Crealde Urban Sketching Class

Posted on by Thor

My Crealde Urban Sketching Class begins Sunday January 19, 2020 starting at 9:30am. This is a sketch of the classroom. Outside the window you can see one of my students sketching on a sunny day. Inside I was demonstrating to another student how to block in the room quickly in a composition and how to place a figure. The primary reason for this quick sketch was to demonstrate how to leave large shapes on the page pure white and then apply a light wash over the rest of the sketch to make those shapes pop.

Each morning we start by exploring a premise in the classroom and then in the last half or the class we move out into the community to sketch on location. Just getting students to realize that when they draw on location, no one is judging them. I might offer insights, but I don’t judge the work. Each student has their own approach and temperament and the variety we see across the board is part of what makes drawing on location with other artists so exciting.

Last semester I started asking students to share their work on Instagram.  This allows them to share work with each other and possible hear from a much wider community of artists. On Instagram I also share all the rough class notes and composition sketches I do for students. That was students can see what was shared.

The past few weeks I have been pouring over thousands of my early student sketches and it has been an eye opening learning experience. Some of the sketches I did back in my 20s and 30s are bold and daring and it is making me want to experiment more with my work in the next year. I worked much larger in my youth, usually on 18 by 24 inch sketch pads. I scaled down when I started sketching once a day starting back in 2009. Part of the reason was to be sure that I could scan the drawings on my flat bed scanner. I think I might grow much faster as an artist if I return to working larger and find other ways to work around the limits of scanning technology. So here is to a bigger and bolder 2020.

The next 6 week Urban Sketching course has been canceled due to lack of enrollment.

Drink and Draw

Posted on by Thor

Sarah Jane Rozman hosted a Drink and Draw at The Nook on Robinson (2432 E. Robinson St, Orlando, Florida). I host an Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) once a month as well so I decided to stop in to see how this Drink and Draw differed. The biggest difference was that a winner got $$$ for their bar tab! The artists in attendance all were given a theme so all the at produced tied together. Finished pieces were taped to the wall. Since I was working on this sketch, I didn’t follow the rules.

The good thing about this venue was that the Drink and Draw directly followed Tasty Tuesday which is a food truck event that happens each Tuesday in the parking lot behind The Nook. This guarantees that Tuesday nights are going to be pretty crowded. I knew Sarah since she used to work at Art Systems in the print department. Unfortunately the color printer seldom worked so I started getting my prints at RT Art instead.

In 2019 I let ODD lapse since Orlando Urban Sketchers were hosting so many successful sketch events. Unfortunately those outing were almost all on days I was teaching art at Elite Animation Academy or Crealde School of Art. I still try and sketch every night so my best chance to meet fellow artists is to start hosing ODD events again once a month.

Crealde Urban Sketching Class

Posted on by Thor

I teach a 6 week Urban Sketching Tips and Techniques Class at Crealde School of Art (600 Saint Andrews Boulevard Winter Park, Fl). Even in the heart of winter we head outside each class to get out of the studio environment and sketch from direct observation. Half of the class is usually in the classroom as we explore a new premise then we sketch from life. We expand from drawing a single person to capturing the entire scene. Each class builds on the last. The goal is always to get the students to finish their sketches using pencil, pen and ink and watercolor within a two hour window. Sketches in the beginning of the course might be unfinished but towards the end of the course the work becomes more complete. A sketch by definition is unfinished however and I try and relate that form of acceptance.

I dash of fast digital sketches like the one above as the students at focusing on their own work. I also make the rounds and offer suggestions in the form of sketches to each student when they start out. The initial composition is what I try and get them to focus on before the details. In the first 5 or 6 strokes of the pencil the entire composition can be established and I try and get the students to embrace the same bold approach.

I end up missing each group of students when the course is over. Six weeks is just enough time to get them started on what could be a life long journey but I always wish that I could have shared more. I set up an Instagram hashtag (#crealdesketcher) so I can share notes and students can also share work with each other. Communicating and sharing is the main reason to become an Urban Sketcher, so I am hoping this platform will open students up to sharing their work online.

My next Urban Sketching Tips and Techniques Class in studio 1B begins Sunday January 19, 2020 at 9:30am until 12:30pm and runs for the following six Sundays. The price is $270 for Members and $290 for Non-Members. Go to the Crealde website to register.

