Scavenger Hunt from Life #184: Feb 26 - Mar 10

[NedL]

Ai -- the flowers are lovely. I like the way the pink and green go together in that one. The yellow flowered tree is cheerful and great! Like the explosion of color over the wall. Landhaus bakery looks like a good place, I'm getting hungry almost time for dinner!

Robin -- the lines in the angel candle are great!

Joan -- the leftovers from the blizzard look cold, burr, but the green hints that spring might be coming. The watercolor by the bay is really nice. Seeing the urban sketchers is fun, and you do so well how their positions look so natural. Nice to see some of your snow is melting! The "leftover" valentine's rose looks great. Nice job on the big trailer!

Jo -- Those huge trees were redwoods, my photo didn't show very well how huge they are... like 20 feet across at the base and at least 200 feet tall! I like your pen sketches. At first I thought James Avery might have something to do with "Avery Island" ( where tabasco sauce comes from ) but I guess it's a jewelry store I like the textures you made in the trees/shrubs by the lamp post. I have no idea how to make a sky with makers.. those are bright colors. You got the shapes nicely, that jeep is like mine but mine's white.

Fletch -- yay on using direct ink. Like the drink sketch... I want to do more like that where all the values come from the pen, like Jo does too. No idea about the email... I don't have email notifications turned on...

Hope I didn't miss any!

Back in a little while with a sketch, I stopped in a nice sunny spot on the way home from a hike and did a quick sketch... just to sit for a while in the sunshine...

 

[AiArts]

#6 circular ...ink..done at the park's playground

 

[NedL]

Ai -- I like the ink! Good shape on the hanging tire.

I walked today hoping to see a California Nutmeg tree ( not related to the spice at all ). I found some. One had fallen and been cut where it crossed the path so I picked a twig from it. The little round parts are called pollen cones, which is like a flower for this tree.

#2 flower ( sub pollen cone )

photo:

I didn't get a great photo of one of the trees, but this is the part that had fallen and was close to the ground:

 

[AiArts]

Ned: Thanks so much for your kind comments. Love your nature walk: rocks or trees or ocean or the pollen cone. Well done.

 

[Joan T]

Fletch, I may have sent it the first time without a photo attached.

Ned, thanks for your comments. The snow is finally melting since we had a few warmer days and some rain to help wash it away. Now the big piles look ugly and it seems they are everywhere, especially in all the strip malls. There was no place to put all the snow. Thanks for showing the pollen cones in the photo. They are so tiny it would be easy to miss them. Nice job on the twig from the tree. I've never heard of a California nutmeg tree. Seeing things from other locations teaches us a lot. Thanks.

Ai, you found a lot of circular things. My favorite is the tire swing. I always liked playing on those when I was a kid, even though as a "city girl" there weren't too many of them around. I guess I liked them because they reminded me of the country. Now you see them more often in playgrounds and parks.

Hoping to get something sketched today. I've been too lazy when I'm home. That's one of the reasons I like going out with the group on the weekend. I don't want to waste that time not sketching.

 

[Joan T]

11 - free space - watercolors and ink

 

[AiArts]

Joan: Thanks. Awesome stuffs in your freespace. Love the Scotch Tape and the can with all writing tools. Very cool set.

Ned, Sanlynn, Bongo and all: Thanks.

 

[Jo Castillo]

Ned, I love your nutmeg twigs sketch and the photo. Thanks on the trees. I should have known. My California experience is all in the LA area. I went to airline school in Hollywood and to see the Dodgers a couple of times, took my Mom. She was a huge fan. Working for the airlines I asked where she wanted to go in the world and she said to see the Dodgers. ha. So many years ago.......

Ai, great inkings. Love the springy thing and the tire and the truck Funnnnn!

Joan, you completed a super still life with the office/artsy stuff. Love the glasses and the can and the pins and the tape and..........

Birthday celebration for son-in-law and baseball today. Maybe sketch tomorrow. No doctors or emergencies I hope. Ha.

 

[AiArts]

#7 freespace...another orchard style cafe
#8 cup ... a part of a tea set

 

[Joan T]

Many thanks, Ai! I like how you composed the page with the patio of the cafe and the tea set on the same page.

Jo, thanks mutely! I didn't know you had worked for the airlines. I guess we do learn something new all the time.

