DRAWING
Attention
The official zine of Urban Sketchers JUNE 2018
Drawing Attention Mandate Drawing Attention, the official monthly zine of the Urban Sketchers organization, communicates and promotes official USk workshops, symposiums, sketchcrawls, news and events; shares news about USk chapters; and educates readers about the practice of on-location sketching. Managing Editor: Brenda Murray Mailchimp layout: Jane Dillon Wingfield ISSUU layout: Anne Taylor Writers: Brenda Murray; Pedro Loureiro; Susan Rogers; Sarah Minty; Susan Schaffhausen; Leslie Akchurin; Jane Dillon Wingfield. Proofreaders: Leslie Akchurin; Ann Schwartzwald. Contributors: Parka; Maria Regina Tuazon; Amber Sausen. cover image: Oliver Hoeller. Subscribe to Drawing Attention. Read the May edition of Drawing Attention. Circulation: 9732 Readership: 16k+ Web: urbansketchers.org Urban Sketchers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering the art of on-location drawing. Click here to make your tax-deductible contribution via Paypal. © 2018 Urban Sketchers. 2 DRAWING ATTENTION
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Dear Urban Sketchers, I love getting outside to sketch the world around me, whether I’m traveling or capturing my daily life. Sketching is a way to slow down and focus on all stories around me. We all have our own reasons for being part of Urban Sketchers. One thing we all agree on: being part of Urban Sketchers has changed our lives for the better! Meeting new people, in person and online. Improving our artistic skills. Learning from Urban Sketchers’ world-class instructors. Sharing the stories of our world with others. That’s why we’re starting the Urban Sketchers 10k + 10k Matching Fund Campaign. We want to bring the joy and satisfaction of on-location drawing to even more people around the world. Thanks to a $10,000 (US) grant from an anonymous donor, we’ve started this challenge: for every dollar we raise – up to $10,000 (US) – our
generous donor will match it. If we can raise $10,000 (US) by June 8th, our donor will hand us another $10,000 (US)! And while we have chapters in over 220 cities worldwide, not everyone has access to or can afford our workshops. Imagine how many free events we could host for schools, organizations and communities if we raise $20,000 (US)! Support the Urban Sketchers 10k + 10k Matching Fund Campaign in any amount. But hurry, we only have until June 8th! There are many ways to give. Check out the campaign donation page HERE. And after you donate, please join us on social media and tell us how Urban Sketchers has changed your life. Thank you for supporting the 10k + 10k Matching Fund Campaign! Amber Sausen, USk President
Every month Drawing Attention writers Skype interview fabulous instructors and chapter Administrators so that we can tell their stories. What a great experience it is getting to know them! Thanks so much to all the writers, Admins, instructors and volunteers that make Drawing Attention such a great read! Happy sketching all! Brenda Murray, USk Communications Director drawingattention@urbansketchers.org.
CONTENTS
12
4 USK NEWS & EVENTS 12 SKETCH UNTIL YOU DROP IN THE CENTRE OF PORTUGAL 22 NEW CHAPTER: USK BELLINGHAM 26 CHAPTER EXHIBITION: USK DELHI 29 CHAPTER INTERVIEW: USK SAN DIEGO 32 USK WORKSHOP: NIGHT SKETCHING WITH PEDRO & PEDRO 38 CHAPTER INTERVIEW: USK STOKE-ON-TRENT 42 USK INSTRUCTOR: STORYTELLING & COLLABORATION WITH
22
32
SWASKY
48 USK INSTRUCTOR: SKETCHING THE STORIES IN SCIENCE & LIFE
WITH OLIVER HOELLER
42
58 NEW USK CHAPTERS 59 REVIEW & ENDNOTES
f
i
HOW TO READ DRAWING ATTENTION AS AN E-ZINE CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ISSUU APP FOR IOS DEVICES FOR EASIER READING SELECT FULL SCREEN.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ISSUU APP FOR ANDROID
A PDF VERSION IS AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE.