Aloma Bowl

Posted on by Thor

Towards the end of my six week Urban Sketching course at Crealde School of Art I like to bring my students to Aloma Bowl (2530 Aloma Ave, Winter Park, FL 32792) only 2 blocks from the campus. On Sundays Bowling leagues are competing and most of the lanes fill with talented bowlers who are serious about their game. My hope of course is that my students will feel just as serious about their sketch game. There are bars made out of the bowling ball holders at the end of the lanes and those high top bars make a great perch for the sketchers to work from.

I dash off a sketch as a demo to show students how I time the various stages of my sketch to finish in the several hours allotted. These bowling sketches are not as finished as my usual work since I also visit each artist multiple times giving advise and tips. The end of the bowling lanes where the pis are lined up offers a perfect horizon line which is something I talk extensively about when discussing perspective and composition.

Students are also encouraged to just do a sheet of studies of peoples gestures so that they loosen up and are not worried about the final composition at fist. Prior to the trip to the bowling alley we did a series of quick gesture drawings in the classroom. By goal is to loosen up the students enough so that they have something on the page from head to toe in the first 30 seconds and use the remaining time to add the “Icing” or detail that makes each sketch unique to the person being sketched.

The most challenging pose if of course the final “release” post as the bowler sends the ball down the lane. Everyone had their own stance as they release the ball and the pose is gone in an instant. The great thing is that they get up every few minutes and repeat the movement making it possible to attack the drawing multiple times and considering each angle and curve individually. This takes patience and perseverance and the realization and acceptance that no drawing is perfect.

Weekend Top 6 Picks for October 26 and 27, 2019

Posted on by Thor

Saturday October 26, 2019

10am to 6pm Free. 14th Annual Central Florida Veg Fest. Festival Park, 2911 E Robinson St, Orlando, FL. . Central Florida Veg Fest is an exciting day of colorful and educational exhibits and activities! Veg Fest is a family-friendly, dog-friendly,
alcohol-free, and smoke-free event. Veg Fest, now in its 14th year, is one of the biggest and best vegan festivals in the country!

Central
Florida Veg Fest will draw both committed vegetarians/vegans and those
who want to learn more about how veg-living enhances our health, the
planet, and its inhabitants. Come enjoy a diverse cross-section of
vegetarian cuisines and lifestyles. Discover new products and ideas from
over 200 vendors and 100 contributors
and enjoy a wide variety of presentations and food preparation demos.
Not a vegetarian? Whether you’re looking for new ideas to add color and
variety to your meals or you’re a “seasoned” vegetarian interested in
expanding your knowledge of nutritious and ethical foods, this is the
place for you. Please RSVP on the Veg Fest event page and join the Veg Fest community page for regular updates about the event. And please share these pages with your family and friends.

10am to 4pm Free. Sanford Farmers Market. First and Magnolia Sanford Fl.  


8pm to 10pm Free but get a drink or 2 and enjoy. Music Mount Dora. One Flight Up 440 N  Donnelly Street, Mount Dora FL.


Sunday October 27, 2019 

9:30am to 10pm Members $225 Non-members $275. Crealde Urban Sketching Class. First of 6 Urban Sketching classes taught by myself. Learn to sketch from subject to the environment. Classroom sessions will
focus on sketching clothed models and progress towards sketching the
model and classroom environment. Learn how to incorporate storytelling
into your sketches in our location sessions. These trips to local venues
will challenge you to use your sketchbook the way a photojournalist
uses a camera. The six-week goal is to produce finished sketches using
pencil, pen, and watercolor within two hours. Skill level: Intermediate

6 week class.

Thomas
Thorspecken (Thor) studied animation and illustration at the School of
Visual Arts in New York City. He worked for ten years at Walt Disney
Feature Animation. In 2009 he made a new year’s resolution to do one
sketch a day and share it with a worldwide community of urban sketchers
through his online site Analog Artist Digital World
www.analogartistdigitalworld.com

Suggested supplies:

  • #2 pencil with an eraser
  • 05 and 08 micron pens
  • Stillman and Birn 9 x 12 inch spiral bound sketchbook (Alpha or Epsion series)
  • Travel sized watercolor pallet (mine is a Windsor Newton with 14 color pans)
  • Pentel water brush (water goes in the handle)
  • Black Prismacolor pencil
  • Compact artist stool

    • Noon to 2pm Free. Bobby Koelble Presents Jazz in the Garden. Mead Botanical Garden 1300 S Denning Dr, Winter Park, FL.  Join
    us as we enjoy an afternoon of electric Jazz music, tasty food, craft
    cocktails, and shopping in a beautiful, serene setting all while helping
    to benefit Mead Botanical Garden.

