a city in three acts

June 19, 20103 Comments

Sacramento on a Tuesday. After watching Portugal draw with the Ivory Coast, I bussed across the Causeway to the capital city. The colourful and historic Crest theater on K street was just asking to be sketched. It’s a gorgeous building, opened in 1949 (though there was a theatre there since 1913) I’m not a big fan of downtown Sac, never really as busy as a downtown should be, the only bustle being the hum of the light rail and the shuffle of the panhandlers. It does give me some ‘urban’ to sketch though.

I prefer it in Midtown, further up the road. There is a little more character, and some pretty cool shops. There is a whole little arts district by the railroad tracks now called ‘MARRS’ (midtown art retail restaurant scene). I had to stop in the Streets of London pub on J Street to watch the Brazil vs North Korea match. It was a good one. I drew the middle picture at half-time. Brazil won 2-1. I had fish and chips. The chips were not good.

After some more sketching and shopping and strolling, I went to catch my bus by the Capitol building, the last subject of this triptych. This building is always in the news here, because of the state budget crisis. State workers in suits marched here and there past beggars and palm trees, not a furlough day for them today (though it was for me, hence my midweek sketching trip). And so back home.

pretty girls, pretty boys

June 16, 2010June 16, 20103 Comments

I went sketching on a very warm Tuesday in Sacramento, the capital of California. After stopping by the Streets of London pub to watch Brazil play North Korea, I wandered up J Street to the art store, and sketched two of the magnificent old colourful buildings opposite. This stretch of J Street in Midtown Sac has some great old wooden houses, as colourful as any painted ladies you’d see in San Francisco. These two stand out, one pink, one blue. A girl and a boy. I decided against drawing the whole picture, and even colouring the whole picture, partially due to time restraints, partially due to stylistic choice. I like the result.

pull the other one

February 19, 2010February 20, 20103 Comments

Old Town Sacramento has lots of candy stores and saloon doors, but it also has a big railway heritage – there is the railway museum and an old steam train that chugs up and down on weekends. Not so on quiet Thursdays. My friend is visiting from the UK so we swent down there to talk Back to the Future III and do some sketching. That’s him there, Simon, on the right. I didn’t draw the bus transfer ticket, though you know I would. I sat and drew a yellow Union Pacific train engine, which had a logo on the side which we found amusing: “America, We’re Pulling For You”. A family of tourists came up while sketching and took my photo (that’s not it below, by the way). That’s the second time that has happened on this same spot, funny enough.

sweet fanny ann

December 14, 2009December 13, 20094 Comments

A little pause in the London sketches – I’m about halfway through now so still many more to come! Here is my first drawing since coming back to the US: Fanny Ann’s Saloon in Old Town Sacramento.

I had to go to Sac to do a spot of Christmas shopping. And it absolutely peed down with rain. I had intended on stopping by here on the way home to maybe catch a sketch, but the enormous rainstorm meant I had a bit more time to do so. This is one of the most sketchable pubs in this part of California – there is so much paraphernalia to draw, hanging from the walls and rafters. I will draw more of that some time. It’s a little touristy, being in the middle of the old Gold Rush era cowboy town, but it’s friendly and a nice pit-stop. And the beer is good too.

plane sailing

November 15, 2009Leave a comment

I took an overnighter to Vegas, to see my Best Man; last time we’d been there together was for my wedding. He plays poker there now, so I flew down for some chat and some beer. Having seen so many other urban sketchers drawing in the airport, on their various trips around the globe, I thought I’d finally get a sketch in (on this one occasion when I’m not chasing my nearly-two-year old son around the departure lounge; oh that will be fun on our trip to London). This is a Southwest plane at Sacramento airport (SMF).

to L and back

October 3, 20093 Comments

Been on a little drawing hiatus this past week: the sketchbook will be open again soon! All need a break during stressful times. Meanwhile, did this quick sketch while changing buses in Sacramento, waiting to go to the airport to meet my wife and son. That’s the Capitol Park on L street, as the sun sets.

a very mini sketchcrawl

September 20, 20094 Comments

Yesterday was the 24th worldwide sketchcrawl. I went to the zoo in the morning, so my son could see the monkeys and, er, tractors, and afterwards I popped into Sacramento to do some sketchcrawling. Against my better judgement; it was so hot, and I had such a headache, that I only managed the one before wandering about and calling it a day.

