Saturday, June 21, 2008

Sketchcrawl #19


Today was the 19th International Sketchcrawl (if you haven´t heard of it, check it out here). I didn´t have company for the day, so I went on a solo sketchcrawl. We had showers of rain all day today, so I sketched in the car (which is surprisingly inconvenient if you´re in the driver´s seat, I only sketched as a passenger before).

I drove to an industrial area not too far away from where we live, and since today is a holiday in Sweden (Midsummer´s day) the area was deserted, almost eerie in places.

I find lots of inspiration for drawing in areas like this, odd buildings and vehicles, strange formations of pipes and machinery - if you just move slowly through a place like this, you find things to draw every fifty meters!

I had a great few hours of drawing, in spite of the rain and the lack of company. I´ll definitely try to do next sketchcrawl too. Check out the forums over at www.sketchcrawl.com to see the results of other crawls all over the world!

The drawings are of different sizes, drawn with a Lamy Safari with Noodler´s Lexington Gray ink and watercolours on Fabriano Artistico hot press paper.

24 comments:

seesue said...

Lord Nina! you have sUCh tALenT! How in the world you manage to make an industrial area charming is beYONd me!

Margaret McCarthy Hunt said...

Awesome work Miss Nina...you outdid yourself as usual!! Terrific!

Sherry Pierce Thurner said...

I love reading your blog, Nina. I did not realize that midsummer day is a holiday in Sweden, though it makes perfect sense. You sketches are wonderfully clear and interesting.

Timaree said...

Wow! Those are great pictures and done from inside a truck with rain coming down! Love the vivid color.

Deborah said...

Wow, you had a full day of sketching. These are all great. Thanks for sharing your personal sketchcrawl.

Leah J M Clarke said...

Wow... how beautiful you have made these ordinary scenes. How long do you spend on a subject when sketching “on the go”?

Margaret Ann said...

These are really nice Nina...it's quite a treat to view lovely lush greenery in sketches...these are cool...love the edge they have...I went solo for sketch crawl today also...heat overbearing here..115 degrees today... Geesch! :)

Cathy Gatland said...

These are fabulous sketches, Nina - just shows you don't have to go to picturesque spots to make great pictures. It was midwinter solstice down here yesterday, and I'm sorry I missed the sketchcrawl - will try do it next time.

Anita Davies said...

Nina these are just adorable, I love every one of them. Gorgeous orange, what colour/s did you use?

art addict said...

Nina, I love these! The day I can make a tractor or piece of road equipment look cool will be the day that I know I have achieved Nina star status. These are all FABULOUS- great color- great line. How did you draw with all that rain coming down on your windshield?

We had a rainy crawl too, but made it work....

Nina Johansson said...

Thanks everybody for your comments!
Anita:
The orange... well, I think it´s easier to say what colours I DIDN´T use in that... ;) I painted mostly with my Kremer watercolours, but that shouldn´t make a huge difference. I think I started out with a warm yellow and a cool red, and then added layers of that mixed with burnt sienna and a tad of some blue/violet where I wanted the darker orange...
Art addict:
Because of the wind, the rain only seemed to pour down the windows on the right side of the car, and some on the windshield, and I mostly looked out the driver side window when I drew, so I was ok.

Ann said...

Very inspiring! I especially like that sky in the second watercolor!

kazumiwannabe said...

Drawings make the world look more beautiful! (well, your drawings, at least...)
From now on, I'll watch industrial area with a new regard!

mARTa said...

These are wonderful and what ineresting subject matter. I love your application of such vibrant and intense color!

Anonymous said...

gorgeous work, as usual! love the way you use your colours.
i didn't sketchcrawl this time. first one i've missed in a good while.

Anetka said...

amazing sketches Nina!!
beautiful colours...I love the orange and the sky!!!

Liz Steel said...

Nina, these are all great (like all your work!) The colours are wonderful.
Yes, painting in the drivers seat is not the easiest thing in the world....

I hope that you find someone to sketchcrawl with next time - just having one other person makes it so much fun!

A Brush with Color said...

These are beautiful--you elevated the mundane and everyday to the sublime. Wonderful.

Sandy said...

Wow, you had a wonderfully productive day!!

Jennifer Lawson said...

Beautiful as usual, Nina. I especially like the truck.

José Louro said...

What can i say?...

caseytoussaint said...

Awesome work, Nina! I love your use of color - you take the most mundane subjects and make compelling paintings from them. I wish I could go on a sketchcrawl with you - maybe someday....

Anonymous said...

Nina, you had a WONDERFULLY productive day! Thank you for sharing...

best--
Cathy (Kate) Johnson

Anonymous said...

Fantastic sketches. I love the subject matter, the old industrial buildings and the newer ones too but I especially liked the sketch of the excavator. Keep up the wonderful work. Your work is very inspiring.