Pyrmont Urban Sketchers event : Alissa Duke

A beautiful summer Sydney day to be sketching outside with friends as part of this Urban Sketchers Sydney event . We started in historic Union Square, and I was determined to only spend a short time here (I could easily stay here for hours) as I really wanted to sketch the Terminus Hotel a few blocks down Harris Street. There is so much history in my own suburb of Pyrmont that I was proud to be sketching  it and see so many others enjoying it as well

 I decided to use my Lamy pen only for this one.

Then after 20 minutes Kaz & I walked down to the Terminus Hotel, a derelict hotel, covered in ivy, and with all glass and tiles still intact. I drew the building in ink from diagonally across the street and then crossed the street to sit opposite and draw some features in detail in watercolour pencil. I could have stayed there for hours......

And then it was suddenly time for our lunch catch up and chat. There were lots of families in the park enjoying the sunshine, so I drew some.

Union Square, Pyrmont

Yesterday I attended my first USK meeting along with 9 other enthusiastic Sydney sketchers at Pyrmont. A supposedly very hot day turned into a close to perfect summer's day for sketching outdoors. We sketched at Union Square which is lined with very quaint old sandstone terraces. Some have been turned to commercial use while others are still homes. There are getting more high rise residential apartments around the area but it's good to know that there are many old buildings that are recognised as heritage and well retained.

Also lunching at Pyrmont

I was also at Pyrmont lunching and sketching with Alissa. I didn't draw my food because of the ennui of the endless white cups. I had delicious and enormous corn fritters and I wanted to eat them while they were hot.

When we moved off into the square to draw, I was sitting a bit closer than the others and my sketch reflects that. After days and weeks of rain, every time there's a blue sky I have to put it in my sketch.

Union Square, Sydney

Union Square is in the inner city Sydney suburb of Pyrmont.

A delightful place to sit in the sun and sketch. Some of the buildings in the square are cafes, so I sketched my lunch as well.

I wanted to use my Lamy Safari Joy ink pen, as I have been using watercolour pencil for days. It was tempting to draw the lovely sandstone buildings, but then I saw the roofline, then I made the decision to include the antennas !







The buildings in the square are on the National Heritage Register. Below is their desciption:
This terrace of five houses, dating from the Victorian period, has historical significance for its association with the development of Pyrmont Ultimo as a primarily industrial and warehouse district of inner Sydney. Large areas of working class housing, built by wealthy landowners, came to characterise the suburb and a close social environment evolved .

The houses are constructed of ashlar sandstone and the roofs are gabled (and clad with recent terracotta tiles). The houses are relatively intact, with rectangular door openings (surmounted by top lights) and windows fitted with eight pane sash frames. Chimneys are brick and are topped by pots. The dividing walls rise through the roof line.The row appears in fair general condition. In the 1970s the unsympathetic roof tiles and iron decoration to the facades were added.

The terrace is a good example of a Victorian era terrace row and it is a major feature on Union Street, being part of the registered Pyrmont Square Group. It consequently plays a significant role in the streetscape of this central Pyrmont precinct.