JUNE 2018 3
USk News & Events
HELP US BRING URBAN SKETCHERS WORKSHOPS TO EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE Help us bring Urban Sketchers workshops to everyone, everywhere! The Urban Sketchers 10k + 10k Matching Fund Campaign will bring urban sketching to schools, organizations and communities that have not had the opportunity to enjoy on-location drawing. With your help we hope to raise $20,000 USD by June 8th. Video credit: Gary Bingner. For more information contact Richard@urbansketchers.org. Donate now at urbansketchers.org/donate. 4 DRAWING ATTENTION
USk News & Events
JUNE 2018 5
USk News & Events
SYMPOSIUM NEWS USk Porto 2018 is just around the corner. Here are a few things that may be great to know before you start packing! Our Frequently Asked Questions article is also a good must-read if you haven’t yet. We update it often so be sure to check it in case you have some questions. Take a sneak peek at the order of the 4-day Symposium to give you a juicy teaser on what’s in store! Are you curious about the weather, how to move around in the city, how best to dress, what and where to eat, and even what plug to bring? Check out the full article here with some insider essentials straight from our sketcher friends in Portugal.
Your registration information is available here. Print your schedule from Eventbrite or use their app. Demos will be ready for selection upon registration in Porto. Read all about the demo line-up here. Visit the website page for information from instructors and updates about the event. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and join the Facebook group to meet other attendees. Use the hashtag #USkPorto2018. Are you ready? See you in Porto!
OUR THANKS TO DON GORE
Urban Sketchers would like to thank Don Gore, Instagram Team Lead, for leading the team and managing the platform for the past three years. Don has done an excellent job and he will be missed. When Don took on this role in 2015 there had been a total of 264 posts and 7,876 followers since it opened in 2013. The account now has 4,854 posts and we are at 151,700 followers. Don increased our Instagram followers by 1826%! We appreciate you Don! Best wishes for whatever adventure next awaits! 6 DRAWING ATTENTION
USk News & Events
JUNE 2018 7
USk News & Events
Urban Sketchers would not be the amazing organization it is without hundreds of amazing volunteers! As a USk volunteer you will meet new people and learn new skills. You will be part of an international team connected through technology, working remotely and cheering each other on. Volunteering with USk can be very rewarding! We are currently seeking volunteers to fill the following positions: Volunteer Fundraising Director Volunteer Sponsorship Administrator • Volunteer Facebook & Instagram team members • For more information click HERE. • •
8 DRAWING ATTENTION
USk News & Events
BRING A WORKSHOP TO YOUR CHAPTER Urban Sketchers organizes workshops taught by our top instructors in collaboration with USk chapters around the world. If you would like to bring an official USk workshop to your chapter, start the conversation with our Education Director, Mรกrio Linhares at education@urbansketchers.org.
JUNE 2018 9
USk News & Events
10X10 WORKSHOPS
Do you want to start being an urban sketcher? Are you already a sketcher and want to improve your drawing skills? Don’t wait any longer. Join a 10x10 class in your city. Or take a train or a plane to a beautiful city and learn with an USk instructor. To see the list of 10x10 classes around the world click HERE.
10 DRAWING ATTENTION
USk News & Events
JUNE 2018 11
USk News & Events
Sketch until You Drop in the Centre of Portugal
12 DRAWING ATTENTION
Sketch Tour Portugal
CASA ANTERO CALDAS DA RAINHA BY NELSON JUNE 2018 13
USk News & Events
WHEN OLD FRIENDS INMA SERRANO AND NELSON PACIÊNCIA RECENTLY REUNITED DURING THE SKETCH TOUR PORTUGAL PROGRAM IT FELT LIKE THEY HAD JUST SEEN EACH OTHER THE DAY BEFORE. THEY PICKED UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF WITH AN EASY CAMARADERIE AND A LOT OF LAUGHS. BY BRENDA MURRAY.
T
he friends travelled through Caldas da Rainha, Óbidos, Peniche, Tomar, Batalha and Alcobaça. It was Inma’s first time visiting those cities though not her first time in Portugal. For Nelson, he revisited his birthplace Caldas da Rainha.
of onlookers – and they have the photo to prove it. “When you are sketching something that has been around for more than a hundred years you cannot imagine what has happened in that place,” Nelson said. “It’s a privilege just to be there at that moment.”