    The shows, that will fall on the last Sunday of the
    month from September thru November, will consist of world class
    musicians performing a collection of your favorite Jazz standards with a
    twist.
    October’s concert will include two bands. The first being
    The Bobby Koelble Quartet featuring Michelle Mailhot playing from noon
    till 2pm followed by legendary Hall and Oats Saxaphonist “Mr Casual”
    Charlie Dechant and The Kings    .
    November’s concert will include an
    opening band (TBD) from noon till 2pm followed by the Music of Charlie
    Parker and Django Reinhardt performed by Bobby Koelble, Jeff Rupert and a
    cast of top notch musicians. 

    There will be food and beverages
    available for purchase, a shopping area curated by Suzette’s One Of A
    Kind Finds, as well as a limited number of VIP passes which will include
    an Italian lunch buffet catered by Bites and Bubbles and VIP restrooms.

    10pm to Midnight Free but get a coffee or bite. Comedy Open Mic. Austin’s Coffee, 929 W Fairbanks Ave, Winter Park, FL. Free comedy show! Come out and laugh, or give it a try yourself.

     

    Donut Central & Fuelpresso

    Posted on by Thor

    I am always on the hunt for fun places to bring my Crealde School of Art students on our urban sketching outings. We sketched a car show in the parking lot outside Donut Central and Fuelpresso (495 N Semoran Blvd Unit 1, Winter Park, FL 32792) and the owner invited us to sketch inside, so the following week we stopped inside for some donuts and sketching. I ordered some caffeine and a round shaped sugar bomb and got to work as my students sketched. I kept my sketch simple, knowing I would be going to each student to offer suggestion on composition, line value, and color. The sugar rush kept my lines flowing quickly.

    Staff and locals seemed to congregate together at the central table and I was quite taken by the giant teddy bear in the corner of the room. Much of the purpose of the course is to get students comfortable with the idea of sketching in public. Venues we go to are friendly and supportive of the arts. This place is a real gem and my students created some stunning sketches. My hope is that they will continue to sketch each day and share their work with the world.

    My next Urban Sketching, Tips and Techniques class starts Sunday, October 27, 2019 and runs for 6 consecutive weeks on each Sunday from 9:30an to 12:30pm. The cost is $275 for 6 classes.

    We learn to sketch from subject to the environment. Classroom sessions
    focus on sketching clothed models and progress towards sketching
    the model and classroom environment. Students learn how to incorporate
    storytelling into sketches in the location sessions. These trips to
    local venues will challenge you to use your sketchbook the way a
    photojournalist uses a camera. The six-week goal is to produce finished
    sketches using pencil, pen, and watercolor within two hours. See the online course description and sign up if you are interested.

    Skill
    level: Intermediate

    Suggested Supplies:

    #2 pencil with an eraser.

    05 and 08 micron pens.

    Stillman and Birn 9 x 12 inch spiral bound sketchbook (Alpha or Epsion series).

    Travel sized watercolor pallet (mine is a Windsor Newton with 14 color pans)

    Pentel water brush (water goes in the handle)

    Black Prismacolor pencil

    Compact artist stool

    Weekend Top 6 Picks for October 5 and 6, 2019

    Posted on by Thor

    Saturday October 5, 2019

    8am to 1pm Free. Parramore Farmers Market. John H Jackson Community Center, 3107, 1002 W Carter St, Orlando, FL. Purchase
    quality, fresh and healthy food grown in your own neighborhood by local
    farmers, including Fleet Farming, Growing Orlando, and other community
    growers.

    10am to 4pm Free. Orlando Elks Vintage Faire. Elk Lodge 1079 12 N Primrose Drive Orlando FL.  

    5pm to 10 pm Free. The Night Market + Zombietoberfest. Audubon Park Garden District, 3201 Corrine Dr #216, Orlando, FL. The
    Audubon Park Garden District’s Night Market at Audubon features locally
    and regionally made crafts, food trucks, vintage, art, photography, DJ,
    live music, cash bar and fortune tellers. Part of Zombietoberfest, it
    is Orlando’s most original Halloween festival.

    Plus, enjoy a free
    outdoor movie, music, two craft beer gardens, food and drink specials,
    free costume contest, and more. Come party under the stars in award
    winning Audubon Park Garden District, near Redlight Redlight and Park
    Ave CDs. Family friendly! Leashed, vaccinated, well behaved pets
    welcome.

