The Wall

Not many parts of Dublin where you can see a section of the old wall that used to protect the city. This section is from the Anglo-Norman times - when they arrived in Ireland, the Anglo-Normans pushed the Vikings to the other side of the Liffey (places like Stoneybatter) and they reinforced the defense wall. This was in the early 1170s.

Many things have changed since. But I love it that this bit of wall is still there, ignored by most.

I only drew a small portion of it. And it is quite thick!

One-Star State of Mind Hotel

I find that I am sketching on my own more and more. Maybe it's a good thing, maybe not. I don't know. I have always loved the community aspect of sketching, discovering an area together, feeling safe in less salubrious parts of town as I can see fellow sketchers across the road from me. But at the moment, I'm still in catchup mode. Everybody seems to have an opinion on how I should fix it. None of which seems to take into account my atypical brain which needs order and a clear path from a to b to c. So, I left blank pages in my sketchbook and I go back when I have time to fill the gaps. Except I keep finding more and more interesting buildings and moments to capture. It's not satisfactory. I'm thinking of giving up altogether.

The thing is that I do enjoy sketching on my own, but I do also like chatting with the others afterwards. But right now the Journey West gang are so far ahead that I just think I'll do my own thing and let them carry on. I don't think anybody will miss me anyway. The other day when I was asked how I was and I replied okayyyy, I was met with a stare and silence. This is Ireland. Nobody wants to know your problems. They just want to enjoy themselves, and if you're not in the best of forms, well, keep that to yourself and don't be troubling others with it. Better stay at home until you're feeling better, dear.

OK, rant over!

I did have a great time sketching this. I sat in RóCo café on Lord Edward Street and sketched the building across the way. I had a lovely matcha latte, then a toasted vegan sandwich, all served with a smile. I would definitely go back there for lunch when I'm in the area. It's a small café but cosy upstairs and the perfect view at the counter downstairs.

So, I couldn't draw the whole building. It's a long block and I would have needed a concertina book for that. I had brought a yellow pencil, as I knew I wanted to make those yellow terracotta window surrounds as bright as I could. They do shine bright when the sun is shining. It's a beautiful building. It used to be a home for working boys. It "was designed by Albert E. Murray between 1890 and 1891 to provide ‘comfortable and healthy lodgings’ for working boys of the Protestant faith" according to the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.

Now it's a 1-star hostel, with beds from €12 a night.

The spread looked better without text!!

The Beer Temple

I think I'm the only person in the group who remembers the theme of our journey - Saints and Demons. Hyperfocus is something that is very much part of me, so it comes easily. I was standing just in front of City Hall, up the steps. There was a sign saying there was a private function, so I didn't go in, but it was a great location to sketch The Beer Temple. See, I told you I am finding connections with our theme everywhere I look! The downstairs looks quite modern, but the windows on the first floor are enhanced by magnificent brickwork that remind me of a church. And I have just discovered it gets a mention in Ulysses, which makes me very happy. And it also played a significant part in the 1916 rising, due to its position just across the road from Dublin Castle. (I love the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage website and map!)

And now it's a pub.

I added a small amount of colour after I got home, to connect it to the facing page (more about that in the next post).

Procrastination, avoidance, distraction. And if in doubt, buy new colours

Procrastination, avoidance, distraction. And if in doubt, buy new colours.

Everyday drawing

These squares turned out a little darker than they should have. But it didn't stop me from drawing things in my bathroom. I'm not a natural with a brushpen. Definitely will do more of this!

Cars - back to the beginning

Researching ways to draw cars. Inspired by https://edoughty.com/ and https://www.ronstocke.com/ . Now I need to go on location and practise.

Practising dominance

Nothing kinky here. Move along. Colour dominance is what I'm interested in. My natural tendency is to paint local colour as I see it, rather than thinking about what I want to convey in my sketch. So I practised this from 3 photos I have of the citadel in my hometown, Namur. I hope I managed to express the seasons. Winter is very dark and grey in my hometown. Ireland is actually a lot brighter in the winter. Well, Dublin is anyway. Maybe not so much in the West of Ireland.

Some day, I will go to my hometown and spend a week sketching it. It's very pretty, in parts anyway!

Autumn in the Botanic Gardens

It's not that long since we were in the Botanic Gardens, but a couple of months makes a huge difference in how it feels. I could go there every month and be happy. Actually winter time is better because I can get free parking relatively close!!

There is lots to see and enjoy, but I am drawn to the same location always, by the pond. I do love the water. Although I didn't really paint it. 