The Urban Sketchers were at Chelsea Market in downtown Manhattan yesterday. The interior is filled with fun eateries and stores and gets very crowded. My friend and I got there early and most of the restaurants either weren't open yet or were just setting up. From past visits I knew the taco stand gets crazy busy once the open so I sketched it while they were setting things up. By the time I finished there was a line of about 20 customers standing in front of me blocking my view.
12 - drinks in jugs on the counter - watercolors and ink
13 - bottles on the counter

Next I headed downstairs where I found the colorful Pearl River Mart. It was good for a sketch and then a lunch of dumplings when I finished.
14 - circular logo - watercolors and ink

The 1 Week 100 People challenge is starting so I captured some of my fellow sketchers upstairs in the afternoon.

15 - hair related - graphite

 

[AiArts]

Joan: Thanks... Yes... lately I have been trying to compose some food/drink with part of the location on the same spread sketchbook pages... I am learning. Great sketch of the Taco place with all the red bottles, and stuffs... The Chinese place, esp. logo is super awesome. You did such fine job with all lettering. Wonderful people faces... you did them so well, including glasses. I will try to look up the 100 pleple challenge... I don't know if I have enough energy to do it.

 

[jmfletch]

Ai -You definitely nailed circular.. Was going to ask if you had the tea in that café and then read your comment to Joan. Clever, it will be like a café journal.

Ned - I am with Joan I have never heard of a California nutmeg. Is it an evergreen? Nice pen work.

Joan - Your free space made me think back to Jeanne’s posts with most or all the items in one painting.. I have simply run out of superlatives for your paintings especially the urban style that have people. The head sketches are all great.

Pine cone, Jo, Robin and other lurking artists -

Keep sketching and learning I
Fletch

 

[Joan T]

Ai, the 100 people challenge actually starts on Monday, but Marc has always been very flexible about taking part. Several of us that were at Chelsea Market yesterday decided to take part and we all started yesterday. I continued at a trip to a coffee shop today.

Fletch, thanks so much. Jeanne was a pro at getting all the items in one sketch. I did it a few times, and it is a real challenge. Luckily when I was out sketching yesterday there were a lot of sketchers around at the end of the day. A lot of us were sketching anyone in sight and that pretty much was the other sketchers.

Today was mostly a foggy, gloomy day. I knew I still had a few items left to sketch so I headed over to The Sayville Bean, a nice local coffee place. Usually when I'm there I'm facing the counter, but this time I sat on a small chair/couch that had views of some of the other tables so I also was able to do some people that were around.
16 - cup - watercolors and ink
17 - pastry (crumb cake)

Here are a few of the people sketches.

I spent a little more time on this woman since she came and sat right opposite where I was sitting. She was busy on her computer so she didn't realize I had been sketching her. I showed her the sketch before I left and she was so happy with it.

18 - open computer - graphite

 

[Vivien]

Beautiful work from everyone!
I started sketching this for "eggs" in the last challenge then got my sketchbook out today and decided to add some watercolor pencil to it. So this is:
The Challenge 3 items in one sketch

 

[Jo Castillo]

Ai, mmm, on the cafe and tea set. I love the shape of the teapot and cups. So graceful in your lines. The photos are super.

Joan, your lunch/breakfast spots are so wonderful. I love the old Coca Cola chest. We had one that burned. Lovely lettering on both sketches. The people are outstanding. You are catching the intenseness and relaxed looks. Looks like you are well on the way to 100! Your sketch/painting at Sayville Bean is like the place I had lunch last week. I will go there again and sketch. Yes, I worked for Continental before unions and such. Great company, wages and benefits. All gone now. We had fun trips and adventures.

Vivien, you have wonderful shapes on the eggs and cup. I'm smiling .. the last kind of egg I would like to eat. Ha. I want mine well disguised in chile or salads.

 

[Vivien]

Jo - Thanks. Thats interesting about boiled eggs! I love them but like lots of salt on them - something Im not meant to have, but no good without salt.

 

[AiArts]

#9 hair related ...proctoring exam time ... ink

 

[Joan T]

Vivien, lovely soft shading on your eggs! I can't remember the last time I had a soft boiled egg. As I kid I was always intrigued by the egg cups. There were too many of us and not enough cups. lol

Jo, thanks. The old Coca Cola signs always attract me so it was fun to sketch that scene. I'm glad I started the sketch early before everyone was blocking the view. The funny thing is everyone stands on that line for the Mexican food when there is a better spot a short walk to the left in a small, separate wing that you can't see from there. The food is much better in there...and there is more seating.

Ai, nice student sketches. Nobody is fussing with their hair...or pulling it out in distress. lol They must be confident in their answers.

 

[AiArts]

Jo, Fletch, and Joan: Thanks.

Joan: You got all people sketches so nice. I think that helps a great deal when you put people in your urban sketch. I esp. love people with computers. The still-life of living room is awesome too.

Vivian: Wonderful egg still-life. Love glowing colors.