Scavenger Hunt from Life #122: Jul 14 - Jul 22

[Joan T]

Jo, I've never noticed the mugs in Hallmark movies so now I'll have to keep my eyes open for them.

Robin, I like your kitchen exit. Looks homey with the decoration over the door.

Fletch, thanks. The ink sketch looks nothing like the woman I was drawing...just the body position.

 

[jmfletch]

Joan - No way to know if you got a good likeness but you did nail proportions and perspective.

Dug out my good pencils and bigger pad so am hoping to get back in the habit of drawing daily. It is a great escape without leaving home.

Keep sketching (<- what I need to do. )
Fletch

 

[Jo Castillo]

Ha, Joan. You will only find them in old movies from around 2011 when I bought my mugs.

Fletch I said this, "Ha, Fletch. The cups are off and I never redo. I always keep a good photo to print if I need to." By off, I meant the cups are out of proportion. I haven't wiped them yet. I may not, I like the colors. Evil grin. I hope you find time and energy to sketch. I've really slowed down on sketching and painting. I used to get at least 10-15 sketches a Hunt. Now I'm lucky to get 5 or 6. Not sure why.

 

[AiArts]

#4 cafe owner's abode view ...to Fuji-San, or Mt.Fuji...He converts his upper deck to a cafe, so his customers will have this majestic view...the red shrine entrance on left belongs to Fujikawaguchiko Asama Shrine ...directwatercolor...about 30 min.

I also attach a pic of my family, and a pic of me with Cate, an American who has been working and living alone in Japan for more than 22 years. She is a medical translator, who has posted some arts on FB "Every Day Matters", and I have given her supporting words. She knew that I am coming to Tokyo, she kindly came to meet us from Saitama (1 hour from Tokyo). She has hung out with us for several hours at art supply stores and bookstores of Shinjuku area. It was fun.

 

[Robin Gillis]

Joan. Love the by the pool upper body sketch.the “sort of smile” is a tight composition- body language matches the facial thought pattern with perfect rhythm.

Ai.. family trip to Tokoyo- WONDERFUL! ! A cool fullpage stretch. Love the peachy building…thanks for photos. Have good times.

JoC.. i always like to see your sketches of Gene. Neato zen doodles…glad to see that…nice work on the tools. The hatching softens and makes them look like they would be perfect to use….SUPER MUG SHOT! Hard to think of you wiping out your work but on another couples levels i get it. Your skills have greatly combined realism and personality…very energising and pleasant.

NedL. Happy vacationing. It is enjoyable reading. Undersea museum sounds interesting. Maine is great place. Love the subtile shading on shells….cream would have been interesting

Fletch…enjoy your comments, best wishes and prayers to you and Sharon

 

[AiArts]

#5 pairs or many pairs of giant cedar trees 800-1200 years old at Asama Shrine, near Fuji-San base town named Fujikawaguchiko. The sight is amazing...

 

[jmfletch]

#2 x-acto knife. Multiple grades of graphite in A5ish sketchbook

Keep sketching
Fletch

 

[Jo Castillo]

Oh, Ai, thanks for the photos and your beautiful sketch of Mt. Fuji. The trees are huge almost like the Redwoods in California Good job on the sketch to show the giant size. Your family is wonderful and how nice to meet your friend there. Hugs.

Fletch, the knife is so well done. I always admire your shading. I'm so impatient for that.

 

[NedL]

Joan -- I like the ink drawing of the woman sitting. We don't know what she looked like

Jo -- the colors and reflections in those mugs are just great!

Robin -- I like the bold lively colors in the exit, they go well with the lines!

Ai -- wow wow wow! Mt. Fuji is awesome! Wonderful for you to bring that home to help remember the trip. That cedar forest is amazing.

Fletch -- nice smooth shading on the x-acto. Glad you are sketching!

 

[PaintBoss]

Ai, lovely pieces. And what enjoyable posts! Loved the photos and your story. Thank you so much for sharing and letting us travel to beautiful Japan.
Fletch, very nicely rendered x-acto knife.

 

[jmfletch]

Did it again. Wrote comments earlier and never hit send.

Ai - Beautiful composition of Mt Fuji with the shrine in foreground. Miss Lily and Miss Iris are getting tall. Good looking family. Nice you could meet up with your FB friend. Like the over your shoulder shot of you painting. Is that tree face natural or was it carved.

Robin, thank you. Prayers are always appreciated.

Jo, thanks for correcting my misreading

Jo, Ned and PaintBoss thank you for the kind words. Much appreciated.

Fletch

 

[Joan T]

Fletch, thanks for your comments. Good shading on your x-acto knife. Those things always make me nervous.

Jo, I will keep my eyes open in the older Hallmark movies.

