Impressions from Amsterdam (in Two Sketches)

Amsterdam's Herengracht (Gentlemen's Canal). Spring was popping out and the colors of the young leaves on the trees couldn't have been fresher.

I see that it has been over a month since my last post. I assure you, I have been keeping my eyes open to many new experiences, but being busy and on-the-go hasn't lent itself to a whole lot of blogging. I'll be working it back into my schedule, as sharing my work (and getting your feedback, keep it coming!) is important to me. 

My parents and sister came to visit. It was truly wonderful being able to show them around and act as a translator. I think now they have a much better idea of what I am experiencing in my year here, including language, culture, and people. We got to share valuable experiences and made memories that will last.

Part of their visit included a few days in Amsterdam. I was swept up by the beauty and feeling of the city. Spring in Holland is not to be missed! The crisp air breathes into blossoming flowers everywhere. The atmosphere of the city was even better than had been described to me. The extensive canal system is made up of waterways lined with trees that were just beginning their spring explosion.

I think I get about as excited as all the plants do when spring comes. My heart opens up when I see all the gray branches suddenly burst into a show of colors, and the air just feels cleaner when that particular shade of green appears. Perhaps that lends a particular lightness to cities. It's like a holiday, but without a set date because every year is slightly different. From an artistic standpoint, particularly for me as I document the world around me through sketches, everything changes. Trees that were previously just collections of dark lines now play a much more predominant and complicated visual role in sceneries.

We also visited the Van Gogh Museum, which I would also highly recommend if you find yourself in Amsterdam. The artist left behind an enormous collection of works, and he wrote countless letters to his brother, Theo. The combination of these two provides an extensive view into his process, very well put together by the museum. The above sketch was inspired by Van Gogh's Irises. I filled up several other pages of my sketchbook with notes, too, while in the museum.

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Sketches of the workings of the springtime sun

The sun has begun to make her springtime appearance. It's a tentative performance, as she remains a bit shy, but it's becoming more confident. The effect of this on my mood and outlook is incredible. It wasn't that my rainy winter has been filled with longing for sunshine, but when the clouds part and the sun comes out, I can't help but smile.

I love the way the sun shines through the streets and lights up the buildings. As I've perhaps mentioned, I am very attracted to the architecture of European houses and apartment buildings, and the sunlight casts shadows that create interesting contrasts and bring out interesting patterns around windows and along rooftops. I went outside a few days ago and tried to capture with black ink the stark contrasts created by the fresh sunshine.

By the way, the works in this post are on a bigger scale than many of my previous recent works, in this case DIN A3, or 42 x 30 cm/16.5 x 11.7 in. It's good practice to be drawing a bit bigger again.

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Spring has been making an appearance in other forms as well. The plants, like me, have noticed the sunshine and warming temperatures and are sending out their tendrils to test if it's really true, if winter is really reaching an end. 

In my attempt to document life as it's happening around me, in particular right now in the process of my year, I of course wanted to complete a series of blossoms. And I just love flowers and plants and their aesthetic.

I hope, wherever you are, that the beginning of spring has started to show itself in some way and that you can enjoy those little moments! I'd love to hear what the change of seasons looks like in your corner of the world.

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Paris in 15-Minute Sketches

Ah, sweet Paris. Where the croissants are fluffy and the café au lait nears perfection...

These delicious treats and the above view greeted us upon arrival to Paris on Saturday morning. My host mom, sister, her godmother, and I took a train that left just before 6 AM and arrived at 10, which was perfect to enjoy a late breakfast in a Parisian cafe below Montmartre. We couldn't have had better timing: we sat down at a table next to what appeared to be freshly cleaned window and the clouds gave way to bright blue sky. The sun shone on a gleaming white Sacré-coeur, and I documented the moment in between sips of coffee and bites from my panini fromages.

Here is the other half of the view, what was in front of me on our table:

We walked up the stairs to Sacre-couer afterwards and spent a few hours meandering around the streets of Montmartre, enjoying the sounds, smells, and tastes of France.

I had a good exercise in map reading skills, something we don't get so often any more in the age of smartphones and GPS, which I didn't have with me because it costs extra to use my phone in another country. We were only lost at one point, which is pretty good considering how confusing and full the streets were as it got dark in the evening. Not to mention, it's fun to actually use a map and develop a better sense of your surroundings!

On Sunday, I visited Museé d'Orsay, where I filled up two pages in my little sketchbook with the names of works and artists that captured my attention. The museum is well known for their large impressionism exhibition, and I was also drawn in by their collections of Van Gogh and Toulouse-Lautrec.

I had a few hours left before we had to catch our train back home (which was also from about six to ten, but in the evening), so I went for a walk along the Seine and paused some to sketch. Notre Dame popped out from behind some other buildings as I was walking, and the scene struck me.

While the trip was short, our two days were full of new impressions, and we were all very pleased with the slice of the city we were served.