We don't get the same glorious fall colours as they do in other parts of the world, but it's been so mild that a lot of trees are still quite green and lively looking. It shouldn't be so mild of course. 16 degrees in November is not normal. Normally, we'd be lucky to get that in August here in Dublin. In the meantime, our so-called leaders are all flying back and forth to Egypt to make passionate speeches about the climate, but take absolutely no action when they get back home. In 2020, we had over 1.48 million dairy cows producing milk on approximately 18,000 dairy farms (Teagasc, 2020). Travel up and down the country. I guarantee you that you will not see that many cows in the fields. And you certainly will not see them going back to the barn to be milked twice a day. You will see, on the other hands, lots of barns, discreetly dotted over the landscape. And remember those first few ships that came out of Ukraine after a deal was brokered to let them export their grain? Well, it was the third ship I think. It came to Ireland. The grain was to feed animals. 

So I sat on my little stool by the pond. It sank halfway into the sodden ground. I managed to stay dry. A few squirrels and ducks thought I was bringing food. I shooed them away.

At this time of the year, it's essential to carry two sketchbooks if you want to sketch in watercolour. It takes forever to dry. When I was done, I walked towards the greenhouse, chatted with a few fellow sketchers. Noticed the dark clouds. I bet 50 euros that it was going to rain. I went into the tropical greenhouse. And I was right. I didn't collect my winnings, but I felt pretty smug all the same. I've been living here since 1986. I know how to read an Irish sky.

It was busy in the greenhouse (not too many other places to take shelter), so I stood and sketched in pen with brown ink and grey marker. Then I chatted with a few people, and went to the pub, where I sketched some more!

Mixing warm and cool shadows

Not sure which photo best reflects the values and colours. One is a little dull, one is little bright. But I find it really fun (and therapeutic) to practise values for my shadow colours! First did my scale with grey marker, then tried to match the values with different mixes. It's hard to photograph watercolour in Ireland in November

Christ Church

I'm hopping back and forth between the top of Dame Street and Thomas Street. Every time I discover more architectural and historical details that appeal to me. Or sometimes I just like how a shadow falls, or the jumble of angles in front of my eyes.

I don't think I will sketch the whole of Christ Church. It's too big and too complex. But on this occasion, I found a good vantage point standing outside the Bull & Castle pub. It wasn't open, and they have barrels/tables outside, behind a glass partition, so it was the perfect spot to stand, without being in the middle of the crowds on the footpath.

I'm still doing Liz Steel's On Location online course, so this was a perfect opportunity to try out shade and cast shadow, of which there was actually very little as the sun was shining from the South East, lighting a good bit of what was in front of me!

And found it interesting that the stone surrounding the windows is a Caen stone. One of these little gems that we discover when chatting with fellow sketchers who know a lot more about architecture and stone masonry than I do! I had already painted the yellow before that conversation, and now I look at my sketch and it makes me happy.

 

City Hall

Continuing the Journey West, at my own pace. 

The next stage for me, and I may still go back a few steps, as I keep discovering more, is City Hall. A fantastic building that dominates the landscape with its beautiful dome from many approaches, and yet, seems to disappear as you get closer to it. I had actually never been inside. And it's an amazing space with the cupola dominating the whole interior. Apparently, this is where O'Connell made his first political speech! I want to go inside and sketch. Hopefully there will be no wedding the next time I'm over!

For this sketch, I chose an approach that's not well known, standing on Castle Street and looking at the City Hall from the side, rather than the better-known Parliament Street view.

I need to reconcile myself to the fact that I can't catch up and enjoy the journey at the same time. One of the guys said something very insightful the other day. Something about connecting with myself, rather than the group or the journey itself. It certainly made me think about my own needs. I do love the social aspect, but I struggle with social interaction at the best of times. And this is not the best of times. So maybe I should just do what I want for a change. Even if I miss out on the chat and fun.

crashing waves

You can see I've been watching Poppy Balser videos! I know I keep going back and forth between all the things I want to paint better, clouds, sea, rocks, all together now. And cars too, but that's a different story!!

I'm slowly getting back into painting, although I have to say I haven't painted anything really for probably 6 weeks. Which is not me at all. Which is not good. So I will take this as a baby step in the right direction. What can I say? My attention isn't focused at the moment. There is a lot going on.

But watching Poppy Balser's wave videos was very interesting, and I will keep practising, without trying to make a painting just yet. I need to acknowledge the fact that I need to build up the skills for now. Without too much expectation.

I did these two separate attempts on the one page in a watercolour sketchbook.  For the second one, I actually drew the general shape of the wave before adding paint. That was useful Painting a rolling wave (as opposed to a crashing wave) is the next thing on my list, clearly!

Barnardo Square

Sketching solo until I catch up with the others. This is Barnardo Square. Looking at the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage, this was the site of a mill on the river Poddle in the 12th century. The river is now covered, and the only place where you will see it in the city centre is where it connects with the Liffey. I sketched that location when we did the Bridges of Dublin! There is nothing that remains of the mill on the surface unfortunately. That said, before I sat down, I noticed a glass panel in the pavement that probably shows some of what remains below ground, but I couldn't see anything. Maybe it was just water droplets on top of the glass, so I must have a look again next time I'm in the area.

