We spent a last afternoon on the beach yesterday and I did my best to soak up as much of the scene as possible. Mazatlan is a charming city with a gracious people. The seaside, framed by old brightly painted buildings and greenery is captivating. My only regret is I did not come close to sketching as much as I would have liked. I pretty much stayed by the ocean for the three weeks. Perhaps next year I will move beyond the beach into the plazas and streets.
The busy street along Mazatlan’s Olas Altas is transformed four evenings a week into a pedestrian walkway. Children take to the street with their bikes, families stroll, neighbors touch base, young couples connect, and visitors marvel at its glorious beauty.
Sometimes, rather than pack up my sketching gear, it is easier to take my iPad when I go out. Yesterday my sister and I stopped for a pedicure here in Mazatlan and as I looked out I was glad I had something to sketch with. I liked the way these two men, who as far as I could tell did not know each other, studied the venue in front of them while they waited. They seemed to have the art of waiting down pat.
For this sketch I started by making the background layer a rich dark brown, similar to the black paper I use for gouache paintings. Then, after a quick line sketch, I built up the color, again following a process similar to the one I use with gouache.
I used the app, Procreate, for this sketch.
It is great to be out on the beach, with the gorgeous light, breeze and activity. With so much to see and sketch, it makes me feel rich. This is part of a series of quick gesture sketches.
While my fellow Scrabble players carefully and slowly calculated potential Scrabble moves last night, I happily documented their efforts. I like this sketch because the figure on the right seems to be thinking strategically while the figure on the left appears resigned to waiting for his turn before conclusively determining his best move.
I sometimes enjoy making quick sketches, like this one from the beach yesterday. The rapid changes of the sea, people, and light lend an urgency to the decision making and leave very little time to hesitate over a difficult call. It can be restorative to paint in the moment, not thinking critically about compositions and color options, but to just go with my intuition.
Standing for your beliefs is important so when I realized I would be missing San Diego’s Second Women’s March, I felt sad that we committed to these vacation dates back in August. But while down on the beach sketching yesterday, my sister and I saw pink hats on the move down the boardwalk here in Mazatlan, Mexico. We quickly joined in and added our presence to Mazatlan’s Women’s March 2018.
San Diego and Mazatlan are full of people born in Mexico, Canada, and the US, as well as from many other countries. We are an interconnected, international people who benefit culturally and economically from our complex relationships. I look forward to time where we recognize, develop, and celebrate our good fortune in being alive together. We must resist, persist and vote!
I was able to make some 12 x 12-inch line drawings during the speeches and then this morning I added gouache paint.
