Walking Amongst Giants

I had the good fortune to spend the first three months of this year in the Dominican Republic, working on my sabbatical project. Being able to be there for an extended period of time allowed me some time to travel- and I did- to Samana and Las Terrenas, north of Santo Domingo. I promise, I was working, but also, drinking in the atmosphere and pleasure of living at the beach for a spell. Being at this exquisite province is almost like living on a deserted island. Though it is a tourist destination, the beaches are rarely very crowded.

But that is the least of it. 

The palm trees simply tower over the beaches and land, 

blown and contorted by the constant winds. 

They are mystical, tall and elegant, often densely packed together, their body language defying the elements. The turquoise waters below roar at times, soothe at others. 

Town is very active and never without the constant looping of “moto conchos,” 

as they are called. 

They circle round and round, often laden with two, three, four people at a time. 

But it is the early morning that I loved most, seeing it all come alive, beginning with the pescadores, the fishermen, setting out to fish, coming back, cleaning, cutting, bartering, selling. And of course, there are the women, strolling from morning to night, with their beautiful beaming faces, selling that sweet fruit.

I'll have more about my sabbatical year next post. Stay tuned!

Struttin' with the bunnies

I have been on a sabbatical from teaching at FIT since January- and have been drawing like crazy! I will be posting more on that, but  for today, wanted to share some drawings from the annual Easter Bonnet parade across from St. Patrick's Cathedral in NYC. It was my first time going downtown to experience this really fun day- and it did not disappoint! I might have to do a bonnet for next year!

Beauty and The Beast

In this case, the beast is pollution. I joined the NYC Urban Sketchers and the Gowanus Canal Conservancy last Saturday to draw for conservation. As my sketching buddies and I recorded the canal, in its glimmering, albeit scary, luminosity, the Conservancy workers were clearing debris, and cleaning up the waterfront to a great Latin music track. Tireless, they were- and are, as we were treated to an overview of the history and the long road ahead to clear up the sludge, deceptive under the bright blue and green of the canal. For the artist, it was a visual treat. The majesty of the industrial environment against the bright blue sky. Deep shadows and glistening highlights. The canal has its doubters, but there is a core group of people, plugging away. I was honored to be there that day.

Across the Pond in the Name of Fashion

I was so very honored to be an invited speaker to The Big Issue: What's Next Conference at Manchester Metropolitan University in Manchester, England, in March. During my presentation, I chose to speak about Accidental Fashion Illustrators, focusing on those greats from the Golden Age of Illustration. You know, the likes of Al Parker, Coby Whitmore, Jon Whitcomb, Jack Potter, Joe Bowler and Bernie D'Andrea, to name a few.
I was asked to illustrate my head shot, in lieu of a photo. And, to bring an umbrella.

I soon realized why the umbrella was my best accessory- it NEVER stopped raining!

Here are a couple of drawings from inside a local pub. When in Rome….

Once on campus, the rain mattered little, when I had a prime time seat to the sewing studio. So exciting to see the designs come to life!

Hecho en Cuba

My story goes back about 10 years ago, but my memories are still very fresh. 

I was invited to draw a fashion show during a conference in Old Havana. 

I was very official, applying for, and getting granted a license to travel. 

I proudly got my passport stamped and arrived to travel experience 

unlike any that I had to that point, nor have had since. 

The air was hot, as it was summer, but the heat and humidity transcended the temperature. 

The people that I met, beautiful, soulful, smart, and sweet, moved about as if in a haze, under the gloom of poverty, restrictions, and the lack of freedom that I so casually enjoyed. Instead of money, they begged for soap, for hair bands, for toothpaste- all of which I had been advised to bring with me, and I did. I passed it out to Cubans of all ages and had my hand kissed.

It was all at once sobering and endearing. 

The heat and glow of the sun, kissing those antique cars and cobbled streets gave way to sheer exhilaration, for as the sun started to go down, the music, that Cuban music that acts as a constant, pulsing but quiet beat during the day, simply explodes as the light of the day changes. 

I See London, I see France

Back in September, I posted about my whirlwind trip to Oxford. 

Following the conference, I spent a day in London and then, off I went to spend a few days in France. Oh, it was amazing and heavenly, and full of cafés and museums and shopping and wine and I wish that I were back there right now. 

I was fascinated with the details and the grandeur- be it London or Paris and beyond. 

With all good intentions, I set out to do these living histories justice, but true to form, it soon became a pile up of details and winding in and out of the architecture, but boy, did I have fun!

Capturing the sites on the way to somewhere else is not only a challenge, 

but it creates great memories that resonate for longer and better than just gazing out the window.

What can you say about sitting anywhere in Paris and soaking it in?

A cafe and a scene- who needs more?

A side trip to Normandy, rich with history and delicious ornamentation.