BRISBANE SKETCHFEST

AUSTRALIA HOSTS FIRST COUNTRYWIDE SKETCHFEST IN BRISBANE

BY PETER RICHARDS AND JULIE MILLAR

The Brisbane Sketchfest was the first Australiawide formal urban sketching event modelled on a USk Symposium. The idea for the Sketchfest came from a combination of opportunities. In 2018, Brisbane City Council (BCC) asked members of USk Brisbane to run free urban sketching workshops during the annual Brisbane Open House Event (BoH), where public and private buildings are open over one weekend, and despite the wet weather, they were well received.

Last year was the tenth year of BoH. It was anticipated that timing an urban sketching event with BoH would spread the urban sketching message to the broader community. There would be sketching opportunities in local buildings that were not typically available, and on location sketchers would significantly add to the experience of BoH for visitors. October is also a good time of year in Brisbane, usually not too hot or wet. The purple flowers of the jacaranda trees are in full bloom and it is the month of the Oktoberfest, hence Sketchfest. Twelve instructors were settled on early, four from overseas (from Asia, to recognise our regional location), four from around Australia, and four from Queensland. They were chosen to provide a wide variety of approaches and included the well-known urban sketchers KK, KC Lee, Paul Wang and Rob Sketcherman, as well as Australian Symposium instructors Liz Steel, Richard Briggs and Robyn Bauer. The others were urban sketchers that were held in high regard by the group and deserved the opportunity. A maximum of 15 people per workshop gave a total of 180 possible participants. There was some concern that this was too ambitious, but in the end, we almost sold out. We had attendees from all over Australia, some came from Nouméa in the Pacific, New Zealand, and others straight from Asia Link in Hanoi, which was held the week before. For some, it was their first urban sketching experience.

The smaller numbers enabled a couple of things to happen that were not possible in a larger Symposium.

The Sketchfest started with presentations by the instructors, and representatives from all participating urban sketching groups in Australia and New Zealand spoke of their activities and the work of their members. It beautifully showed the extent and depth of the urban sketching community in Oceania. Each participant did one workshop each with an international, an interstate and a local instructor. There were two sketch walks where the instructors did informal demonstrations. The eat, drink and draw venue was at urban parkland South Bank, with spectacular views over the city skyline.

On the day after the Sketchfest, participants and instructors joined an Urban Sketchers Brisbane meeting, so those who were unable to attend could feel part of the event.

The Brisbane Sketchfest was a remarkable experience and a great success, with extremely positive feedback from many participants. It enabled a large group to forge a better relationship with and understanding of Brisbane and with other sketchers in our region.

A DRINK & DRAW

THROWDOWN AT MICHAEL POPE’S WORKSHOP