Fairbanks Sketchers (check out our Flickr site + Facebook page), the budding group of artists who meet informally to do on-site drawings at various locations around Fairbanks (previously posted about here), is slated to occupy Silver Gulch Brewery out in Fox this Wednesday evening, from 5pm - 8pm. Here's the sketch group's Facebook Event page for more info.
Pictured here is my piece from the Ursa Major Distilling session - excellent libations + creative juices, not to mention some interesting art on display. Ostensibly as part of
setting up the Fairbanks Sketchers page on Flickr, I went
ahead and started colonizing over there with some of my own portfolios: Drawings + Sketches, Logos + Graphic Art… oh and yeah, a classic “Cartoons”sampler - which might be interesting from the standpoint of it being my own personal top 100.
In collaboration with a couple other artists, myself included, Elizabeth Eero Irving had the great idea to form a local branch of the international group "Urban Sketchers." Here's a link to our Facebook page which will host any posts about upcoming venues + samples of work. There's also our Flickr page, and I've set up a new Google+ webfolio for the sketches I've done while on our outings.
Please feel free to join us if you're ever in this neck of the woods with some free time and an open sketchbook! We have a full roster of unique establishments (so far appearing at The Venue, the Noel Wien Public Library and Ursa Major Distilling) in the prospective pipeline that will be fantastic opportunities to interact with other artists and explore the community.
Soon as we get the thumbs-up from the organization's administration to be a legit chapter, we'll update as "Fairbanks Urban Sketchers," but in the meantime, this is their official statement (and links) copied verbatim from the main group which we're adhering to:
Urban sketchers is a group for everyone that loves to draw the cities where they live and visit, from the window of their homes, from a cafe, at a park, standing by a street corner. Before sharing your drawings, make sure they meet these basic criteria, You did the drawing on location. You have included the location of the sketch in the headline, caption, or flickr map. No sketches from figure drawing sessions. We reserve the right to remove any drawings that don't fit our mission.
This is a group for all sketchers out there who love to
draw the cities where they live and visit, from the window of their
homes, from a cafe, at a park, standing by a street corner... always on
location, not from photos or memory.
Before sharing your drawings in the pool, make sure they meet these basic criteria and they are done in the spirit of the Urban Sketchers Manifesto. • You did the drawing on location, not from photos or memory. • You have written the location of the sketch (town and state/country) in the headline or caption OR placed the image on your public Flickr map. • No sketches from figure drawing sessions or posed models. • We draw on location, indoors or out, capturing what we see from direct observation. • Our drawings tell the story of our surroundings, the places we live and where we travel. • Our drawings are a record of time and place. • We are truthful to the scenes we witness. • We use any kind of media and cherish our individual styles. • We support each other and draw together. • We share our drawings online. • We show the world, one drawing at a time. We aim to maintain the group's pool focused on location drawings from every corner of the world. We reserve the right to remove any drawings that don't fit our mission. We also encourage members to write descriptions and stories associated with each sketch.
Here's some doodles + pics from last month’s fabulous, fun & furry Fairbanks Sketchers meetup @ the Tanana Valley Kennel Club’s dog show. Definitely a unique venue “fur” drawing such an amazing range of different people + pets…
The day we went was Sunday, the weekend's big finish with the best-of-breeds winners all lined up for the final showdown... Basset hound won the day! It was the first ever dog show I’ve been to… just amazed at the range of different breeds on display – and just how professional + serious everybody was – even the dogs.
Well, obviously SOME of us weren’t so serious… but there was a veritable cornucopia of inspiration on display.
Never petted so many pooches in my life… and every single one was a splendid example of the best of their respective breeds… also the #3 ranked Akita in the whole country was in-house! We commented on the observation of how very impressive it was to see the sheer numbers of dogs in attendance all together in one place - with virtually no barking and no fighting between all the different breeds. Now if only humans could get along so well...
Along with finding some interesting scrap paper to doodle on, I mulled over the old adage that owners look just like their pets...
…or is it more the case that opposites attract?
Bitches be like “Yo dawg… I don’t get it”
The next meetup will be on Friday, June 16th from 4-6pm at yet another sacred, historic landmark in downtown Fairbanks: the Immaculate Conception Church.