Both agreed that the highlight was Batalha. “I loved Batalha,” Inma said. “I loved the monastery. It was raining and sunny at the same time and very special.”
WATCH THE VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH INMA AND NELSON
They visited other monasteries as well in Tomar and Alcobaça and found each one special but Batalha moreso. The sketching schedule was grueling but fun and it was in Batalha that the pair literally sketched until they dropped on the monastery floor to the surprise SKETCH BY INMA 14 DRAWING ATTENTION
Sketch Tour Portugal
JUNE 2018 15
USk News & Events
16 DRAWING ATTENTION
Sketch Tour Portugal
INMA’S TIP: Never say that your sketch is not good. If your sketch doesn’t meet your expectations, keep going. In the end it might turn out. SKETCHES BY INMA JUNE 2018 17
USk News & Events
SKETCH BY INMA 18 DRAWING ATTENTION
Sketch Tour Portugal
CONVENTO CRISTO TOMAR BY NELSON
JUNE 2018 19
USk News & Events
IGREJA SANTIAGO OBIDOS BY NELSON
20 DRAWING ATTENTION
NELSON’S TIPS: I like to think about and absorb things before I start sketching. Then I let myself lose control of the drawing. The drawing is controlling me. I like that feeling. For example, it was raining and I was listening to the rain and it was like it was not me drawing. My drawing got taken over at that moment.
Sketch Tour Portugal
IGREJA DE SAO PEDRO OBIDOS BY NELSON JUNE 2018 21
A new chapter takes shape in
BELLINGHAM BY SUSAN ROGERS
BACK ROW FROM LEFT: REMY COUTAREL, JANIECE REILLY, FRANK BETTENDORF, MARTY SPENCE, MARTA RAAKA AND UNNAMED SKETCHER. FRONT ROW FROM LEFT: UNNAMED SKETCHER, KATHY ENGH, JULIE MORTIMER AND KAREN VER BURG. 22 DRAWING ATTENTION
New Chapter
K
athy Engh’s enthusiasm for urban sketching began with the USK San Diego chapter.
“I had fun and enjoyed discovering many locations that I had previously never visited. Sharing the sketches at the end of the day was inspiring and Lydia Velarde, the Admin, became a mentor and friend.” But when Kathy moved north to Bellingham in Washington State, she was surprised to discover that there was no USK chapter! However, Bellingham is home to many artists and serendipitously, some of these artists were also thinking about urban sketching. Karen Ver Berg had wanted to be part of an urban sketching group for a long time. Robert Dodd discovered Urban Sketchers online and began sketching on his own. “I was inspired by many of the “great” urban sketchers around the USK world and wanted to promote the idea in Bellingham,” Robert explained. So with some tips and encouragement from Lydia, the three co-Admins formed the group in April 2017. The three of them organized their first sketch crawl in June 2017. Some of the groups’ favourite locations are Whatcom Waterfalls, the two marinas and the ferry terminal and Bellingham’s downtown that has buildings that date to the 1890’s.
“I
THOUGHT THAT THERE WOULDN’T BE ENOUGH TO SKETCH [AT THE LIBRARY] BECAUSE IT WOULD JUST BE BOOKS AND PEOPLE SITTING IN THE SAME POSITION, THEIR HEADS DOWN – I WAS SO WRONG!” – KATHY
One of the groups recent outings took place indoors at the Bellingham Central Library. Kathy had her doubts about the location: “I thought that there wouldn’t be enough to sketch because it would just be books and people sitting in the same position, their heads down - I was so wrong! Each sketcher found an interesting scene; the children’s reading area, an outside fountain, stacks of books, someone checking out books.” Karen is delighted with the success of the group. “I really like that sketchers capture a sense of place. There is confidence in numbers. We can learn, grow and be challenged as we share our sketches with each other. Robert has found another benefit, “Because I travel a lot, sketching with other groups in around the world is an exciting possibility.”