This old building is on the corner of L and 15th, Sacramento.

sacramentalists

September 6, 20092 Comments

I went sketching in Sacramento yesterday; it’s been a while. The bus is 50 cents more expensive now. Not much else has changed though. I decided I finally wanted to draw that tall brick building downtown, I think it’s an elk’s lodge or something, and was excited when sketching out the perspective lines. However, this being downtown Sacramento, there are a larger than average concentration of street mentals per square yard, so I was distracted. As I was sat on my stool, one slightly agitated gentleman started screaming into an empty doorway at the brickwork, some nonsense about his “enemies in the drywall” and how they’re coming and what not. I carried on. But then he took residence in the middle of a large structure of metal poles and began yelling abuse at the universe in a variety of voices. I’m not really into that, and I felt a bit like, you know, I didn’t want to hang around such nonsense for too long, so I abandoned the interesting perspective sketch and traipsed up to Midtown to draw a wooden building, on the corner of 23rd and J, with a tree to the right and some blue sky. A typical Pete; it’s my equivalent of a three-chord song (but it takes considerably longer, when drawing every tile and slat).
Shame; you would have liked the brick building. Maybe next time.

media mentions

May 27, 2009May 28, 20094 Comments

Surreal moment this morning: I was mentioned on Fox News! They showed one of my sketches of Sacramento, drawn over two years ago with pen and watercolour pencils (see right), on the local morning news during a piece about Sac’s Tower Bridge. I thought that was pretty cool, and very nice of the presenter Paul Robins to give me a mention. (I don’t mind that it’s Fox; next: the Daily Mail!). I remember drawing this (seems like forever ago), I like this bridge but wasn’t able to do it justice before but I did like this sketch. This has reminded me, I think it’s about time I went and sketched it again. It’s nice by the River.

Speaking of mentions, I forgot to say that I had a drawing – one of my ‘You See, Davis’ pieces – published in the local Davis radio station KDVS’s magazine, KDViations, this quarter, for their fund-raising issue. It didn’t print too well though, I think the resolution I gave them was too low.

I also forgot to report (since we’re talking media mentions) that I was featured in last month’s excellent Ripperologist magazine, their special 100th edition. It’s the premier journal – online only – for researchers of Jack the Ripper, a subject I know only the general details of (he killed girls, right?). But I did a drawing of the infamous Ten Bells pub a while back, which was also published in the London Walks book (for the Jack the Ripper section), and because the East End’s an old haunt of mine, I had the wonderful honour of appearing in their special edition alongside features of other talented Ripper-themed artists. Cool, huh!!

perchance, to dream

January 20, 2009January 20, 20094 Comments

Martin Luther King Jr day, and so that meant no work. Was able to go to midtown Sacramento for a few hours in the afternoon (after birthday shopping for my son) to go to the art store and do some sketching around midtown, to catch some of those lovely shadows on the sides of the buildings.

The weather has been so nice, mid-seventies last week, high-sixties this, perfect sketching weather (don’t be jealous). Above, the building (monastic I think) on the corner of 26th and K. Below, the corner of 17th and I. I used my purple micron for this one, kind of embellishes the sunniness of the day.

And Tony Hart died! The gentle-mannered tv artist who inspired several generations (and had an unruly caretaker, I recall). Certainly inspired me, as a kid. That was sad news indeed, but he hadn’t been well. I wrote about him and his famous Gallery (from which no drawing may return) back in August. Farewell, Mr. Hart.