USK SYD event : Saturday 05 July

This Saturday:

Because of  The Rocks Aroma Festival we have a coffee theme this month.
Part of  the festival is a Coffee Sculpture made up of decorated coffee cups so for those who are interested, white coffee cups will be handed out to draw on.
You are free to sketch whatever takes your fancy but indoor cafe scenes is certainly a cosy location for a winter sketching event!

The Aroma Coffee Sculpture Clelland Bond – The Rocks – 4-31 July 2014

“What do you dream of as you are sipping from your favourite cup?”
A giant coffee cup sculpture made out of coffee beans will live in the window of Clelland Bond foyer throughout July. A waft of steam will slowly float across the space made of cups decorated with your dreams.
Add your story in words, pen, colour and style and discover the dreams of others as they are strung from the ceiling of Clelland Bond foyer throughout July.
Note: the cups are made of recycled paper, and to be mounted upside like a lamp shade.

Also just to give everyone the heads up - we finally have a Urban Sketching Groups and Events page. This is a work in progress ....

Brisbane USker @ King George Square

Urban Sketcher Alissa Duke was in town on Saturday, so we had an impromptu sketchout at King George Square and Post Office Square.  It was wonderful to see Alissa again..

Sitting around the Grove Train seating, sketching the Wesley Uniting Church

Clock on Post Office building at Post Office Square

Lighting at Post Office Square

Melbourne USK Sketchcrawl in Maling Road

Our sketchcrawl yesterday was at Maling Road in Canterbury. It is a lovely little street; quite quaint with retails shops – not the usual big brands but nice little boutique shops and a number of antique shops - and many coffee shops. This is Maling Room, a cafe (used to be a post office) we went to after our sketchcrawl.

Coastal Urban Mandies at Tallwood

My morning coffee is usually at Tallwood Mollymook (South Coast NSW)
This morning it was freezing. So after a surf I went to Tallwood and did a sketch.
Back in pattern I hope.

A coffee e (Piccolo) a glass of water, my phone for perceived emergencies, a bowl of mandarines and my moleskin watercolour. Go ahead. And I did.
Just do it.
Cheers

USKSYD event at QVB

 Wonderful morning  at Queen Victoria Building with a big group of USKSYD.

I really loved all the work done today and how many aspects of this iconic location were captured on the page.

Big welcome to a number of first timers - was great to have you along!
Next month 5th July. … more details later.

ANZOL factory , Mortlake, NSW.

Over the last few months I've been tracking the demise of this paint factory on Tennyson Rd and last week I spent a lot of time around there as the excavators really got to work. I was able to see it pulled down bit by bit, especially on the 6th, and this one records the fall of the rusty tank in the previous sketch. Only one more tank still standing. The 400 units that will take its place won't have quite the same patina! I used this sketch as a study for an acrylic painting I began work on yesterday.

Sydney - view from my window

Over the past few lunch breaks I have sketched the view from my office window on the 26th floor . It is really stunning!

For many years I worked in local government and university libraries, in dark concrete buildings, with no views. Now I am in the corporate world the offices have panoramic views. I am only working here for a few weeks so am making the most of what is outside my window. This is especially good  in winter, when it is cold outside in the lunchtimes.

 

I will probably add  bit more to this ....

Watercolour pencil

Urban Sketchers in Launceston

I am just back from a busy 2.5 weeks in Tasmania. I had a number of workshops and talks on my agenda but finished my trip with an Urban Sketchers event on Monday in Launceston.

It was a very fresh 3C morning when we meet up at 10am but it is surprising how pleasant it was in the sun - a stunning still winters Launceston day.


We met up at the Brisbane St mall and then worked our way down Cameron St - ending up at the cafe in the Queen Victoria Art Gallery for lunch. It was a great morning - the variety of subject matter was broad and we had a rich selection of sketches to share at the end. Special thanks to Vicki D for helping in the organisation.


Here are two of my sketches during the morning - I often spend more time talking so it was a real treat to be able to sit down and sketch …and soak up the sun!

Really looking good for setting up a USK group in both "Lonnie" and Hobart!

Now I just have to start all my scanning from my trip!

And finally... if you are in Sydney - just a reminder that we are meeting at QVB on Saturday. More details here

Sketching at the University of Qld St Lucia.

The University of Queensland (UQ) is in the top 100 universities worldwide, measured through a number of major independent university rankings: the Academic Ranking of World Universities, Times Higher Education World University Rankings, QS World University Rankings and, Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers for World Universities. UQ is also the largest university in Queensland. 

 The first building to be built was the Forgan Smith Building after the Premier of the day, and was completed in 1939. During World War II, it became the advanced headquarters for the Allied Land Forces in the South West Pacific.

The cloister and buildings around the Great Court feature distinctive sandstone, carved with historical scenes, figures, the names of great thinkers and teachers, coats of arms, grotesques and carvings of Australian flora and fauna.  The Great Court is listed on the Queensland Heritage Register as well on the Register of the National Trust of Queensland.

Sketching at Streets Beach and Stanley Street Southbank - Brisbane with the Brisbane USK 03.06.14

Pandanas and Palm trees at Streets Beach

The Plough Inn Tavern was built in 1885  It is one of Brisbanes' oldest Pubs, and even has it's own ghost.   Legend has it, that a publican murdered his wife and she haunts room 7

Hanging above Stanley Street is a Human Factor Sculpture by John Underwood 1998

Sunday Sketchout Brisbane City

Urban Sketcher Brisbane, have a regular Sunday Sketchout, in and around the city.  This day we sketched at Queens Park, which is a small park between the Conrad Treasury hotel and Casino.
The Conrad Treasury Hotel was The Lands Administration Building.  Both the Treasury Hotel and Casino are heritage listed buildings and two of Brisbanes grandest.  The Lands Administration building  was designed under the supervision of chief government architect Thomas Pye, with plans prepared between 1898 and 1899
 Queens Gardens is a heritage-listed park.  was established in its present form in 1963, after the buildings which had occupied the area had been demolished. Queens Gardens was named in honour of Queen Victoria. A statue of Queen Victoria, based on an original in Portsmouth and created by English sculptor Thomas Brock, was unveiled in 1906 in the gardens in front of the Lands Administration Building.
At the other end of the gardens, with his back to the Queen,  is a statue of T. J. Ryan, Premier of Queensland (1915–1919)

Sutton House on George Street can be seen nestling between two modern buildings from the Park

Thomas. Joseph. Ryan, Premier of Queensland (1915–1919)