Birds in Art 2020 - Wausau, Wi.

 I went to see Birds in Art at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum  as I do every year.  Many great paintings & sculpture & carving this year.  Plus an exhibit of photos of the artists' studios with comments from each which was very interesting.  Downtown Wausau was hopping on Wed evening with live jazz and lots of outdoor seating and easy social distancing. Thursday morning I had coffee at La Prima which has very good coffee and I just had to draw the faux English call box on the corner in front.

Public Art

 I was lucky enough to be able to spend time on State Street earlier this year, where I tried to capture the art that grew out of the Black Lives Matter protests. I'm sharing a couple of them with the group.

I hope that the art is being saved somewhere. It documents an important story.

Future Sketching Dates and Events Calendar

 We have decided that due to Covid 19 and safe social distancing we will not be meeting indoors for the winter months as we normally did.  Nothing is normal now.  We did schedule a date for October at the UW Arboretum.  (Oct. 11, 1-3pm - as always see Events Calendar for details)

I may schedule a date at short notice IF the weather is unseasonably warm before spring.  Just have to play it by ear.

Also for those following this blog by email if you see a post about an upcoming sketching event please click on Events and then click again on that date.  All the pertinent information about that date should be there.  If not please leave a comment under the post as I check for comments.  My email (dgwafer@gmail.com) is listed under How to Participate so feel free to email me if you have questions.  There is also a calendar on our FB page.  We don't want any sketchers to miss out on a sketching date!!  The more sketchers the better we like it!!!  Pat

Hoyt Park - September 13th

 Finally some dry weather for sketching outdoors!  It was great to see everyone even if we were masked and 6 ft apart.  It is always inspiring to see what others have been sketching.  Hopefully we can meet in October for one more outdoor date this year.  We've decided indoor venues are out of the question for the foreseeable future. 

 Many thanks to Ruth for being our scheduler for the last few years!!  She has come up with lots of new and interesting places for meeting up.  She will be moving back to NY next year and will be sorely missed and we hope she will keep in touch and post some sketches from there. I'll be doing the scheduling starting next year and as always welcome ideas for new places. 

 If anyone would like to post photos on our blog let me know and I can either post them for you or show you how to do it your self - we love to see the urban sketches you're doing.  Also you can post them on our Facebook page. Ruth had the great idea for doing some urban sketching this winter based on a topic of our choice so I'll be doing some posts about that over the winter on this blog and on the FB page. So stay tuned and keep sketching!!

Ruth, Rebecca & Gretchen

Cindy, Deborah, Tsela & Ruth

Pat

Mary

 Jean, Skipper & Cindy

Some of our sketches

Hoyt Park Meetup This Sunday

 Hello All,

Just a short note to remind you that our September meetup is this coming Sunday at Hoyt Park on the west side of Madison. I have the following Sunday unplanned so I will reschedule if we are rained out. Join us if you can, post your sketch by putting it on our Facebook group page or send a jpeg to Pat and she'll put it on the blog, pwafer@charter,net

Last Sunday I rode my bike to the Edgewood Market on Monroe Street, perfect weather to sketch and eat a taco.

Keep sketching everyone!

Ruth

August Sketching

 Greetings Sketchers,

Everyone persevering to stay creative in whatever way you can?

I've been getting out and about when I can while the weather holds up, so I thought I would share some recent sketch pages. It's been a tricky shift for me not to have people to draw, but then I've learned more about how to make landscapes more interesting when they are devoid of them.

I did get to the July meetup at Wingra, but was further over by the boathouse.

Here I headed off to the UW Terrace on my bike to draw obviously uninformed that it was closed. So I found a view sitting by some bushes.

This was the most fun, my bike ride around the Lake Loop. I used colored pencils on these.

We have an August date planned out at Indian Lake Park so keep your fingers crossed to see if mother nature cooperates.

Stay strong everyone, keep creating

My Best

Ruth

Lake Wingra Park & Boathouse - Sunday July 19, 2020

With much cooler temperatures and a lovely breeze sketching here today was perfect.  We welcome first time sketcher Gabriel who sketched today along with Gretchen, Jean, Rebecca and me. We hope to see more sketchers at our next meet up on August 23rd at Indian Lake County Park.  It is a very beautiful place with plenty of room for social distancing.  A reminder: to not miss a new blog post just subscribe at Follow By Email on the right. I try to always post a reminder about the next event a week or so ahead so anyone who likes can get an email reminder.  Happy Sketching!!!  Pat

Gabriel, Gretchen & Jean

Rebecca, Gretchen, Jean & Gabriel

I decided to use charcoal today for a change - Note the lovely Covid 19 hair style

Ruth's Recent Sketch

What a great summer sketch by our chapter administrator Ruth Manning.  

Next Sketching Date - Sunday July 19th 1- 3 pm Wingra Boat House

Just a reminder that our next sketching date is on July 19th, 1-3pm at Wingra Boathouse.  There are some benches there but the picnic tables next to the boathouse are off limits except to paying customers who are renting boats ( I think) and they are not spaced far enough apart anyway.  When the park is busy the benches are often in use so bringing a lawn chair or sketching stool is a good idea and then you can sit anywhere you like.  I have seen the restoom being open and they seem to always leave the door open, too which is a good idea right now. Hope to see you Sunday weather permitting.   Pat

Garver Feed Mill - Sunday June 14, 2020 - Our First Outing for the Season!!