Ai, I love the sketch of the view of Mt Fuji and the cafe. It is so nice to see things and experience other cultures. Great family photo! Meeting friends through art is really so great. It was nice that Cate came to meet you too. The trees and the sketch are amazing! The bottom of the tree trunk is huge! Their height reminds me of trees I saw in Australia that were tall like that and had platforms partway up so that people could climb up part of the way. I wouldn't, but my nephew climbed two of the and it was scary to watch.

Robin, thanks so much for being so supportive!

Ned, thanks for taking time away from your vacationing to stop in and comment. Have fun!

The NYC Urban Sketchers met at the Queens Botanical Garden for our annual celebration. At one time it was a Christmas party and some of the members who have been a part of the group for a long time joke that this is our Christmas in July party. We have cake and refreshments and then an auction of some art related things, and then a raffle of assorted art supplies. This year I won a Stillman & Born sketchbook, which was nice because I like their books. This event is our fundraiser for the group to help cover the cost of assorted things throughout the year. The Queens Botanical Garden isn't too large and there are some beautiful flowers.

7 - vast foliage - direct watercolors

One of the members organized a sketch walk where we stopped at different locations in the park and you had 2 minutes to sketch something you saw in front of you.
8 - abode (bee house) - ink

9 - pair of sketchers - ink

The park is in the middle of an area that has many Chinese and Korean residents. I went outside the park to sketch a few of the restaurants.
10 - exit/entrance - watercolors and ink

 

[AiArts]

Joan: thanks, we are glad we could do this after Iris has been couped up studying for the Thai college exam in the past 2 years...fantastic set from your vast flowers, and all ink of people, leave, flowers, and abode...Super entrance.

Fletch: thanks...I think the tree face is natural....super job on exacto-knife


Robin: thanks...love your kitchen door in colours

Jo & PaintBoss & Ned: a big thank you.

Jo: I agree that those trees remind me of the Redwood in the US., in 1996, I took a wrong turn driving south from San Francisco missing the Redwoods that I had planned to visit.

Thanks everyone for your kind support of my trip sketch.

 

[AiArts]

#6 face ... A chef face on top of Niimi building, in Kappabashi District (kitchen ware district of Tokyo)...only stone's throw from our hotel....pencil+wc+ink

 

[Bongo]

Love this

 

[Jo Castillo]

Ned, thanks. Happy to see you.

PaintBoss, hi there.

Fletch, thanks--but I was correcting my grammar not yours!! Evil grin.

Joan, you have the neatest group and excursions. Love the foliage with the dark shadows. The two minute sketches are fantastic. Restaurants are ALWAYS good.

Ai, what a face!! You find great things to sketch/paint. You look like you are having a great time with the family. Thanks again for the trip.

Hi Bongo.

I sketched and watched TV as usual. These are in the small travel sketchbook, Canson Drawing, 5.5 x 8.5 inches. Acurit 3 and a white gel for the letters.
Number 5 decal - on another sketchbook (BookFactory) from 2022
Number 6 juice - my favorite flavor V8, Orange Pineapple

 

[PaintBoss]

Looking good Jo. Especially with all that lettering!
That’s a good idea to draw the stuff just sitting around us. The every day view.

 

[Joan T]

Ai, thanks. Great sketch of the chef's face on top of the building. What a fun sketch!

Jo, thank you. Good sketches of the icon/logo (I still don't know what the difference is. lol) and the container of juice.

 

[jmfletch]

Joan - love the botanical garden view. I ways get lost trying to count how many shades of green you use. The 2 minute sketches are great. We may not know the likeness but am sure they all recognized themselves. Beehive is a perfect for abode.

Ai - Love the chef head on building. Fun to look at and a great memory from your trip. Did Miss Iris get to pick the destination? The photo of you set up to paint is fun to see.

Jo - Give you bonus points for all that text! I try to avoid text as the varying scales and perspectives of text drive me nuts so double thumbs up.

Bongo -

Keep sketching
Fletch

 

[AiArts]

We wandered to Ginza district today. It has interest demographics: one part is super lux with many high-end brand building like Gucci, Bottega Veneta, LV,...and other part is the epic center of Japanese anime stuffs...So many big buildings that sell or trades anime toys or games ...This was the part that our girls are so into it, the Akihabara subdistrict. So I sketched the sword man model while waiting for our girls to roam the giant multi-floor anime building ...

#7 sub. X-acto knife with 2 samurai swords on an anime toy model...

#8 smile ...the little kids threw themselves on the water floor as a part of upper floor garden of the lux shopping mall of Ginza district called "GinzaSix"...I guess their parents must have carried spare clothes for their kids to come to this place. I also reunited with my 2 sketcher Japanese friends here (Kumi and Kenji). They were kind to come sketching with me for 1.5 hour. Kenji sketched the city view outside and Kumi sketched me.