Monday, July 20, 2009

Another attempt to sketch in public


These two men were sitting outside a Starbucks enjoying their conversation...until they noticed a strange woman sitting in her car, staring at them. First the guy in the goatee noticed me. Then he said something to the other guy, who then turned to look at me. I pretended to be doing something else of course. Unfortunately they felt too uncomfortable to stick around.
So, it's a sketch in public, still from the protection of my car, and it's not my husband. How's that? I do wish I had been closer though; I would have liked more details. But mostly I am curious what they could possibly have thought about me!


And here is my husband, who I am sure you must recognize by now. He has been a fantastic sport lately, letting me sketch him. He didn't used to let me because he hates to be still. It drives him crazy in fact. But, today it wasn't necessary to ask him to be still. I just caught him while deep in thought. He was almost perfectly still. You'll see a faint line where him arm moved down, which I chose to not erase.

11 comments:

  1. I think you did a wonderful job sketching in public, I am not a big fan of people staring at me while I am working either, it's just so strange. And it's wonderful that you're sketching your husband. My fiancee has been pestering me about sketching/drawing everyone else but her. She did criticize my drawing a few times so I thought she would be so mad if I get anything about her at all wrong... but I could foresee things though, if I do sketch now, and later when we're married, she'd probably complain like "you don't draw me ANYMORE" as oppose to "you never draw me" in the end..I can never win :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I would love to know what they were thinking too! Anyway, a great sketch - pity they will not get to see it. (Or maybe they are reading this right now...)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Reana,
    that's a great story! and the image is great in its simplicity. When i began sketching on site, I quickly grew adept at the quick glance and get kinda weak kneed less often now. I realized just recently, that the public really doesn't care what you're doing, so I keep that in mind whenever I'm on site... I do, however, notice the occasional shadow over my should. But it's only happened a handful of times where the person will actually say something (i think it's the homicidal stare of concentration that scares them away ).

    But please keep those public sketches coming!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Well shoot, Raena, if they're going to notice you anyway, you might as well bring binoculars! :) Like Wil, I look up and look away quickly, remembering the curve of that particular body part. Then I look up again. If they look my way, I look away or beyond them. Keeps 'em wonderin'. I think - I am not really sure - but I think that I am taking more in now with each glance than I used to. Another thing I do is try to position myself at an angle where they won't naturally be looking. That said, I can think of at least three times when I was noticed - on one occasion it was a young girl and I felt like Jack the Ripper. Took some time to get over that one. For the most part its what Wil says though, folks are so involved in their own lives that they think you writing (or something) in your little book has nothing to do with them. Little do they know..

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh, and by the way, the drawings are great!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

    Alex...you are definitely ready for marriage! You are so well prepared! ;)

    Wil and Dan, thanks for the advice. I'll try the quick glance method. Since I've always done blind contours, this could be difficult for me at first. Oh, and let's not even talk about how bad the visual memory is! I'm hoping that with practice, like Dan, that will improve!

    ReplyDelete
  7. ^^ Teehee! I guess so Raena.. I had my white flag ready long time ago(I did put up a fight though but like the Borgs in Star-Trek say" Resistence is Futile", and yes I am lame when it comes to quotes too) =)

    Dan, thanks for much for the comment hehehe. This is actually fun, I mean.. we're cross-exchanging messages in blogs.

    ReplyDelete
  8. These are great! Glad I stopped by.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love your sketches they're brilliant. Especially the one of your husband. I wish I had someone to draw who would stay still.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Your sketches are wonderful. Drawing people in public is definitely a challenge, but you're doing great! nancy

    ReplyDelete
  11. I really like these. The bottom one is excellent.

    ReplyDelete