JUNE 2018 23
New Chapter
WHATCOM FALLS PARK BY KAREN VER BURG
24 DRAWING ATTENTION
FARMERS MARKET BY KAREN VER BURG
ART SUPPLY TABLE AT DAKOTA ARTS
S BY ROBERT DODD
USk Bellingham
LEARN MORE ABOUT USK BELLINGHAM
HAIDA WARRIOR BY KAREN VER BURG
JUNE 2018 25
Group exhibition
“I
F YOU SKETCH JAMALI KAMALI MOSQUE, YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT IT IS CONSIDERED THE SPOOKIEST PLACE IN DELHI” – NIRAJ GUPTA
SKETCH BY MONALI 26 DRAWING ATTENTION
Chapter Exhibition
New Delhi Chapter hosts its first group exhibition BY BRENDA MURRAY AND SUSAN SCHAFFHAUSEN
U
Sk Delhi which was officially approved in May 2017 held its first group show with seven participating sketchers at the prestigious India Habitat Centre in the heart of Delhi. In addition to the local media, special guests included the Ambassador of Slovakia, His Excellency Mr. Zigmund Bertok, a keen art collector himself, along with his staff and family.
Eminent Artist Mr. M. K. Puri, a renowned sculptor, teacher, and art critic also visited the show and shared useful suggestions with each artist. The show attracted curators from the Stainless Gallery who invited the sketchers to participate in another Delhi-themed show called “Dilli tere ishq mein” (Dilli in
love with you) starting April 20. The theme was Mehrauli, which is part of historic Delhi and one of the group’s favorite places to sketch. Mehrauli has an architecturally unique intersection of monuments from a number of historic dynasties including Tughlaq and Mughal. A standout is the magnificent 17th Century Tomb of Quli Khan,constructed for the first Mughal Emperor.
ABOVE: SOME OF THE EXHIBITION PARTICIPANTS, FROM LEFT: NIRAJ GUPTA, RITURAJ DIXIT, ZUZANA MEZENCEVOVÁ (FROM SLOVAKIA EMBASSY), GEETA GUPTA, AND SONAM JAISWAL.
JUNE 2018 27
Chapter Exhibition
The Delhi chapter now has 330+ members and meets every Sunday – 42 times since launching. Its founder, Niraj Gupta, welcomes visitors with insider tips: “If you sketch Jamali Kamali mosque, you should know that it is considered the spookiest place in Delhi.” At times, sketching the archeological sites around Delhi as an organized group draws attention and Gupta’s group has been asked by security guards to leave. “Never give up when in India,” Gupta advises. “In 42 sketch outings, we’ve never
CONNECT WITH USK DELHI 28 DRAWING ATTENTION
been thrown out.” Since it may be difficult for visitors to pre-contact a site’s management, he suggests explaining to guards that Urban Sketchers usually work quickly and that they bring positive attention to Delhi.
Baoli stepwell. “We hope for the restoration of all the public water stepwells in Delhi.” This chapter attracted art show invitations in short order; awareness for historic preservation isn’t far behind.
Gupta believes “the idea of Urban Sketching as a group is the cohesive element” and this ambitious chapter has become civic-minded in recording Delhi’s story of time and place. Some sketch outings bring attention to the depletion of Delhi’s famous waterways like the Rajon Ki
SKETCH BY NIRAJ GUPTA
Chapter Intervew
CULTURES MERGE IN SUNNY
SAN DIEGO KNOWN AS THE “BIRTHPLACE OF CALIFORNIA”, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA’S SECOND LARGEST CITY, IS HOME TO A VIBRANT URBAN SKETCHERS COMMUNITY. JANE WINGFIELD CONNECTED WITH LYDIA VELARDE, THE GROUP’S FOUNDER.
JUNE 2018 29
Chapter Interview
L
ike a lot of California, San Diego is infused with Spanish and Mexican-influenced architecture and culture giving the city an historical backdrop, even as hi-tech companies sprout up and hirise buildings command the skyline. Lydia Velarde was a prolific sketcher and active on social media when Gabi Campanario found her online and asked her to join the Urban Sketchers Flickr group in 2008. She became a correspondent for the USk blog and “When Chapters started popping up around the world I thought it would be a good opportunity to start the San Diego Chapter.”
