Dear reader,
Most times I sketch alone. Making art - just like writing - is a solitary exercise for me. But every now and then I try to be in the company of other sketchers. This is good. Creativity is like a well, connected by deep, underground paths to other humanity.
"No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main…” - John Donne
In today’s post, scenes from an evening spent with other sketchers. And in the video, a trailer of my Zoom workshop for 31st July. Few seats remaining!
The SneakyArt Post is a publication of secretly drawn art from my world, and my journey of self-education as an artist.
I met with a group of sketchers at the newly inaugurated Rainbow Park in downtown Vancouver. The meet-up was organized as a sketch-walk from one location to another at intervals of half an hour. This kept the sketches quick, light, and instinctive. I decided to give each location one page in my small Moleskine sketchbook.
Barring myself, the rest of the group were urban planners or students of urban planning.
So it was good to know that I was around people who had taken out time for art from their busy lives. Such a unique thing!
Dear reader, have you looked for sketching groups in your city? Or do you already belong to one? Share the experience and inspire others.
The second spot was in Yaletown at a plaza between the bars and fancy restaurants.
Notice the umbrellas hanging above the closed-off road as a beautiful decorative feature (they were yellow). By design or accident, they also create more shaded areas on the ground.
We did our final sketches at the Roundhouse, where trains were once turned around to go the opposite direction. Now it is a curious historical feature in the middle of downtown. Tourists pose for pictures below it, wondering what the old machinery was meant for. Unhoused people use it for shelter.
And sometimes groups of sketchers come to make drawings. Here they are.
We then found a comfortable spot by the water in David Lam Park to unwind and chat. I learned more about the work of urban planning. As evening set in, our numbers dwindled, and we were down to just a few people - looking through each other’s sketchbooks, talking about our work, and trying to squeeze in another opportunity to draw.
For inspiration there was plenty.
The sky was changing from brilliant blue in streaks of orange, pinks, and purples. The peaceful waters lapped against the edge of the path. Boats and paddle-boards and ducks and geese plied along False Creek.
But for me, it is always the people, always the people doing their people-things that catch my eye.
Dear reader, if you like receiving SneakyArt in your inbox, share this publication with others. Help me reach more people!
The third run of my Zoom-based drawing workshop is on 31 July. In the attached video, see highlights from my demos and exercises.
🗓 31 July, 8:30 am Pacific Time (9pm India time)
⏰ 2 hours
✍🏼 Near-continuous drawing using your choice of pen or pencil.
There are two ways to grab a seat -
(1) $40, for just the workshop, or
(2) $50, to become an Insider, support my work, and get a FREE coupon for this workshop in your welcome email. Remember to pick the annual rate!
Feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns!
This Friday I released Ep 48 of the SneakyArt Podcast, which leaves me just two shy of the big FIVE-O. Look how far we have come together!
The SneakyArt Podcast began as a way to keep learning from urban sketchers I knew. But it has evolved into something much greater than that.
I now think of the show as a 21st-century repository of knowledge, an un-gated free library accessible to anyone in the world. And I am proud to be that librarian.
But, at the same time, it is also ancient. Oral traditions are the oldest ways we have of sharing deep knowledge. From the Vedas and the lessons of the Buddha in my part of the world to the Peripatetics of ancient Greece following Aristotle around the Lyceum, humankind has processed and absorbed knowledge by listening to other people.
I am glad to share this tradition with you.
As the solo librarian, as the independent podcaster, and as the artist/writer trying to do everything at once, this summer I am reaching out to you - readers, fans, and listeners - to help me keep going.
Become a SneakyArt Insider and help me celebrate 50 episodes of the SneakyArt Podcast at just $1 per episode!
Dear reader, thank you for giving me a space in your inbox. See you next week with Episode 49!
140. In the company of other sketchers