The last meetup for the Fairbanks Sketchers was downtown on the grounds of the historic Immaculate Conception Church. Good weather + turnout with some great folks
Next up: Everts Air Cargo airplane graveyard outing Friday, July 14th from 1-5pm!
Do you see what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps? Here's a digitally enhanced version of my sole contribution to the evening's activities at one of the Fairbanks Sketchers group meetings I was able to attend this season. ...more below the fold...
If it seems that I've been remiss in posting about our little group of sketchers it's largely on account of not being able to make a couple of the more recent outings. But last month I was finally able to, and it was an unusual scene as we visited the ruins of Gold Dredge #3 out in Chatanika, right across from the local lodge. In operation from 1928 - 1958, this hulking antique was hit by a fire back in 2013 - but aesthetically speaking it retains much interesting character and texture. The Fairbanks Arts Association's Literary Arts group also
held their annual "Poetry at the Dredge" event at the same time, so it
was wonderful to have pooches, poets and song as a cultural backdrop.
The weather was nice, excepting the brief spat of snow/hail/rain at Cleary Summit, and I was treated to the sounds of a Ruffed grouse off drumming in the woods when I moved apart from the group to get a different perspective on the setting. Patches of snow + ice were still clinging to the massive undulating piles of tailings that scar the landscape for miles in all direction, spotted throughout by the occasional dilapidated structure from another era. Well, given the massive open pits in the neighborhood, the obsession with mining riches at an obscenely destructive scale is still with us.
Posted here are a few snapshots from our one-year anniversary last month back at Venue in downtown - really great turnout of some fabulous folks, including new faces. I also happened to have what was perhaps the best espresso I've ever experienced: the Alpenglow blend by Black Cup roasted by Cafe Del Mundo down in Anchorage. Not that I'm turning into the sourdough sommelier anytime soon, but it was the first time I was able to understand better and appreciate some of the subtle, nuanced flavors, and have it explained by an enthusiastic, knowledgeable barista.
First up top is a finished image after working up the initial pencil - posted above - of my sketch done on-site after a few more hours of inking and adding value with a variety (about eight different leads) of graphite pencils. One of the bonus side-effects of participating in this monthly gig has been fodder to play with long after the actual event: such reference material can easily be rolled over into additional experimentations.
As a side-note, one particular artist who I was really excited to meet and see the work of was Eric S. Carlson... check out his website here for some outstanding sample illustration pieces.
One can only suppose this scenario plays out across the Interior during the depths of winter... little oasis of warmth + green in a sea of brittle white.
Great turnout again with a wonderful cast of characters: check out this backpost for more information and links to the official Facebook page on upcoming events.
Our little group of local sketchers (see previous posts here, here and here) migrated over to one of my favorite community camping spots, where I'm often a fixture with my sketchbook in the cafe. Gulliver's Books has such a unique architectural presence, one you never really stop to notice unless you happen to be actively studying it's distinctive shape. Even details like how each individual bookshelf is ever-so-slightly canted back so the books sit an angle - nice touches like that which ordinarily would escape attention would it not for the focused observation involved in actively looking at a subject. Kinda like active listening, it's a matter of training not just the eye, but of stilling the mind enough to truly take note - it fosters a connection, engages you.
I was reminded of this phenomenon on account of recent marketing efforts with a new event, "Slow Art Day." Not to mention how many tourists we see here in Alaska (and elsewhere) that are so thoroughly immersed in their cameras, faithfully recording their visit to the degree that they're arguably not even really present, and hence must attempt in vain to relive the experience that they've paradoxically missed out on by being so obsessed with documenting it while it happens.
It was only around zero degrees outside but a stiff little breeze made for a chilly half-hour sketching up the exterior shot (had to bail out for several warm-ups back inside). Again, I'm technically not adhering to the strict manifesto of the official Urban Sketchers - since I prudently leave the pen + ink materials at home out of respect for the host business, I just complete the pencilwork on-site. In the spirit of the event though I try and complete the piece(s) within the same allotted timeframe, usually about an hour or so. However I am strictly working off observation - no reference photos of any kind, which in my opinion results in a much more spontaneous and raw impression than striving for realistic depiction. More and more these days I find myself being aesthetically critical of lifeless studies drawn from photographs. It's also nice to not have to worry about impressing anybody, students, clients or peers, and just sketch for the hell of it.