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Oil Spill

Oil Spill 1, watercolor.

Waves crash over the heart

and pull at skin, eyes, hair

until I’m only

salt.

I can’t control the tides,

a reminder that the earth pulls me along with her.

Through ebbs

and flows

undeterred by human desire.

And the hard-beaten salty self

will close her eyes to shield from the harsh light

and the memory of someone

who’s not there anymore,

like maybe the sun will have to someday do

when she can no longer shed tears

for her lost lover:

planet earth.

Oil Spill 2, watercolor.

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A few recent works and thoughts for you today. These two watercolor paintings were done in response to an assignment for my art course in school, my chosen theme being the relationship between humans and the environment (a topic that I always find myself drawn back to). However, I do feel there is more behind these pictures for me personally.

Without saying more, I'd love to hear any responses to these works if you're willing to share! You can leave comments below.

Also, look forward to a post in the next couple of days with drawings from my weekend in Paris!

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Composition in Winter + Hafenkult Show

In the above sketch, I'm playing with the line between documentary sketching and sketching as art. I feel myself growing a lot through practice, and my abilities are expanding. I am always working to better capture the feeling of the place I'm drawing.

The row of houses in the above drawing are all dark, musky earth tones, and the sky is pale here in winter. These trees jump out at me every day when I ride my bike by them, because they are covered in brilliant green. It's always a show for my eyes despite the winter weather and general lack of foliage.

Speaking of riding my bike, this is a central part of life here, and winter doesn't stop that. Just layer up. Bike lanes will get you almost anywhere you need to be, and probably faster than any other means of transit (unless you have a car, but gas is expensive anyway).

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I was lucky enough to be asked to be present as a guest artist in the first of what will become a monthly event at the Hafenkult, a studio and gallery space in Duisburg. Das Hafensofa will take place the first Friday evening of every month. Visitors can stop by and chat in the living room atmosphere, view the studios, and talk to the artists. I had a little table for my sketchbooks, and I was around to talk to anyone who wanted to hear more about this concept and what I do.

Photo thanks to © René Hafkesbrink. A friend of mine who has since moved to New Zealand, I encourage you to visit this talented and growing photographer's blog to see more of his work: Westsee.

Here is a TV spot that appeared on a local channel. Bonus: I'm interviewed, so you can hear me speaking German!

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My current project: Books that fit in your hand

I've touched a little bit on my current project, which has been filling my blog posts of late, but I wanted to go further into detail to describe the idea behind these sketchbooks.

These books are small (an open book with both sides is 14x18 cm); a closed book is about the size of your hand. I carry my current book with me most everywhere I go, to draw in it when I find a scene I want to capture. Passers-by can share in my process of documenting places and life when they stop and watch me draw for a little while, an interesting side-effect of making art in public spaces.

However, there is something particular about this size. It allows people to be quickly drawn in, and serves as a center of conversation with the people who page through it and look at the drawings. With its small size, the viewer can observe the entire drawing in one glance without having to distance themselves from the work. It is the perfect size to hold in your hand before you. These sketches are finished pieces of art in and of themselves, but they don't need to be hung on a wall. They need to travel, like me. They need to be flipped through with human fingers, however quickly or slowly the viewer likes. The book, when filled, will be a finished work of art as well, one that slowly spells out a cumulative story with each turned page.

I also, of course, enjoy sharing the images here for those of you who can't see my sketchbooks in person. Here is a little chronological three-page taste for you. (I must also say, I enjoyed eating this banana so much after drawing it for half an hour)

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Lines and Midpoints

I'm thinking about the power of simple line drawings. I am doing a lot of quick drawings of people around me. The watercolors will come back soon, I predict, but for now, I just can't resist the way my pen cuts through the buttery Moleskine paper of my new travel journal with such rich precision.

The above was drawn above in an Eiscafé in Köln (ice cream café in Cologne) where I drank hot chocolate and Emma ate a scoop of ice cream and we talked and were grateful for our health, considering most of our friends were out with a stomach bug (more on that below).

We had our midyear orientation in Cologne this past weekend. I am now slightly over halfway through my year in Germany! This is a little weird, but only a little. My thoughts: I still have five more months, and if I base it on the last five, a lot can happen. It will be weird when the time comes to return to the U.S., but I'm mostly enjoying all the time I do have here. Better not stop too long to think about it, I need to keep at my drawing and documenting! There's so many stories to tell!

This is the Münster Kirche in Bonn. This was a less-than-ten-minute sketch, but I was just struck by the building.

It was good to see all of the American friends I spent a month living with in Hedersleben. However, it wasn't so good that some sort of stomach virus caught about two-thirds of the group before the weekend was over. Somehow I was one of the few who didn't get it!

Basti, my host brother, alongside some flowers.

A lazy Sunday afternoon with my host mom, a friend of ours, and her dog.

The flowers make a second appearance, this time outside of the sketchbook.

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