The group celebrates its fifth anniversary this year and now has 400+ members. It meets twice a month and they share their sketches on the Urban Sketchers San Diego Facebook page. Some favorite sketch sites are Balboa Park, the four Missions, and Hotel Del Coronado. There are numerous wineries and nurseries in the area as well as scenic spots both outdoors and indoors. Lydia’s favorite sketching experiences are “when we have had visitors from Korea, Canada, London, Oxford, Australia and Hawaii.”
One of their regular sketchers is a four-year old child. When she started, her mother carried her in an infant holder strapped to her chest. Now she wears a name tag and shares her sketches along with the others. In 2015 USK San Diego sponsored the 3rd Annual West Coast Sketchcrawl. It was their biggest event yet. Lydia also manages the USk YouTube Channel, posting videos about USk workshops, instructors and other USk topics of interest. Her experience as a video editor makes her perfect for the job. Anyone can submit a video for consideration by sending it to lydia@urbansketchers.org.
SKETCH BY VERN ELMORE 30 DRAWING ATTENTION
MAY 2018 30
Cultures merge in sunny San Diego
SKETCH BY LYDIA VELARDE
LEARN MORE ABOUT USK SAN DIEGO JUNE 2018 31
Title
Night Sketching
with Pedro and Pedro
“HAVE YOU EVER DANCED WITH THE DEVIL IN THE PALE MOONLIGHT?” – TIM BURTON’S JOKER THIS IS THE CHALLENGE PEDRO ALVES AND PEDRO LOUREIRO, OF LISBON, PORTUGAL ARE PUTTING TO THE PARTICIPANTS OF THEIR UPCOMING NIGHT SKETCHING WORKSHOP. BY BRENDA MURRAY
32 DRAWING ATTENTION
USk Workshop
he workshop will be held on June 22nd beginning at 9 PM at the Graça Panorama viewpoint in Lisbon.
T
have any trouble coloring at night, and there’s a kiosk with drinks besides us, for a bit of drink and draw.”
Pedro and Pedro have taught this workshop three times already this winter and are looking forward to opening it up to the USk community at the Graça viewpoint. “Graça Panorama viewpoint has a nice urban atmosphere, with streets, a square, a church and a park so there’ll be plenty to choose from in terms of sketching subjects,” Pedro Loureiro explained. “It’s well lit in the evening, so participants won’t
Pedro and Pedro are architectural illustrators who work together in the same firm. Sharing the same name and the same job they finish each other’s sentences which made interviewing them really fun. “We’re looking forward to a fun night,” Pedro Alves said, “sketching, going for drinks and talking with people who love sketching – it’s the perfect night out for urban sketchers.”
SKETCH BY PEDRO LOUREIRO
“ONE OF THE LESSONS ... IS THAT WHEN IT’S DARK YOU CAN’T SEE THE DETAILS SO THERE’S NO POINT IN PUTTING THEM IN.”
JUNE 2018 33
USk Workshop
Sketchers will use white paper but a limited palette of 3 colours and will learn to manage values not colours. One of the lessons of the workshop is that when it’s dark you can’t see the details so there’s no point in putting them in. “The workshop is divided into two parts. At the beginning of the evening while it’s still light we do the line drawing then add the colours after it’s dark,” Pedro Loureiro explained. “But we will work to keep some white paper for the reflections,” Pedro Alves added.
PEDRO LOUREIRO’S TIP: Get a cheap sketchbook to beat that "sketcher's block", and in it, sketch everything like you would have to leave in ten seconds - sudden death sketches, like a friend of ours named them. This will really get you primed and relaxed for more elaborate sketches afterwards.
PEDRO ALVES’ TIP: Start your sketch by drawing what caught your eye in the first place. If suddenly you have to leave the spot, you had time to draw what you wanted to in the first place.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS WORKSHOP (WHERE APPARENTLY
MEET PEDRO & PEDRO HERE
34 DRAWING ATTENTION
w FLASHLIGHTS ARE NOT REQUIRED!)