Inked up the day’s sketches, an interior + exterior of the urban
setting of the month… as usual, scored a couple books, one used (the Gaiman/Zulli title) and one
new: after hunting down the Haida Manga one (“Red” by Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas) - by
first trying the ISBN, then by author, and eventually finding out the
distributor carried it and finally ordering a copy - another employee
found that they actually had a copy sitting right there on their
shelves. One of the many reasons I love that store and folks who work
there.
Bonus: Staffperson gave me a copy of the "Secret Harbor" minicomic from my Maine
residency back in 2011 (made so as to have something non-Alaskan at my
table for the MeCAF comic convention + a precursor to the “Bad Clams”
collection)… someone tried to exchange it for credit , but unfortunately
it hasn’t appreciated in value above & beyond the $1. Maybe if it
was signed... buck-fifty?
The next meetup is Wednesday, April 27th from 5-7 at Arctic Lanes bowling alley: never having been there I'm looking forward to enjoying some beverages - here's hoping they serve Caucasians.
Wait, what? Has it already been a whole year down the proverbial tubes?
Actually, to flog the metaphor a bit, our awesome landlord installed a septic system in the fall, which promptly froze up at the first subzero snap... so back to the ol' slop-bucket routine. So no, once the icy sphincter clenched itself up there ain't nothing going down any tubes until spring. And besides, the more I think about it, the more I like "greywater" as a much better metaphor for a year's worth of backlogged material.
Sample pages from the 24-hour incoherent weirdness
So once again the fine folks at Ursa Major Distilling are hosting another humble little show by yers truly: approximately one-hundred pieces covering everything from the regular Nuggets feature - both black + white panels and some splendid full-color prints on display as well; a handful of editorial panels (every one of which was rejected for publication); the full 24 Hour Comic from this year; a sampler section scanned from my Fairbanks Sketchers outings; a reprint of the Arctic Science Summit piece; and of course the ever-popular "edits," consisting of not-suitable-for-publication material.
Speaking of retrospective introspective perspectives, a reminder that the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner now has a slate of Nuggets on their on-line Sundays section up again... almost as cool as getting to actually see it in glorious print. Or reading about all the behind-the-scenes trivia here.
It had been an entire year since I made one of these outings... and rumor has it that there will only be one more scheduled meetup before this experiment shuts down (check their official Facebook page for schedule of final events).
This largely on account on there not being a consistent turnout, which in my experience trying to host similar opportunities for artists (a figure drawing group) is a frustrating exercise in futility. But it was fun while it lasted (see archives here), and all due credit to Elizabeth Eero Irving for herding cats.
This past weekend's gig was at Calypso Farm + Ecology Center, right in my backyard in Ester. I gravitated to the smithy and the wood-fired bread oven for a couple quick sketches using Sharpies, ballpoint pen + wash.
Another installment of updates on the roving band of local artists who meetup once a month at random places around our community (previous posts here and here). For March we're hanging out at another favorite spot of mine mentioned many times here over the years: Gulliver's Books, upstairs in the Second Story Cafe - should be some good material to work with, inside and out.
Last month we congregated at Silver Gulch Brewery, and were treated to
some sumptuous libations and scrumptious victuals. In particular I
absolutely love their seasonal "40 Below Imperial Stout" paired with a
Stoutburger, hearty, flavorful fare which in turn got those creative
juices flowing.
There were at least a couple-dozen folks who turned up, many of whom I’d never met before, which is really inspiring especially when one is effectively ensconced in a setting like structured university classes and/or is used to working on one’s own all the time. So touching base and networking with other like-minded individuals is really a fun opportunity, along with getting to sketch new subjects.
That’s why I really like the angle of the whole “urban sketching” group’s manifesto: there’s no shortage of awesome art spotlighting the usual epic Alaskan landscape/wildlife et al, but comparatively little featuring what comprises a community, like the businesses and institutions. It can be as much of a defining aspect of places we live in to focus on more humble or everyday locales as opposed to the usual money-shots in travel brochures. Here's our local chapter's Flickr page + the Facebook group for updates and more information.
