collectibles

Surrounded by antiques — all sorts of interesting objects I can't even describe! I had to focus, so chose art and perspective.

Minca

Minca, just an hour and a half by bus from Santa Marta, yet a world away. I drove through the pouring rain up the Colombian Sierra Nevada mountains. Getting out in the middle of the rainforest with a view all the way to the coast, I draw random dudes on a motorbike with cases of beer in the background. I am a hopeless case.

Oliver, as visual flaneur

Santa Marta

Heat. Sweltering heat on Colombia's caribbean coast.

As I was traveling through Santa Marta I read 'The General in His Labyrinth'. In it, Gabriel Garcia Marquez describes the last days of Simon Bolivar, the great leader in the struggle of Latin America's independence. He died in Santa Marta. Not in battle and not of the heat either, but of tuberculosis.

Oliver, as visual flaneur

Cartagena's people

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Colombia's inventor of magic realism, set several of his works in Cartagena. Not least for its people. He will also feature in my illustrated travelogue to come...

Oliver, as visual flaneur

Pedro's Westbrae Biergarten

The Brazilian biergarten on Gilman Street across from Toot's Sweets and Boogie Woogie Bagels seems to be satisfying a very pent-up demand for such things in the area - it was jammed with happy people on this sunny late Wednesday afternoon. They have some good brews, some yummy smelling food from the Brazilian cafe truck, world cup, dogs, kids, plants...what more could you ask for?

the Westbrae Biergarten

I drew this in pen on 4 sheets of my notebook, and colored at home in photoshop.

be(er)culiarities

'You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline.

[...] at the very least you need beer.'

You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline. It helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/f/frankzappa134155.html#v4idrJRcpvcjemuX.99

~ Frank Zappa

 

Drawings and notes from a recent trip to Costa Rica and  Nicaragua.

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 Tona, Imperial, Victoria - I'll have any of them happily. One peculiarity is that bottles are often served with a tissue wrapped around the bottle neck. In a more upscale bar, sometimes a second tissue is wrapped around the center of the bottle. You may think this dress up is to absorb condensing water drops, but no, apparently it is for - not further defined - 'hygienic reasons' . I have yet to figure out how to use them to protect my health. Maybe its just me. 

More on www.visualflaneur.com

 

Oliver, your visual flaneur

 

 

Carousel at Tilden Park, Berkeley

Tilden Carousel Animals

Every holiday season, we sketch at the carousel in Tilden Park, which is abundantly decorated inside and out and hosts Santa and a merry band of elves.

Built in 1911, the carousel was installed at Tilden Park in 1948 after service at amusement parks in San Bernardino, San Diego and Los Angeles. One of the few antique carousels left in the country, it is on the National Register of Historic Places, the official list of places worthy of preservation.

More Tilden Carousel Animals

Blick Art

a few weeks back, we had two options for sketching sites, the protest against the closure and sale of the main Berkeley Post Office, or Blick's Art Materials. I chose Blick's as it was still getting dark early, and I wanted to be able to sketch longer. (I concur that it would be a sad to lose the PO, it's a historic building with a beautiful WPA mural, and what a great service we have in the USPS!!)

These tubes of beginner acrylics were colorful and fun.

Art show trip to St. Mary's in Moraga

At one of our member's urging, we got out to St. Mary's to see an art show. This was so unique, over 100 works, I think, on display, collected by a man named Roger Epperson. He was an East Bay Regional Park ranger who spent many years collecting art at antique stores, galleries, garage and rummage sales, and more recently, online. 

He collected works by many well-known and not-so-well-known painters. You can read a little more about who here 

There was also a wonderful exhibit of a local painter & pen/pencil artist Richard Gayton. His "exquisite and meticulous" drawings were all done within one square mile in the Mt. Diablo area.

We were very inspired by all this wonderful art, so had to sit down and do our own sketches, basking in the warm sun at St. Mary's.

St. Mary's College in Moraga

Susan, sketching in the shade of an Italian Cypress at St. Mary's College

NYC, Washington DC Aug 14-26

Some sketches from my recent trip.
New York City — Times Square   A summer storm started up and I wasn't able to color it. 

One of the streets at Times Square, from the top of some steps

The Main Library, one of the pair of iconic lions on either side of the steps.

The New York City Public Library, main branch

 Grand Central Station — there was a small group of people promoting peace, prompting the police to stand around making sure the peace didn't escape? ("keepers of the peace"?!)

Grand Central Station, New York City

Tarrytown, NY — I took my daughter out of town on the northern light rail. We visited the historic Rockefeller house, Kuykuit. It sits high on a hill overlooking the Hudson River. It was donated to the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is operated by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Their religion is what initially drove their generosity, and they started many worthwhile projects in many communities worldwide. Kuykit means "hill top", Scottish.

Kuykuit - the relatively humble mansion of four generations
of the Rockefellers, some of whom still live on the property

Philadelphia — I was hoping to see the Barnes Collection, opened earlier this year. Purchase tickets in advance if you want to go, it's been sold out every day! The Rodin Museum, recently renovated, is now open — I spent much of the day there.

One of the works at the Rodin Museum in Philadelphia

The Three Shades by Rodin

Washington, DC — The National Postal Museum

An early mail plane. There was a mail train, and the mail sorters had a mascot, Owney, who accompanied them all over the U.S. along the various mail routes. The National Postal Museum

The National Natural History Museum – this bird is now extinct

This poor bird, of course they killed the last one. Related to the Mud Hen.
The National Natural History Museum relegates it to a poorly-lit downstairs hallway.

Oakland Airport and Hotel Lounge

View from Oakland Airport

Sketching the view of the bay and surrounding marshland while waiting for my flight to Scottsdale, Arizona was a great way to pass the two hour wait for my plane.

Sketching people watching TV in the hotel lounge

My hotel in Scottsdale hosted happy hour from 5-7 every night with free beer, wine, chile and nachos. Being a budget travel I admit to making that into dinner 3 nights of my 5-day stay, along with their free breakfasts daily. I was there for an Alla Prima Portraiture class with the amazing Rose Frantzen at the Scottsdale Artists School. 

Animals, animals, animals!

Our local zoo, Happy Hollow Park and Zoo, in San Jose brought some wild animals to the library. We just HAD to go! Here are a few of our furry ( and scaly and feathered) friends:




And, we went to San Diego Wild Animal Park over Presidents Day weekend. More sketches, made as we walked around the Park.
Strange striped beasts:


I love the flamingoes. If there is a sketching equivalent of 'photogenic' they are just that.


Lots more sketches on my blog or my flickr stream

where I eat and draw a watermelon

More from my trip to Austria a while back:

In Vienna I enjoyed a day at a public swimming pool where I found time to draw some locals folks.

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I find watermelon to be a quintessential summer companion. This juicy slice was perfect for my day at the pool! And as I sunk my teeth into the wedge, the lady’s reflections on her position in the universe did not fail to entertain me.

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What is she saying?

‘… sharing a flat also sucks. You exchange fake smiles yet every other day you think: I hate you all…’

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Take care,

Your visual flaneur

www.visualflaneur.com