Night Sketching
SKETCH BY PEDRO ALVES
JUNE 2018 35
USk Workshop
SKETCH BY PEDRO ALVES
36 DRAWING ATTENTION
Night Sketching
SKETCH BY PEDRO LOUREIRO
MAY 2018 37
Title
Sketching around ‘The Potteries’ STOKE-ON-TRENT, IN STAFFORDSHIRE, ENGLAND, WAS ONCE THE HUB OF THE BRITISH POTTERY INDUSTRY AND KNOWN AS ‘THE POTTERIES’. THIS MAKES IT A FASCINATING PLACE FOR SKETCHING. SARAH MINTY MEETS MEMBERS OF USK STOKE-ON-TRENT.
38 DRAWING ATTENTION
APEDALE LIGHT RAILWAY BY STEPHEN LIDDLE
Chapter Interview
S
tarting as an informal sketch meet-up two years ago, USk Stoke-onTrent, in Staffordshire, England, was officially established in June 2017 and now has 200 Facebook followers and at least 20 sketchers turning up to each meet-up. “I’ve only lived in Stoke for four years,” said Laura Green, one of the founding members, “but I’ve learnt so much about it from just being out and about. Sketching has really helped me to look at the place in a different way; it makes me want to find out more about its history, as well as admiring all of the architecture and the historical vestiges.” Known as the ‘The Potteries’, Stoke-on-Trent was once home to the British pottery industry. Manufacturers such as Wedgwood and Spode were powered by the abundance of local coal and clay, and when asked, it’s the iconic bottle kilns that remain which Laura loves to sketch the most: “they’re all different shapes, some are more wine bottle-like and others are straighter … they have a presence about them.” The chapter meets every two weeks and recent events included a six town’s sketch crawl, as well as venturing further afield to local market towns. Last May, the chapter was invited to the Burslem Festival where they sketched and documented the day, with the final pictures featured in a calendar. “We’re getting well-known in certain areas,” says Laura, and the chapter will have a stall at a similar festival this May with materials so visitors can give sketching a go themselves.
“T
HE BOTTLE KILNS .... ARE ALL DIFFERENT SHAPES, SOME ARE MORE WINE BOTTLELIKE AND OTHERS ARE STRAIGHTER … THEY HAVE A PRESENCE ABOUT THEM” – LAURA GREEN
When asked what advice she might give to other sketchers, Laura said: “Don’t try too hard. Just enjoy, and don’t set out with a grand vision of what you want to capture or produce. When I started I was quite rigid and quite a perfectionist, I still struggle with that, but I think I’ve learnt from watching people working quite quickly or loosely, to relax a bit more, enjoy the moment and capture something as I see it.” JUNE 2018 39
Chapter Interview
SKETCH BY LAURA GREEN
CONNECT WITH USK STOKE-ON-TRENT
40 DRAWING ATTENTION
SKETCH BY LAURA GREEN 41 DRAWING ATTENTION
JUNE 2018 41
USk Instructor
STORYTELLING AND COLLABORATION EXPANDING THE WAYS WE SEE THE WORLD & TELLING STORIES INSPIRE PROLIFIC SKETCHER SWASKY. A PROFESSIONAL ILLUSTRATOR & TEACHER WHO LIVES ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF BARCELONA, HE PRIMARILY IDENTIFIES AS A LOCATION SKETCHER. SWASKY EXPLAINS HIS WAY OF EXPLORING THE WORLD & SHARING WITH OTHERS. BY LESLIE AKCHURIN
S
wasky is always seeing to widen his experience and share it with others, as in his workshop for the 2016 Manchester Symposium, where he taught how to combine multiple perspectives of buildings in the same drawing. He points out that while we tend to fall back on the convention of a fixed camera angle, a major strength of sketching is its ability to capture multiple viewpoints. Swasky finds storytelling opportunities in the unique characteristics and concerns of each place he visits, as when he joined a sketch group to document the daily life of developmentally challenged farm workers in Bristol. “The strong point of urban sketching is how sketching can become a communication tool,” he says. Passionate on this subject, he sees storytelling as a main area for progress in urban sketching, not just graphically but 42 DRAWING ATTENTION
also through the expansion of text. He says that when he sees a sketch posted on social media, he “wants to know a bit more” about its context, whether through anecdote or explanation of the artist’s thought process. “My idea of drawing is that there’s an amount of time that takes place between drawing the first and the last line, time during which experience takes place. You can tell the story of this experience when you share your work.” Swasky’s own approach to storytelling can be appreciated in his books, for instance
Storytelling & Collaboration
“T A MINIMALIST APPROACH HE STRONG POINT OF URBAN SKETCHING IS HOW SKETCHING CAN BECOME A COMMUNICATION TOOL” – SWASKY
TO SKETCHING
JUNE 2018 43
USk Instructor
in his latest, “Hola Miro!!!,” for which he won an International Award at the Clermont-Ferrand Festival.
