Hats On!

This past summer, Elaine Stone, a very beloved professor at FIT passed away at age 85. She sent her last academic email two days before she left us- working until the end. She was well known for her ubiquitous presence at school, her generosity of spirit and of student centeredness, her outrageous sense of humor and her work ethic. But above all, she was known and beloved for wearing a hat each and every day. So much so, that it had been decades since there had been a sighting without a hat- and that came only once. Oh, she was coiffed from head to toe, matching ribbons and brims of all sizes, patterns, solids, summer, winter- you get the picture.  A few days ago, we had a memorial for Elaine, Hats on For Elaine, where everyone brought out their millinery best to honor a great lady and a great mentor to me-hats and otherwise...

Well, I gotta admit, it sometimes takes a plane ticket to get me to leave the UWS- but getting to draw with the NYC USk folk in Red Hook was too good to pass up. So, I went to the other end of the NYC universe and hopped the ferry and had an incredible day! 

Fun times, good stuff to draw and even a treat from the mayor of the Yacht Club!

Sweet Ceret and Back to BCN

I did not have the heart to leave the South of France, so after some cajoling, we decided to wing our way back to Barcelona by way of Ceret. Oh, how I loved this town! It was so endearing, and seeing the Picasso ceramics was, well, the cherry on top.

One last day in Barcelona, so much to do and see! After a high speed drive by tour of all things Gaudi left to see, and a souvenir spending spree, we managed to get to Mercado Boqueria just before it closed. I so wish that I had been able to take Ea's and Marina's workshop, but I can see why everyone loved being there. I love being in any market, and this was no exception. A few quickies, and back to reality. 

Baguettes et Chiens

As hard as it was to leave Barcelona, and the delicious beach town of Tossa de Mar, off we went to cross the border into the South of France, to Collioure. Flowers lined the highways, with trees that echoed the paintings of the Fauve masters and the spirit of Matisse, Derain, Braques and Picasso
were calling out to us as we drove into the country.
The palette changed, and the characters were quite different-
and there were dogs and baguettes everywhere!
I had my fun every morning.

I adored being in this quintessential French town. Everywhere one looked, there was a picture and as we enjoyed a trolley ride up the mountain, I made some quick notes.

We were so lucky to be there on market day. What a scene- more baguettes!

And then, time for a glass of wine and take in the beach scene. The rain did not deter anyone.

A little more coming for the way back to Barcelona. Stay tuned.

Un Cortado, Une Noisette

I've just returned from a FABULOUS trip to Barcelona, Costa Brav and the South of France. 

When I close my eyes, I am still feeling the Mediterranean sun and the sea breeze, see the glorious tiled roofs and the exquisite palette and of course, tasting my morning cortado and noisette.

First up was the Urban Sketchers Symposium in Barcelona. If you can imagine over 300 people, from over 20 countries!, just covering the city drawing on location. Pretty spectacular! 

Barcelona is Gaudi central and is really magical. 

With my apologies to my architect friends, I am posting my drawings of Sagrada Familia, 

and other Gaudi extravaganzas. Oh, my intentions were in the right place, trying to get the perspective right, the scale in place, all of the nooks and crannies clear, but alas, this aging rocker got so excited and singing Sagrada Familia, baby (in my mind) to the tune of In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by Iron Butterfly, (most of you reading will not know who I am talking about!) my hand got ahead of me:

I could have stayed here all day looking up into this glimmering sky of mosaics, 

all at once celestial and expansive, awe-inspiring and in spite of the throngs of people weaving in and out of the columns, it did feel as if I was there all by myself.

And the treats kept coming...leaving Barcelona up the coast, we arrived to Tossa de Mar, 

a gorgeous beach town where the sea was steps away from our beautiful, Gaudi inspired, of course, hotel. Days on the beach, boat rides, paella and great cortado!

I'll leave you here for today, before we head to the South of France....

Channelling Picasso

In moments, I am off to Barcelona to... Channel Picasso! Yes! I will be teaching a workshop of the same name for the Urban Sketchers Symposium, a wild gathering of hundreds and hundreds of like-minded people covering the street of the city- drawing!
Though my workshop will be about drawing and experimenting with mark making, Mr. P's philosophy can apply to any discipline in the arts. Below, I am sharing some amazing quotes from the book Picasso, In His Words, edited by Hiro Clark.

“When I was a child, my mother said to me, ’If you become a soldier you’ll be a general. If you become a monk you’ll end up as the Pope.’ Instead, I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”

“A picture is not thought out and settled beforehand. While it is being done it changes as one’s thoughts change. And when it is finished, it still goes on changing, according to the state of mind of whoever is looking at it. A picture lives a life like a living creature, undergoing the changes imposed on us by our life from day to day. This is natural enough, as the picture lives only through the man who is looking at it.”

“The important thing is to do, and nothing else; be what it may.”

“If you know exactly what you are going to do, what’s the good of doing it? There’s no interest in something you know already. It’s much better to do something else.”

“When there is anything to steal, I steal.”

“Drawing is no joke. There is something very serious and mysterious about the fact that once can represent a human being with line alone and create not only his likeness but, in addition, an image of how he really is. That’s the marvel!”

“I do not seek, I find.”

See you later- Gone Drawing!

Fore!

Does anyone really call that on the course? I'm afraid that my experience has been trying to get the ball through the windmill or gingerbread house on putt-putts all up and down the Eastern seaboard since childhood. Still, I was thrilled to be asked to document the FIT Golf Classic along with other MFA in Illustration peeps, Elena Mykolaitis, Bruno Nadalin, Stephen Gardner and Han Yuan Yu. It was a really fun day out in the fresh air, no lack for extreme twists and turns of those figures, looking for the eagle?

Another Woman's Life

Under the intense Indian sun, I sat, enamored of the sparkle of beads and baubles, as these beautiful women carefully stitched. We share glances, smiles, we cannot speak to each other, but it is about women being surrounded by women. For me, a moment in time, out of time, in a place far away. A chance to draw, to marvel at the detail, to bring home some trinkets. For them, the way the days go, day in, day out, hoping for those like me to appreciate and support what they do, enough to make their day profitable. In honor of Women's History Month.