St. Bavo's Cathedral, Ghent, Belgium

[Balaji]

This is a ten minute 4" x 5" pen and ink sketch, done with a black ink gel pen. I sketched this in May 2024 when my hand was very unsteady and I was just starting on my ten minute sketches in the hope that it would help steady my hand.

It did, but only after I had spent many weeks doing five or six such pen and ink sketches each day.

I added the watercolour washes a few day ago, about nineteen months after doing the ink sketch.

 

[Joy]

Wonderful sense of depth and spot in with the figures. Amazing that you did that in such a short time. Your hand must be a blur to the observer when sketching!

 

[Balaji]

Thank you Joy.

Ten minutes is actually a lot of time if you choose an uncomplicated image, concentrate on the major shapes. avoid too many details, and keep your drawing small. These quick sketches that I did were all only 4" x 5" or 5" x 6". To an extent the number of lines that you have to draw determines how long the sketch takes.

 

[Joy]

The architecture you choose would sure be complicated to me!

 

[snoball]

Very nice detail, especially for a 10 minute sketch!

 

[Balaji]

The architecture you choose would sure be complicated to me!

Joy...Try it.

Ten minutes is actually quite a long time.

You could use my sketch as a reference. Start by doing only the outlines of all the trees as one shape. Next do the outlines of the building in front, and then the one behind. And depending on how much time you still have, you could add some details.

Once you do several of these you will find that you can do more in the same amount of time, or a more detailed/refined one in the same amount of time.

 

[Balaji]

Very nice detail, especially for a 10 minute sketch!

Thank you Margaret.