Union Terrace

Wow, you can see I'm in summer mode, I saw these pics on my phone and remembered I wanted to share them with you!

July 8, on a warm Sunday, I biked down to Union Terrace on the lake. A gorgeous day with lots of people out and about.

Ran into fellow sketchers Helen (first timer) and Genie while I was starting my first sketch. Genie and I met up on the overlook.

On my way back to my bike I finally saw why I hadn't run into anyone else; they had smartly grabbed tables around the corner in the shade, so altogether, 11 productive sketchers took advantage of a beautiful summer day in Madison.

Next meetup is Olbrich Park along the lake. Meet by the beach near the pavilion. I'll be out of town, so if you go, please post.

Stay creative...
Ruth

West Washington Train Station

My fingers were crossed and mother nature did come through, sparing us from the daily showers we've been receiving for the past few weeks. Ten sketchers gathered at the old train station to share sketches and draw together. Given the chilly temps, a few spent their time in Porter's Coffee Shop, not a bad idea.

work by The Gang

my own, without too much further work at home this time...

And a welcome to new sketcher Stephanie, on the left next to Gretchen...Lora had to leave early

Thanks all for sharing and drawing together.....and remember to stay creative.

Ruth

Sketching on a Warm Memorial Day Weekend

Looks as though we had a good crowd at Vilas Zoo this past Saturday.

Big thank you to Cindy and Tsela for posting on Facebook, they reported a few new faces which is always nice to hear. Saturday morning meetups are often hard for me to get to, so it's nice to find others taking and sharing some pictures.

We love to see what you do!

I walked over to Sequoya Commons that afternoon to sketch those coming for ice cream. There was a beautiful light breeze, it was fun to watch all different types of people arrive for what I'm pretending was their first taste of summer.

Stillman & Birns Zeta Sketchbook, watercolor first, pentel ink pen on top

Who knows? The Ice Cream Shoppe is open year round....

Next meetup is the Sunday afternoon one at the Washington Train Station downtown.

Take care and keep sketching
Ruth

Afternoon at Agora

It was a quiet Mother's Day at Agora in Fitchburg. Three of us gathered together and by some miracle dodged the rain for the afternoon. I was familiar with the front of Agora having driven past it several times, but discovered the peace and quiet behind the buildings where we gathered to sketch.

Rebecca, Colette and I all decided to sit in an open area that gave great views of the building and the grassy area. This place offered a lot of variety, areas to spread out your painting materials, places to duck under if it rained, parking and the cafe was open.

I say we should visit once again.

Rebecca had a great Mother's Day pondering the landscape and working in colored pencil

My friend Colette from the Madison Art Guild, joined us and spent her time working on perspective of the buildings

and I just enjoyed working with other sketchers, sharing ideas, being together

Join us for our Saturday meet up at Vilas Zoo at the end of the month and please bring good weather with you!

Stay Creative,
Ruth

Always Something to Sketch

It was so wonderfully beautiful this weekend. I reserved my Sunday afternoon to head off on my bike with my sketching gear, this time turning away from center city on the bike path toward Verona.

bike bridge over the beltline near Home Depot

I headed over the bridge on top of the 12/18 beltline and found some shade close to the overpass. I provided a lot of amusement to other bikers as I laid out my various tools, watercolor, etc. I enjoy a little spectacle.

Stillman & Birns Zeta sketchbook, watercolor and Faber Castell ink pens

I think I'll put a bit of shadow under the bridge in the background, but other than that I was pleased. I painted first, then redrew with ink pens. I like disagreeing lines.

There's always something to draw!

I'll be in Fitchburg next Sunday afternoon for our meet-up near Promega at Agora, come join me and...
Stay creative
Ruth

Spring Has Arrived!

I know that you know how wonderful this weekend felt.

We Urban Sketchers have been dutifully sketching indoors for what seems forever, but Saturday I headed out to Prairie Du Sac and spent a most enjoyable 2 hours walking, looking, and drawing. I was totally fortified with the entire experience.

No wonder we draw...

The Bonham Theater, along the Saulk River

Don't forget the sketch meet up coming up this coming Saturday at the Lakeside Street Coffee Shop, a great location rain or shine. 

I'll be out of town, so I expect a full report!

Stay Creative,

Ruth

Sketch the Capitol

Always good to head to downtown Madison to sketch the gorgeous State Capitol. It completely humbles you. More than one of us mentioned how overwhelmed we were.

