At the Confectionery in Budapest

At the Confectionery in Budapest

At the Confectionery in Budapest

Budapest is renown for its confectioneries so of course we had to go and see for ourselves. It definitely lived up to its reputation although we may need to verify this by gathering more data.

This is a quick sketch of three other patrons. I was impatient and the watercolor ran together, especially the flesh tones, and then tried to fix it with Procreate. I liked the way the women interacted and thought their faces were expressive as they exchanged thoughts. This would be a good sketch do do again.

This is a pen and watercolor sketch with some editing in Procreate

 

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On the Train to Budapest

On the Train to Budapest

On the Train to Budapest

Yesterday we crossed Austria and Hungary by train, arriving in Budapest in the early evening. A man one aisle up and across from us was working on an academic paper through much of the trip. His body language indicated reflection. He had his computer open, referred to a notebook in his lap, looked off into space often, and kept at it through the six-hour trip. This sketch is from one of his pensive moments, his right elbow on the arm rest, his left hand hugging his right arm. I wondered if he were off to the same conference and thinking through his presentation.

This is a pen and watercolor sketch

 

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German Landscape

German Landscape

German Landscape

We drove today from Chemnitz to Salzburg under cloudy skies and I used the time in the car to sketch on the iPad. Since the landscape flies past the car window faster than I can draw, this is not a regular sketch of a particular spot. Rather it is a kind of ‘stream of consciousness sketch,’meaning that whenever I look up from the iPad, I just added in what I see in that moment. Later I darkened parts, added smudges and such.

This is a Procreate sketch.

 

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Water Troubles

Rain Collection Pond in Chemnitz Germany

Rain Collection Pond in Chemnitz Germany

Like most Californians, I turn off the water tap while washing my hands, water the yard twice a week and think about saving water. I thought our state was on top of things but of course one of the benefits of traveling is seeing other ways of approaching common problems.

Israel, like California, has water trouble and they go way beyond hand washing and water restrictions. Their irrigation system uses treated domestic waste water, delivers water directly to plant roots, and uses desalination plants. They have been working on this a long time and have innovations around everything to do with water: engineering, facilities, planning, public education, taxes and policies.

Denmark and Germany, on the other hand, are dealing with too much rain water. In Odense Denmark the street we stayed on was torn up because officials were putting in a rain water diversion system to keep the rain out of the regular sewers. Later in Værløse Denmark we saw several man-made ponds for collecting rain water. Now in Chemnitz I notice that on the street where we are staying there are four similar collecting ponds, all designed to hold and manage rain drainage in an effort to mitigate floods and keep the water system clean. This sketch is of one of the large rain collection ponds on a Chemnitz street.

This is a pencil sketch that was imported into Procreate for color and reshaping.

 

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Umbrellas in Downtown Chemnitz Germany

Downtown Chemnitz Germany

Umbrellas in Downtown Chemnitz Germany

Sketching outside with the iPad is tough on sunny days because the iPad screen gets washed out by the bright light. Today, however, the sky was covered with thunderheads- perfect for sketching on the iPad. And the rainy day was a good opportunity to work on my skills with making the ground look wet.

I was in downtown Chemnitz Germany and sketched a part of the city that has a range of buildings built from the 17th century and on. The center building is the old town hall and the two buildings to the right are for shopping. The plaza is edged with tables and umbrellas, an inviting place for a cup of coffee and a sketch.

This is an iPad sketch.

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Augustusburg Castle

Visitors to the Augustusburg Castle

Visitors to the Augustusburg Castle

The Augustusburg Hunting Lodge Museum is close to Chemnitz Germany, where we are staying just now. Its bright walls, brick colored trim and grey roof are eye catching and a great backdrop for a courtyard cafe.

I did two different sketches of this scene with pen and watercolor and later combined them into one with the help of Procreate.

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Euro 16

Mother and Daughter Watching Euro 16

Mother and Daughter Watching Euro 16

Euro 16, the European soccer championship games that take place every four years, started today with a game between France and Romania. Euro 16 opened with some commentary by sportscasters and our hosts listened, sitting on the same chair, bathed in the evening light. I noticed how similar their profiles are, how their facial expressions matched, and how comfortable they were sitting together on the chair and its armrest. I worked to capture this in this sketch by keeping the background and their clothing simple so the viewer’s focus would stay on their faces.

As the game heated up I was unable to sketch because the game was unbelievably tense and I could not shift my attention from it. Had I been able to, I might have captured hope, fear, despair, joy and jubilation.

This is a Procreate sketch.

 

 

 

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