#10 - A Season to Live
Last week, I spoke about my #WFH sketches. In this issue, I want to share the latest episode of the SneakyArt Podcast and some drawings from the brief, but popular, season of Instagram Live.
Birth of a New Cool
Early in the Great Isolation of 2020, there was a brief season of “Instagram Live”. Everyone was doing it, and everyone else wanted to see it. Early lockdown was an innocent time. We lived quite differently back then. We were afraid of the coronavirus. We believed ourselves to be in this together - as a society, as a species, and even as a planet**.
So every morning began with a bout of anxiety at the rising infection numbers. And for me, with a cup of chai in one hand and a death toll on the other, it felt good to tune into some people talking about something else.
(** This is, of course, ridiculous. If you are an elephant or polar bear or tiger, COVID19 is the best thing that has happened in the modern history of your species.)
I heard Shubha Mudgal speak about the healing power of music with Ankur Tewari. Both of them sang at different times. It was beautiful.
One sign of a culture “arriving” is when the meta-references begin. Staying-at-home comics tried new routines to the sight of each others’ disheveled appearances and a live audience ticker.
The good people at Jaipur Lit Fest organized a number of big conversations. I heard a lot more people than I would otherwise be able to. I’m grateful for that.
It became a good opportunity to learn some new things every morning. Drawing kept my mind focused and still. It made me a better listener.
The Urban Sketching community also began a season of USk Talks, with weekly sketch-challenges and fascinating conversation. I drew this one with the iPad.
Silicon Valley engineer/artist Uma Kelkar spoke about her twin pursuits of science and art, and how they help her become a better person.
Jamie Alter spoke with cricket-historian Boria Majumdar and Shashi Tharoor about 10 iconic moments of Indian cricket.
Host Raunak Kapoor spoke with a bunch of cricketers, past and present, including this hilarious interview with Sanjay Manjrekar.
Doing Art Live
I also did some “live-drawings” from reference images. They aren’t as fun as drawing on location, but there’s always something to learn. Below, an image from a Mumbai local train, drawn with ink.
I like drawing live. It enforces a set of constraints which make the challenge interesting. You have to take creative decisions on the fly. I learn more about myself, and am invariably a better artist for having done it. Find other work from this phase on my Instagram here.
[Podcast] Ep 3 - “Seeing in Color with Shari Blaukopf”
In the new episode of the SneakyArt Podcast, I speak with Shari Blaukopf, an educator and urban-sketcher in Montreal. Shari’s work possesses the enviable quality of being instantly likable - whether you see it from up close or afar. This is a conversation packed with great, practical advice. We talk about -
the importance of seeing well to the act of painting well
the value of a regular blogging routine, as a positive feedback mechanism with others and within yourself
the merits of drawing from observation vs use of photo-references
some hacks to get a working understanding of color theory
the importance of using failures as a learning opportunity
How does Shari’s education in graphic design help her to compose better scenes? In which ways does the urban-sketching community inspire her to make incremental progress? I learned a lot from this wonderful conversation and I hope you will too.
Listen to it on your browser here. It should appear on Apple Podcasts later this week.
Transcripts and links related to our conversation are at sneakyartist.com/podcast.
The SneakyArt Podcast is a new venture in a new medium. I would love to hear what you think of it, what works for you and what doesn’t.
Last week, I turned 33 and I don’t know how to feel about that. If you’re older, give me some advice.
In the next Post, I will share SneakyArt of this swiftly changing season, and thoughts from running my second half-marathon since knee surgery a few years ago. Because of COVID I had to run this one entirely alone. Thank you for your attention. Have a good weekend!