👋🏼 Hello, readers!
We grabbed a sunny day to walk around Vancouver, check out some furniture stores, grab brunch, and explore beautiful Granville Island. The island was packed with Vancouverites who had come to grab essential vitamins just like us. We walked around the Market until we were quite tired, and made sure the phone congratulated us for 10,000 steps before sitting down to take in the sun and blue skies.
The video shows the drawing I made to end our wonderful day.
A couple of interesting things happened over the course of this drawing:
I went very fast, because I had a sneaking suspicion my subjects would leave before I was finished.
Another group sat down in front of me, partially blocking my view of the fourth person among my subjects.
As it turned out, my subjects got up to leave just as I finished drawing them. I am glad I did not hesitate or spend too long on any one person. I chose speed, which meant using the strategy of Inside-Out/Outside-In. This style has worked superbly for me over the years when capturing poses and gestures in dynamic, unpredictable settings. (Read here how Inside-Out/Outside-In works)
Unexpected interruptions and disturbances are unavoidable in public spaces. I have learned over time to accept them as part of the deal. In fact it is a good idea to absorb such incidents, because sometimes they spark magic. Always leave room on the page for magic.
I’m pleased with how the drawing turned out. I now think it would have looked flat with only the four subjects sitting in a row. Having a person in the foreground gives it depth and perspective. You can see the distances at play - between me and the person in the foreground, and between them and my subjects - which tells you about the crowd at the location, and adds to the sense of busy-ness.
Simple lines can carry lots of information! What do you think?
🎉 Let’s Celebrate!
This is the 100th issue of the SneakyArt Post, going out to thousands of readers around the world. I thank you all for giving me a space in your inbox every week. 🙏🏼
What began as a simple commitment to write regularly, has made me into a better thinker, clearer writer, and more conscientious artist. To celebrate this milestone, I am offering an incredible deal on my Insider subscription -
This offer is actually bonkers, and I don’t totally know why I’m doing it. I just really want to celebrate!
Your membership is fixed for life at $25/year, regardless of price changes in the future. This means life-long access to everything I ever do for SneakyArt Insiders, including a super-ambitious project that begins next month. (More on this soon!)
If you are a fan of the podcast, membership grants you exclusive access to all bonus content.
If you are a fan of my writing, membership offers early access to all writing projects, including my upcoming book SneakyArt of Vancouver.
If you are a fan of my art, consider this your ticket to exclusive discounts, giveaways, and meet-up opportunities.
It is my life’s goal to stay independent and communicate directly with the people that care about my work. So when I say the offer is for life, I mean it. No matter how successful I become - and I intend to be very successful - you will always have a front row seat.
Offer expires at the end of the week. So if you’re interested, grab this ridiculous offer literally right now!
In case you missed it, here is last week’s SneakyArt Drop - the value of a cold, rainy day. Thank you for your time and attention. 👋🏼
100 - Friends on a Sunny Day