New year sketchbook round-up
So far it’s been a new year of variety. As I like to create my own greetings cards January was spent coming up with this year’s birthday card design which seeped into February because there were so many distractions. (The big reveal cannot happen until Boxing Day.) Not least a quick trip to Brussels (on the fabulous Eurostar) where we enjoyed another visit to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. I particularly liked the special contemporary show ‘Georges Meurant meets Bonolo Kavula’ both artists mesmerising in their own ways. By chance we discovered the work of Philippe Cognée. His ghostly resemblances of urban landscapes convey a stark fragility and his style is fascinating. I also had to nip into the Schleiper store to wallow in its immense range of art materials. Amazingly, I didn’t buy anything this time.
The Average Joe figure drawings
On to February and a one-off sketch class at my local arts centre, Prema, with the talented Rose Marie MJ. We made a number of quick life drawing sketches which really helped me get back into drawing.
Marrakech art retreat
What was most exciting was an art retreat in Marrakech and another luxurious focus time spent drawing and painting with @easelandlens and another lovely bunch of artistic folk. Our inspiration came from the souks and our living quarters – so much to see and absorb. We also visited the Yves Saint Laurent Museum and gardens (Le Jardin Majorelle) and experienced a camel ride, intricate henna designs, and an outdoor cinema night (to watch Casablanca of course).
My main piece was capturing a corner of the market area, with the lovely patina of distressed walls, an old sewing machine representing the myriad artisan crafts going on around us, and a moped – a popular way of getting around – the seat of which was occupied by one of many stray cats lurking about. I love that the Arabic sign translates as ‘No bicycles/motorcycles allowed’! I’ve actually combined two scenes fairly close together so don’t go looking for this sign next to the pastel green, battered metal doors.
Those living quarters were the beautiful Peacock Pavilions boutique hotel, full of wonderful artefacts – we also did a single line drawing exercise in the salon.
The owner and curator of all these objects also founded Project Soar and it was awesome to support and learn more about this ‘Girl Power’ project.
I continue to fill my sketchbook pages with colour and texture experiments – a good way of using up the paint at the end of the day too.
I’m taking part in a Mixed Media Festival course but I haven’t got very far yet so next month I aim to have an update on the various exercises.
