iPhone sketch @radiocitymusichall #sketch #digitalart #art #drawing #illustration #illustrator #radiocitymusichall #nyc #urbansketch #urbansketchers #mikebone #mikebrennanart #artwork #draw #artistso

FullSizeRender.jpg
IMG_0205.JPG

30 in 30: Day 16

Day 16 of my 30 paintings in 30 days challenge. I'm using sketches i created from Instagram photos on my iPhone I did as part of a 100 day project and turing 30 of them into paintings. User: @negrouriburu

Original Instagram photo:

Day 16 instagram

 

100 Day iPhone Sketch:

Day16_Sketch

 

30 in 30 day painting:

Day16

 

Acrylic & Ink. 8 x 8 on 140 lb. watercolor paper.

When Art Collides in Central Park

10296813_10152152121240958_3511395408033184113_n Last Friday I was sketching in Central Park. I like to go there every so often and just walk around, people watch, take some photos and recently, sketch. As I sat down in what is referred to the Mall section, I found myself sitting across from two musicians playing some songs for passers-by.

I decided it would be a great time to pull out the old sketchbook. Typically, I try to sketch people in public in as stealthy a way as possible as to not draw attention (no pun intended).

When I finished my sketch, I was ready to put my book away, but suddenly felt prompted to go over to the street musicians, throw a tip in their open case & share my art with them as they had been sharing their art with me.

What followed was a cool moment - I got to meet Sol Liebeskind & Agustin Uriburu. Sol was excited about my quick sketch so she snapped a photo to share on Instagram. It was a great little moment that wouldn't have happened had i closed my book and walked by (like you're trained to do growing up in NY). Glad I stepped out of the shadows.

Check out some of Sol's music.

Sketching with the NYC Urban Sketchers

UBSK If you've been traveling with me on this journey for any length of time, you know that I'm constantly looking for ways to "up the ante" so to speak. This past weekend I took yet another step. I joined the NYC Urban Sketchers group at the Central Park Zoo. I found out about the group through a post from someone else on Facebook. To be honest, I wasn't really sure what to expect. I had been emailing the group leader Mark during the week but aside from that I was flying solo and blind.

My experience left me so glad I did indeed join them. It was a small group this time around (about 5-6 of us). It's pretty open, as you just show up and join in. Sometimes there are a lot of people, sometimes few.

As we made our way around the zoo, we'd stop every so often and sketch whatever we saw. But this day ended up being more than 3 hours of sketching. Some great surprises were:

  • We got to interact with people visiting the zoo. Children would come up and peer over to our sketchbooks. Parents would point us out and say "see that, They're drawing. Isn't that cool?" It was a great reminder that we all start out loving to color and draw, but most "outgrow" it unfortunately. It was like having a magical connection with the kids. So great!
  • There's nothing like drawing from life - what you see in front of you. Even the most challenging, like when the animals would constantly be on the move!
  • I got to meet 4 or 5 new people from all walks of life and parts of NY (and NJ) who all love to draw. You can't underestimate the importance of being with with like-minded people, especially for artists who usually are creating in isolation.
  • A few of us went to a local pub following our sketch time, where we shared our sketches from the day, as well as pulled out some of our supplies and let each other try them out. We shared techniques and observations. Although I had just met these guys that day, I felt a bond by the time the day was over.

I think about what I would have missed out on had I let myself listen to the introvert side of me. Sometimes you just have to go for it. Experience something new. And depending on how you are wired, that may be a no brainer or it might seem completely impossible. But as I've been saying for some time now - just take the the right next step for you - where you are and who you are!

If you're local to NY and want to join in the Urban Sketching fun (no need to be a professional artist - most are people who just love to draw!) they meet up every Saturday! Go sign up to receive info. Even if you make it once, I think you'll find it well worth your time.

Oh yeah - and I was asked to do a guest blog post on the Urban Sketcher site. Check it out!

 

 

Pearl of Potential

5696515 Last week, I had the privilege of visiting Pearl Paint art supply store (Canal Street, NYC). Pearl represents a certain nostalgia to me. It was the store that my high school Art teacher, Mr. Hijuelos, spoke of, with a glimmer in his eye. It was the store that I visited to purchase a lot of my art school supplies when attending The Fashion Institute of Technology and The School of Visual Arts. As I climbed the old creaky stairs visiting each floor, a rush of memories flooded back to me about those old days. They were days of eager expectation. Days of wonder and learning. Days of potential and future possibilities.

As I walked the isles, I was thinking about not just products, but tools that could be used to create. Tools that would come to life in the hands of artists. This was more than laptops and software -no cold metal and machine, this was hands on, tactile. And it was wonderful.

It was as if each item called to me. Experiment. Play. See what comes. It's the potential of what could and should be in the art of creating. I even splurged a bit and bought a few clearance item watercolors.

The longer I stayed, the more I was reminded of how much Pearl was an appropriate name. It drew me in and caused me to wonder. To think about my passion, my projects and ideas. Sure, I could probably order most of this stuff on Amazon.com, but I would be robbed of the experience of walking the isles. Interacting with the supplies. The Sights - vivid colors. The Smells. The wonderment of new tools I had never seen before.

If you're an artist, do yourself a favor soon. GO visit a local art store. Drink in the experience. Pick up brushes. Feel paper. Smell the oil pastels. You just might leave more inspired. Not to mention, you might have some new fun tools to experiment with!