Yesterday a cluster of 7 people decided 5 degrees was far too cold to draw outside so we headed inside the Nishi building. It is actually a hotel that is eco-cool. Everything at Hotel, Hotel in New Acton screams modern hip design.
For us as bunch of cold individuals the coffeeshop downstairs was most welcome. Not only is the architecture of the building interesting but the decor is littered with interesting objects. As you can see we all found lots of things to draw.
One of the things about urban sketching that you discover aspects of your home city that you are not aware of. Yesterday the Canberra Sketchers got together in Lonsdale Street, Braddon as there are lots of popup food vans.
I know for foodies that mobile street vendors are all the rage, but I was not aware that Canberra had such a vibrant street life with vendors offering gourmet and ethnic food treats.
Anyway although parking was difficult to find, the sun was out, people were everywhere, and we all had a lovely time sketching before sampling some of their offerings for lunch!
Leonie has also written a blog post about the Canberra Sketchers in Braddon too!
I woke this morning with a little voice that whispered “Will anyone turn up?” I felt like a big kid as this week I have been taping away on the key board emailing folks and posting to facebook with the news that a new sketch group was forming in Canberra.
The time was set at 10.30 with people to meet at the cafe outside the National Gallery. I need not have worried as 9 brave souls gathered with sketchbooks in hand, with 2 people going the extra mile literally as they travelled from Goulburn.
I really liked the share and not compare attitude that everyone embraced. We had a lovely day and decided that we would make this a regular event meeting the first Sunday of the Month and that we would embark upon the formal process of becoming an Urban Sketchers group.
I chose to tackle the Bert Flugelman sculpture “Cones” The contrast between the shiny stainless steel and the greenery around it was interesting and a challenge! If you are interested in finding out more about this sculpture The NGA provides a short video on their website.
All in all a great day!
Added later: For another viewpoint of the event and much better photos of everyone see Leonie Andrews blog post “This could be the start of something big”
If you are a Canberra resident and interested in the next meeting email me and I will make sure you are in the loop.
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Tones and Tints is my personal take on sketching, and I use it to develop my skills.