There was lots going on; a wedding, tours, fraternity swearing in and of course a sketching group.

Mercedes, Elsie, Cindy, Michael, Jan and Ruth

It was interesting to see the different interpretations, things we focused on. We were also glad the locations were still indoors - it's still mighty cold out there!

Next location is at the Lakeside Coffee Shop....PLEASE bring some warm weather with you!

Stay Creative,

Ruth

Union South, during Spring Break

Seven sketchers arrived at Union South, despite the brisk wind. I was amazed by the lack of people until a more observant person informed me it was spring break. Fine if you like architecture, a bit more challenging if you came to draw people.

Pam, Tsela, Mercedes, Deb, Gretchen, Carolyn and me...Ruth

More than one of us remarked how wonderful it was to be next to like minded people, drawing what we see. I am grateful for our group.

Tsela gets a birds eye view, Pam is no doubt in deep conversation...

our results...love the different takes on the Union

Next meet up is at the Capitol...I'm still thinking of places where we can be inside, but (if we're optimistic) also outside.
If anyone has their own ideas for our meet ups, post them on Facebook or just let me know....

We're lucky to sketch together.
Stay creative
Ruth

Student Walkout March 14th - State Capitol

The Chazen Museum

What a beautiful day to head to the Chazen for a sketch meet-up. It was sunny and chilly outside and inside there was a gorgeous exhibit of Aboriginal Art, patterns that inspired all of us.

Louise, Carolyn, Elsie, Gretchen, Cindy, Deb, and Ruth...Rebecca was still busy sketching

the crowd gathers....

our drawing selection - tough to see as they have a "pencil only" policy at Chazen

first of 4 sketches I did, inked and painted back at home...

Still focusing on indoor sketch locations for the next meet up on March 31 at Union South, but I was getting itchy taking a walk today.
Stay creative and keep sketching. Hope to see you soon!

USK Meetup at Starbucks

USK Meetup at Starbucks

Nine sketchers met at Starbucks (Hilldale Target). 

 With the large windows overlooking University Ave there was a variety of scenes to sketch.

If you are interested in drawing musicians you might want to check out Bach Around the Clock. The event runs from 10 am to 10 pm on March 10th at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church on Regent St. Thank you Gretchen for letting us know about this event. More information can be found in the following link: Bach Around the Clock. 

USK February Meetup at Olbrich Gardens

It was certainly cold outside on Sunday, but warm inside Olbrich Gardens on the east side of Madison, Wisconsin. Seven sketchers happily took advantage and produced some interesting sketches.

Dave, Becky and Jeanie joined us for the first time - please come back!

We all remarked about the variety of what we saw....

Everyone but me smartly went into the observatory, I stayed out in the common area. I had decided to contrast my frozen deck that morning with the plant I found by the bench I was sitting on.

Next up, Starbucks in Target on the Westside at Hilldale. The advantage is, you can pick up your groceries after you're done sketching!
Stay tuned for more events as we begin to think of warmer weather...outside again.
Stay creative,
Ruth

Urban Sketchers News for February: Drawing Attention

Here's the link for the monthly news for Urban Sketchers.  The format was changed a couple months ago and can be read online as a magazine.  Very cool.  And there is a segment from NBC Nightly News featuring a USK group in Syracuse, NY.    www.urbansketchers.org/2018/01/drawing-attention-february-2018.html

Sketchers Abound at the Memorial Union

Such a great way to start a weekend, a good sized group of sketchers doing what they do best; sharing tools, enthusiasm, and sketching.

I decided to stay at our meet-up spot in Peets Coffee with Mercedes and Mary, but many went off in different directions. The weather was lovely (it's hard to keep track of that in WI this winter). We reconvened as usual for photos and examining our sketchbooks together.

we had to have two photos of sketchbooks, we had such a good showing!

great place to sketch at Peet's Coffee...not to mention good coffee

Stillman and Birns sketchbook, micron  pen and watercolor

Continue to check both our blog and our Facebook page for updates....and if you ever have any great new ideas for sketch meet-ups let us know, we'd love to hear from you.

Happy Sketching
Ruth

Next Sketching Date: Saturday January 27th - Memorial Union

We will meet this Saturday from 10 am to noon at the Memorial Union for sketching.  Meet just inside the main entrance (outside Peets Coffee).  We usually spread out a bit but if you come late just look around and you are sure to find a sketcher at work.