Jean, Carole, Gretchen and I sketched in the shady patio on the back side of the Mill and we must have just missed the other sketchers we heard were on the front patio - darn!  We did take a few photos in front before we left.  Those of us in masks and sunglasses remind me of the old Invisible Man movies.  It was a beautiful day to be out sketching and really great to see fellow sketchers again!   

Jean and Gretchen

Pat with half finished sketch

Carole's drawing of the Olbrich Gardens office near our shaded patio

Grechen sketched the sketchers

My finished sketch of the office building

Rear view of the Mill

Phase 1 Dane County: USK starts up again

Welcome back Urban Sketchers

It's been a long time since we've seen each other, hasn't it?

Now that phase 1 has begun in Dane County, USK is eligible to resume meetups and I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to it.

Beginning in June I will be attending the meetups I have scheduled through September. Note the details on the calendar to adjust to our new reality.

All meetups will be outdoors only. Practice social distancing and use of masks to whatever extent helps you feel comfortable. This will be weather dependent so take a look at the weather report and make your own decision.

The remainder of the sessions for 2020 will have the theme Draw Your Corner, whether inside or out.

There will be people that are not ready to join a group at this time and feel safer in their own space. Please participate by drawing your own corner - living room, yard, kitchen , and post it on Facebook on the day of our meetup to say hello. Show your creativity as we need to stay in touch.

If you are not on social media send a jpeg of your sketch to Pat who has agreed to post them on this blog.
pwafer@charter.net


I've been busy....I hope you have.

self portrait

intersection of Mineral Point & Glenway in early May

Next date is Garver Feed Mill, 6/14. Weather permitting I'll be riding my bike. Hope to see you there.

Ruth

Sketching While Staying Safe at Home - Jean's Flowers

Hyacinths in Jean Schomisch's Garden

Elsie's Handmade Sketchbook

Elsie got creative and made a sketchbook from some old wrapping paper she had and cardboard,  Even if she only has the view from her window it is reportage in this time of social distancing.  Well done, Elsie!

Sunday April 19th - Washburn Observatory

It was a beautiful day for sketching yesterday.  The view from Observatory Drive over Lake Mendota was spectacular.  I sat in my car with the sun roof open and sketched the observatory across the street. One student was sitting on the bench outside it. There were quite a few people walking around on campus but not nearly as many as there normally would have been.  I could see daffodils blooming in Allen Gardens as I went by. Their website says they are open from 8am-8pm daily. 

Washburn Observatory - ink and watercolor on Stillman & Birn Zeta series 8 x 5 sketchbook

Covid Closed Odana Park

Jean Schomisch sketched this scene last week noting that the park was closed. Thanks for sending it in, Jean.   Let's keep sketching now that spring is here.  Sketching in your car is always a safe option and sometimes more comfortable in cool weather which seems to be hanging on this year. Please feel free to email me photos of your sketches and I can post them or as blog authors you can post them yourself.  Happy Spring Sketching!  Pat dgwafer@gmail.com

Odana Golf Course

Hey, any sketchers out there?

Wow, it's a struggle to maintain the momentum, but I've been hard at work trying to keep up my daily practice. I gave myself permission to draw from resources - birds from the internet, photos I have...not my preferable way to work, but hey.

A couple things to share. One from Spain - I came back the end of March, a few I did out my windows...but you know, I'm kind of done with that. With the warming weather I will probably venture out to draw in solitude somewhere outside. Seems like an essential service to me.

Don't give up people, stay creative...whatever way you can

Ruth

Posting Sketches

Sorry the last message gave my email incorrectly.  It is: dgwafer@gmail.com

If you email a photo of your sketch I am happy to post it on the blog.  It would be great to see what others are sketching now.  Take care,   Pat

Cancellation of Sketching Dates

We have decided that for the time being we are cancelling any indoor venue sketching dates due to the coronavirus emergency.  Hopefully as it warms up we can do some outdoor sketching but we will just have to wait and see.  Please check the blog calendar for updates. We hope everyone is well and stays that way!!

In the meantime I hope you will all keep urban sketching.  When the weather is bad or windy I often sketch from my car and it works.  You can find lots of good places in a car, too.

If you want to post sketches on the blog in the meantime you can email them to me: gwafer@gmail.com    and I will post them.

Anyone who is already a blog author can also post them on there by clicking on New Post in the  upper right corner of the blog page.  If you are not a blog author yet you just need to send me your gmail address and I can invite you to be one and then you can post any time.  Urban Sketchers just asks that your sketches relate to sketching your environment from life and not photos.

It would be great to see some more sketches on the blog.  Take care and keep sketching!!!  Pat

Pheasant Branch Conservancy - Middleton

One of the best things about the Madison area is the proximity of wonderful natural places like Pheasant Branch.  Yesterday evening there were lots of people walking, jogging and dog walking.  Also a few Sandhill Cranes calling and flying over and Red Wing Blackbirds staking out there territory. Soon there will be a lot more cranes flying in for the night and some that nest there in summer.  All the snow was melted and it felt like spring was here again.  -- Pat Wafer

Tree with nesting box:  Ink & watercolor in Stillman & Birn Beta Sketchbook

Bike Path near Odana Rd. - February 29th

It was nice to take a walk in the warm weather last weekend.  Did a quick ink sketch on the path and painted it at home trying to remember all the colors.  I had to do the dad with the stroller really quick but it was fun to try.  -  Pat Wafer

Ink and gouache on watercolor paper