Sketchcrawl #29

Yesterday our fledgling Joburg Sketchers group went to the Museum of Military History (aka the War Museum) for the 29th International Sketchcrawl. A boy sketcher's paradise, but a challenge for the less mechanically minded. First I tried the actual War Memorial from a close-up angle - hence stiff neck muscles today and proof that my perspective skills need serious work, then the angel on the top - somebody said it's called a 'nike', which I must look up when I have time. I have no time! At last I realised I couldn't escape, I had to draw a mechanical thing - a big gun - interesting how all the bits fit together when you start drawing at one end and work your way to the other. You can see the other Joburg sketchers work here on the Sketchcrawl site.
I spent Thursday and Friday at a wonderful drawing workshop, but the reporting of it and photographing the results is going to take a while, and life has got hectic again - hope to get to it soon.

A Family Wedding

At last, sketches of my niece's wedding in England in May. In the comments in my previous post about sketching at weddings, I said how much harder it is when you have an emotional involvement, when you're trying too hard, and when you're a guest and not just an onlooker. The wedding, the bride, the setting, were all so incredibly beautiful that I really couldn't do them justice, but as a memento - to dearest Jo and Steve, this comes with love and best wishes for a wonderful future...
(I added the text for this Issuu publication as a brief explaination and link between the drawings)

Weddings in the Park

Suddenly, summer! On Saturday we had an early morning walk through the botanical gardens and I just had to go back later to sketch all the spring pinks and greens - by which time it was 30°C and the peach trees looked like they were shedding their blossoms for protective leaves almost as I watched. As I sat on a wall in the shade, wedding party after wedding party came traipsing past for their photo shoots. The ice cream men on their bicycles seemed to play quite a role in the entourages - I'd hear the bell tinkling, then came the bridal group with guests over the horizon, then photographs, one with the bride and groom even perched on the ice cream cart!

These two elderly women collapsed gratefully in the shade for a few minutes before once again following the tinkly bell, and this matron-of-honour stopped to check her messages, or perhaps a quick Twitter before going back to the business of waiting on the bride. I do love being this fly on the wall in the guise of sketcher, my lifelong interest in people-watching indulged as I practice drawing!