Liner Notes: Technically with these I’m in violation of the legit Urban Sketching “rules” (see the official organization websites here, here and here) by not completing everything on-site, but I usually don’t pack the pen + ink stuff on field trips: so I just spend twenty minutes or so roughing out a composition; then in keeping with the spirit of a timed session, ink it up soon as I get back to the studio + a quick wash, maybe for another half-hour, relying on memory to fill in the blanks. I rarely if ever use reference photos, preferring more of a combination of spontaneous interpretation & residual impressions to create a slightly different take on any given scenario. In other words, realistically make shit up.
We were also treated to a behind-the-scenes tour of the facilities by out gracious and accommodating host - an impressive operation and successful business. I caught sight of an old classic Freeze-Frame panel still stuck up on the wall of the office that hearkened way back from 1999’s “Stuck In A Rut” book release party: three hundred people @ thirty-below with all the awesome folks from Trademark helping out + Gangly Moose live. Somewhat fitting to see a piece of history in such a setting, not to mention how much better I can draw musk ox now.
One of the many little field-trips that were taken over the course of last semester's Life Drawing studio art class was to the Rabinowitz Courthouse in downtown Fairbanks. One you get past the security it's a wonderful opportunity to see firsthand some very nice artwork on display, not the least of which are two pieces in the main lobby of the first floor (PDF). The first is "A Wilderness of Mystery" by Bill Brody (4’ h x 28’ w carved and painted copper mural, 2001):
“ … a panoramic view looking up American Creek to Mount Prindle, the tallest mountain in the White Mountains. The autumn colors of the dwarf birch, berries, and lichen counterpoint the cooler tones of the mountains, granite tors, and blowing sky. The mural is intended to foster the connection between the enduring beauty of the Alaska wilderness and the peole who live and work in Fairbanks, on the verge of the untamed outdoors. The copper panels are carved by techniques derived from printmaking, and the painting was done with small, soft brushes using transparent colors.”
"This three-cluster sculpture is suspended from the second story ceiling above the main lobby and softens the formal feeling of the lobby with its asymmetrical design and wash of warm colors. The slow movement of the mobile is intended to mimic the aurora of the northern hemisphere. The term “Sila” is an Inupiaq term for cosmos. The sculpture is constructed of tapered laminated silver maple strips in a variety of lengths and with stainless steel components."
Ostensibly we were there to enact a time-honored role for a special species of artists: courtroom sketchers.
Clockwise from top: excerpted images from Aggie Kenny, Elizabeth Williams and Mona Shafer Edward.
This particular historically important subgenre in the medium has unfortunately become mostly obsolete what with the advent and acceptance of photography in the courtroom. Still it dovetailed perfectly with my Life Drawing course in that it was an excellent opportunity to engage in not just an outstanding arena for practicing our observational skills as artists, but also to remind us of our civic duty as a citizen.
From the outset of this particular class I was determined not to do the standard default method of basically running a
timer (…“change” … “change” etc.) for a model for the duration of the semester. It's LIFE drawing - and life doesn't (normally) present you with nudes who stand around posing perfectly still while you compose artsy-fartsy sketches. After the requisite classical lessons such as formal anatomical studies, in conjunction with crucial drilling in gestures and traditional portraiture leavened with caricature, we left the confines of the department studio and set about integrating with the community at large, sketchbooks in hands. As per the usual MO there is a host of resources available right on campus, such as athletic activities in the Student Recreation Center, folks eating in the cafeteria, studying in the library etc. Even taking a ride on public transportation is a veritable buffet of situational models ie people sitting around, as is any café and/or bar, or workplace.
Anyways, back to the courtroom: Really great accommodation + hospitality from the Administrative
Office staff + the presiding judge: we got to observe Superior Court
proceedings for a couple hours. Sure scared ME straight, especially when the formalities and legalistic jousting ended and it got real with the appearance of shackled defendants shuffling in for their respective arraignments. Though I did get
some funny ideas for one particular panel... the process for which was previously posted here.