As always we draw what we are seeing around us with the art supplies of our choice.  Below is an old ink and watercolor sketch of mine of a student studying and a frozen Lake Mendota.

Lake Mendota from Memorial Union winter 2012

A Few More Photos from the Chocolaterian on Jan. 14th

Front row left to right: Ben, Ruth, Mike, Mercedes
Back row left to right:  Joel, Gretchen, Louise, Pam

Sarah shooting her cocoa

Left to right: Carolyn, Tsela, Deborah, Linda

Deborah, Linda and Cindy

Waiting for my tune up at Smart Motors

A small sketch to start the weekend. With the warmer weather maybe I'll venture outside to sketch.

Article by Madison Sketcher

Madison sketcher, Vivien Ahrens, had an excellent article about Urban Sketchers published in December on the website Emergent Art Space.  http://emergentartspace.org/forum/50746/  We met Vivien in November when she came to our Sun Prairie Sketchcrawl.  She is from Germany and has sketched with USK groups in Europe and the US.  We are happy to have her in our Madison group!! 

Vivien and Carol at the Sketchcrawl lunch

Sunday January 14, 2018 - Chocolaterian Cafe - Middleton

We had a record number of sketchers today (19) including 3 new sketchers who were most welcome.  The food was great and the staff welcoming and kind enough to take this picture of the group. 

And we now have a Facebook page where we can post photos of people, places and sketches.  Our upcoming events will be posted on Facebook under the Event tab as well as on our Event Calendar on this blog.  The link to our Facebook page is:   https://www.facebook.com/groups/946377982180736/

This link can also be found on our blog under "How to Participate").

Thanks to everyone who came out today to share their sketches and got 2018 off to a great start for USK Madison!!  We will add a another sketch date for January soon and will meet at Olbrich Gardens on Feb. 11th.  Keep warm and keep sketching!!

Great turnout on a cold winter's day!

Cabin Fever

I didn't do near the sketching I had hoped to do this holiday, but one day after the New Year while my daughter was visiting me we declared a state of Cabin Fever and planned an outing. One important part of the trip was a stop at The Shoe Box. I think I should go back there when its warmer to draw it, it's quite the place.
But of course first we had to have lunch.

La Mexicana on Water St. in Saulk City WI

This is the view from the inside as we happily ate burritos. Ignore the shoe if you are a rigid urban sketcher. I drew it from life, but later in the house.

Mostly I wanted to show you our coffee stop in Cross Plains, on the way back from the shoe store. Another nice area to revisit when it's time to draw outside. This was a perfect stop during single digit weather.

Crossroads Cafe, Cross Plains, WI

Both sketches done with micron pens, my little watercolor kit , a few colored pencils , and all on my Stillman and Birns sketchbook.

Stay Creative!

Ruth

My 1st Urban Sketch of 2018

After lunch with friends at the Concourse Hotel (the best salad bar in town!!) I had a latte and sketched  one of the patrons.  I like the Tombow brushpens.  Watersoluble so no odor and they come in lots of colors.  Artist and Craftsman downtown has a big selection and good prices.  

Tombow brushpens & Stillman & Birn Beta softcover sketchbook

Happy New Year to Urban Sketchers Madison!!

Hope you all had lovely holidays and a chance to do some sketching.  The meeting scheduled for Saturday January 6th has been cancelled due to the severe cold weather which is forecast well below zero Saturday morning.

 Our next meeting will be on January 14th at the Middleton Chocolaterian Cafe from 1 to 3pm.  We have been to the east side location many times but this is our first outing to the Middleton cafe.  It looks very nice and has the same goodies on offer.  Hope to see you then when it will be a bit warmer, too.  Please post any urban sketches you did over the holidays!

The new format for Drawing Attention, the monthly online newsletter from Urban Sketchers has a new format and is like an online book.  I love it!!  The link is here:  www.urbansketchers.org/2017/12/drawing-attention-january-2018.html

Also re: our email list.  It  has been getting longer and a bit more difficult to keep updated.  I want to make sure everyone who wants one is getting an email reminder about meetings, etc.  If you did not get the email reminder I sent Thursday morning and would like to be added to the list please email me at: pwafer@charter.net    Also if you would like to be removed from the list at any time just let me know.  Thanks!!!    Pat