons, we were only given access to a small part of the building, which was disappointing, but we made the most of it. Since we were in the lower kitchen, I put myself in Leopold Bloom's shoes, preparing breakfast!

'Kidneys were in his mind as he moved about the kitchen softly, righting her breakfast things on the humpy tray. Gelid light and air were in the kitchen but out of doors gentle summer morning everywhere. Made him feel a bit peckish.
The coals were reddening.
Another slice of bread and butter: three, four: right. She didn’t like her plate full. Right. '

And then I went outside and tried to sketch the building itself - dark bricks and dark window frames. My watercolour went a bit heavy, but I enjoyed drawing the bricks after I got home later that day.

'All kissed, yielded: in deep summer fields, tangled pressed grass, in trickling hallways of tenements, along sofas, creaking beds.
—Jack, love!
—Darling!
—Kiss me, Reggy!
—My boy!
—Love!
His heart astir he pushed in the door of the Burton restaurant. ' (and yes, I even managed to sneak in a food connection here!!)