Segovia – each featuring a topic that the instructors probe from personal perspectives.
His interests have led Swasky to some fruitful collaborations. In 2012 he met British sketcher Isabel Carmona in London, and they organized a “Pushing Your Sketching Boundaries” workshop to be held in Oxford the following year. Since then, they have organized 13 more such workshops in various cities – including Barcelona, Berlin, Coventry, Brighton, and
In a workshop this spring, noted sketchers Marion Rivolier and Nina Johanson joined Carmona to explore the topic of watercolor. And instructors will consider green architecture in an upcoming Oxford workshop entitled “Green Stories.” Each of these popular workshops has proven to be “a very productive and intense three days.”
44 DRAWING ATTENTION
Storytelling & Collaboration
“T
HERE’S AN AMOUNT OF TIME THAT TAKES PLACE BETWEEN DRAWING THE FIRST AND THE LAST LINE, TIME DURING WHICH EXPERIENCE TAKES PLACE. YOU CAN TELL THE STORY OF THIS EXPERIENCE WHEN YOU SHARE YOUR WORK ” – SWASKY
JUNE 2018 45
USk Instructor
ALL SKETCHES BY SWASKY 46 DRAWING ATTENTION
Storytelling & Collaboration
Swasky also volunteers with the USk Education Committee, which assesses workshop proposals for the annual Symposium as well as for USk events around the world. This work taps into his love of teaching and helping others succeed. Teaching outside is difficult to manage, he stresses, and so instructors need to think about how to be flexible, prepare a plan B for inclement weather, and adapt their instructional content for students of different skill levels. Swasky says a class should “have the same goal for everyone but different pathways to reach that goal.” And he notes that an effective USk workshop capitalizes on the unpredictability and excitement of a particular environment. “Every place and every time in that place is new and different.” SKETCHES BY SWASKY JUNE 2018 47
SKETCHING THE STORIES
IN SCIENCE & LIFE
OLIVER HOELLER’S SKETCHES ARE SOMETHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY. HIS EXPRESSIVE FIGURES DWELL IN THAT INDISCERNIBLE SPACE BETWEEN ILLUSTRATION, CARTOON AND URBAN SKETCHING – INCREDIBLE STORIES AT THE INTERSECTION BETWEEN HIS DAY-TO-DAY LIFE AND THE MEANDERS OF THE LIFE SCIENCES, IN LABS AND UNIVERSITIES AROUND THE WORLD. BY PEDRO LOUREIRO
48 DRAWING ATTENTION
USK Instructor
O
riginally from Austria, Oliver lives and works in in San Francisco, US. “I like it here a lot because it feels very European” he laughs. Trained as a molecular biologist, Oliver needed something to balance out the science in his life, “so I started sketching about ten years ago”. He worked at the University of San
Francisco for a couple of years before trailing his own path as a freelance illustrator. “My science illustration is of an unusual kind” Oliver points out. “I take the essence of what people do in a scientific lab and convert it into an appealing, easy-to-approach image, that speaks to an audience”. For him, illustration is all about
communicating science visually, and it’s paramount that he understands the concepts being conveyed. “It’s less about the technical aspects and more about the concepts and the ideas they want to portrait,” Oliver concludes. While things are going smoothly, and there’s no shortage of drawings to be made, Oliver is hoping to grow into different areas of his illustration business. “I like the storytelling aspect, I like sketches that have a story somewhere in there”. Inspired, both visually and conceptually, by the likes of
BEACHFOLKS JUNE 2018 49
USk Instructor
50 DRAWING ATTENTION
Sketching the stories in science & life