My main interest when I chose this location was the two buildings across the way. The one on the left is a pub, but has interesting modern architecture at the top, and the one on the right was striking because of its black and white paint on the first floor. It's a lock and safe company. A strange location for that business, but maybe it does well with all the shops and restaurants in the area?

I only included two people, but this is actually a busy meeting point for tours of Dublin, and a place for delivery bikes to park and wait for their next job.

I painted directly in watercolour, and added some detail in pen. That's my excuse for the wonky windows anyway. It is getting cooler in Dublin and it takes forever for watercolour to dry. And I tend to work very wet, so there were plenty of watercolour magic, otherwise known as happy accidents.

 

Rosie's café

It was good to meet up with my fellow sketchers again after a long time. There was quite a few of us, so I didn't really get a chance to chat with everyone, but I feel so grateful for the friendship, kindness and laughter. Just what I needed to switch gear inside my head.

We were in Rosie's Café on Werburgh Street. It's a small café and I get the feeling that we displaced some of the regulars. But I have already been back there on my own, and I will be back again, as it's a really nice place, with gorgeous homemade food, and wonderful service with a smile. Whenever we go to a place like this, I always make sure to spend money in the place, i.e. not just buy a coffee and nothing else for two hours. I think we need to discuss this within the group, as some people don't seem to realise how hard things are for small cafés these days.

The lady on the left definitely looked put out by us. I never got to show her my sketch. She had beautiful nails. And the two men were enjoying their coffee and chat. I don't think they noticed me at all.

 

I always like to try different things. So I switched to a coloured pencil or two for my sketch of the chaos on the table and Laura's little boy, and Zuzanna's hands, busy sketching. I added light watercolour washes later on.

Not so Sweet Churro

So this is an indoors/outdoors sketch. It's really two sketches, but I've loosely connected them, as I was sitting in the one spot for both of them. 

The first is my Spanish Hot Chocolate (delicious - how come I've been on this earth so many years and never tasted Spanish hot chocolate before!) at Sweet Churro, a little café on Dame Street. The service wasn't sweet. The waitress tried to charge me for cream that I had specifically asked not to include. There was no smile or apology. And no apology either when she told me that the light in the toilet wasn't working. Well, it didn't deter me. That's why we have a torchlight on our phones after all!

The sketch on the right is the view from the window. I really couldn't see very much of City Hall, just the balustrade that runs around it, and the Disneyesque candle installation (it reminds me of Beauty and the Beast).

There were a few people in the café, mostly tourists takings refuge from the rain. But I was on my own, and chose not to sketch them. Maybe this double-spread reflects my sense of disconnection from the world and from my community. It's no big deal. It's always something I experience after travelling. And I have recently discovered that it is quite common among atypicals, as we need more time to switch between holiday routine and back-home routine. Learning something new about myself every day. It's never too late!

Stairway to Heaven

I did this one from a photo, so you'd think I would have taken the time to get it right, but there is a restlessness in me these days. 

As we're on the Saints and Demons journey, I thought that this sign in the Hard Rock café at the top of Dame street was perfect!!

(I can't read music, so I have no idea if the notes makes sense, but I copied them exactly from the sign!)

 

Sumi, from photo, again

Maybe it was the camera angle?

Saints and Demons

I haven't been able to sketch with my friends from Dublin Sketchers in quite a few weeks now. And I needed to get my teeth into a good scene in order to feel the vibe again. So I went to Palace Street, near the entrance to Dublin Castle, and I felt I had the perfect spot to observe the Olympia theatre on the other side of the street, the buses which are a constant feature (and make it hard to see what you're trying to sketch), and the corner of the AIB bank just across from me, with the two ladies who were standing there with their leaflets. 

As the theme of our journey is Saints and Demons, my location got me thinking, about which is which. And also about the politics of today around the world, where there is a constant swing back and forth between right and left, but also a strong pull towards extremism. It feels like democracy is under threat like never before. And if we lose our basic freedoms, it won't matter if it's left or right. It will just be wrong.

Testing brushes

Trying out flat but springy brushes from Rosemary & Co. Inspired by Poppy Balser and her amazing watercolour seascapes.

Teacups, shade and cast shadow

Playing with shadows - Liz Steel's online course Sketching Now Watercolour on Location. This is a rerun and I managed to find my teacups from 2019! This was the perfect relaxation for a day that didn't work out as planned!

The mixes on my second page look more purple in the photo than in reality. They were a mix of Cobalt Blue, Transparent Red Oxide and PV19. With Monte Amiata Natural Sienna dropped in.