late English artist and illustrator Paul Hogarth, and San Francisco based illustrator and reportage artist Wendy MacNaughton, he added sketched reportages to his freelance portfolio. This brought him closer to the Urban Sketcher community. Although Oliver was already sketching on location, and posting his drawings in his blog, it wasn’t until last year that he got directly involved in USk. “I was asked to teach in the 10x10 workshops in San Francisco”. Having had a good teaching experience, Oliver became more involved since. The past month, he lead two instances of his workshop Expressive Figures. Distilling a few tips from his workshops, Oliver advises: “Focus on contour drawing, keeping it
loose, and on looking and drawing simultaneously. Identify what interests you, put that part in the sketch first, as quick as you can, then you can cut-and-paste people and props around your focus of interest.” The first part of the workshop had a strong observational component, whereas the last part was more conceptual. It was about forming an opinion and understanding why a particular figure interests you most, what is your opinion about it. Making sure that you understand what the idea is, so you learn how to communicate it better. Don’t miss out on his 10x10 workshop this June, called How to Build a Strong Sketch out of Weak Elements.
OLIVER’S TIP: In my mind there are two kinds of sketches: the sketch you make to learn something - to practice a certain technique or approach - in that the reward is your skill; and the final product sketch, that you want looking beautiful, and is the reward in itself. Calling them both ‘sketches’ may lead to confusion. Learn how to distinguish between the two to avoid frustrating your expectations. BEACHFOLKS JUNE 2018 51
USk Instructor
PIER 52 DRAWING ATTENTION
Sketching the stories in science & life
PANORAMA JUNE 2018 53
USk Instructor
54 DRAWING ATTENTION
SISTERS OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE
Sketching the stories in science & life
DICKENS
JUNE 2018 55
USk Instructor
N
READ ABOUT OLIVER’S HOW TO BUILD A STRONG SKETCH OUT OF WEAK ELEMENTS WORKSHOP
N
READ ABOUT OLIVER’S EXPRESSIVE FIGURES WORKSHOP
56 DRAWING ATTENTION
A SKETCH FROM THE ONE WEEK 100 PEOPLE CHALLENGE
Sketching the stories in science & life
i
OLIVER’S INSTAGRAM
w OLIVER’S WEBSITE JUNE 2018 57
New USk Chapters
USK BREST
USk is pleased to announce eight new Regional Chapters. The newest groups to join the family are: USk Brest, France USk Languedoc, France USk Solapur, India USk Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia USk Lyon, France USk Sungai Petani, Malaysia USk Dreiländereck, Germany USk Bucharest, Romania Welcome to the Urban Sketchers family!
58 DRAWING ATTENTION
Review | Endnotes
PLACE YOUR AD HERE SHARE YOUR CHAPTER’S NEWS WITH OUR READERS
PARKA REVIEWS BY TEOH YI CHIE Teoh Yi Chie is an infographics journalist who joined Urban Sketchers Singapore in 2009 –better known as Parka from Parkablogs. com a website that reviews art books and art products. This month he reviews Daler Rowney FW Mixed Media Markers. Check it out!
Contact us to share your chapter’s news, special events, joint meetups, and exhibitions with our readers. You don’t need to write the story yourself. We will assign a really super amazing writer to cover your story like Susan Schaffhausen! Contact us at drawingattention@gmail.com.
and reach
16,000+
artists & art lovers For more information about ad placement, sizes and costs for corporate sponsors, email Omar at omar@urbansketchers.org
JUNE 2018 59
Our Manifesto
• We draw on location, indoors or out, capturing what we see from direct observation • Our drawings tell the story of our surroundings, the places we live and where we travel • Our drawings are a record of time and place • We are truthful to the scenes we witness • We use any kind of media and cherish our individual styles • We support each other and draw together • We share our drawings online • We show the world, one drawing at a time.
f
i
© 2018 Urban Sketchers www.urbansketchers.org