    Sunday October 6, 2019

    9:30am to 12:30pm $275 for 6 weeks of instruction with Thor. Crealde Urban Sketching Class. Crealde School of Art, 600 St Andrews Blvd, Winter Park, FL. Learn
    to sketch from subject to the environment. Classroom sessions will
    focus on sketching clothed models and progress towards sketching the
    model and classroom environment. Learn how to incorporate storytelling
    into your sketches in our location sessions. These trips to local venues
    will challenge you to use your sketchbook the way a photojournalist
    uses a camera. The six-week goal is to produce finished sketches using
    pencil, pen, and watercolor within two hours. Skill level: Intermediate.

    10am to Noon. Free. Heartfulness Relaxation and Meditation Class. University, 5200 Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL. The Method of Heartfulness A simple and practical way to experience the heart’s unlimited resources. 

    Noon to 3pm Donation based. Music at the Casa. Omar Miguel. Casa Feliz Historic Home Museum, 656 N Park Ave, Winter Park, FL. Members
    of the public are invited to visit our historic home museum on a Sunday
    afternoon to listen to live music and take a tour of our historic home
    museum and the James Gamble Rogers II Studio by trained docents.     

    The Heavy

    Posted on by Thor

    Now that I am instructing an Urban Sketching Class at Crealde School of Art, (600 St Andrews Blvd, Winter Park, FL 32792) I am always looking for inspiring places to sketch around Winter Park. My students advised me that The Heavy (1152 Harmon Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789) might be a fun  place to sketch. They were correct. The Heavy located in the old Lombardi’s warehouse is a fantastic coffee shop that also sells gorgeous plants and furnishings. The loading docks have been converted into luminous plant filled oasis’s.


    My students scattered about and sketched the unique setting. Several children were playing on a couch which was caught by one of my students. One member of the staff was clearly an artist herself and loved that we were capturing the ambiance with our sketchbooks. If you check their calendar online you will see weekend Home Barista workshops and an open flower bar. It seems you can learn how to make you own home just as much of an oasis.


    The Heavy seems such a strange name for a place that exudes a light and calming vibe. For much of the time while I worked on this sketch a man was getting an education in how to care for the house plant he was buying. Of course most of  my time is spent giving students ideas on composition and structure. I want to be sure that everyone gets some rough sketches from me. At the beginning of the next class I also give them all the sketches I did for each student since a note give to one student might be helpful for another. I love introducing artists to the life affirming habit of sketching daily.

    Escaping the confines of the artist studio

    Posted on by Thor

    On Sundays I teach an Urban Sketching class at Crealde School of Art (600 Saint Andrews Blvd, Winter Park, FL 32792). I have some very talented students in this class and my goal is to just loosen them up so that they can capture a scene quickly and then focus on a few details to help sell the story behind the sketch. The temperatures have finally dropped to a reasonable degree so that we can sketch outside sometimes without baking while trying to finish the sketch.

    One student showed me an absolutely gorgeous pencil rendering of some shells. It was photo real and highly detailed. The trouble with sketching on location is that a sketch must be done in the time allowed. I tend to judge when a sketch is complete based on how much by butt hurts. Perhaps that isn’t a great measure of good art but it is practical.

    So many of my lessons are about how to put multiple  people into a sketch. I usually dash off a quick sketch like this to demonstrate the principle while also circulating around and doing individualized sketched that show how “the bones” of a composition might be strengthened. By the end of the course I hope that each student will learn how to manage their time so that a watercolor sketch is completed in the time we have. My tips and techniques are mostly about how to speed up the process and focus only on the details that tell a story.

    Each of my students are unsatisfied with what they can capture n a sketch right now and I have to point out that that feeling never goes away if you really want to produce great art. As Michelangelo said, “The
    greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and
    falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our
    mark.”

    Panera and Urban Sketching

    Posted on by Thor

    On Sundays for the next 6 weeks I am teaching an Urban Sketching class at Crealde School of Art. One of the first venues we explore with or sketchbooks is Panera Bread (2516 Aloma Ave, Winter Park, FL.) Each class begins with about an hour of instruction in the classroom along with some sketching exercises to apply the new principle taught. Then we head out to sketch on location. Paneras on a Sunday morning starts off rather slow and by the time the lunch hour approaches the place becomes packed.

    This allows for a relaxed first hour to sketch the interior setting without worrying about the human element. Then as people file in we sketch people at the tables that were established in pencil. I teach the students to pay attention to how much food was ordered and how full peoples glasses are, to get a sense of how long the person might be at the table to be sketched. People come and go while the sketch is in progress and the goal is to make it seem like a moment in time had been captured. Catching fellow sketchers in the sketch is an advantage because they are on the same time table, lingering rather than rushing to finish eating and get out.

    I don’t always take the time to do a sketch myself since I circulate and give each student notes that might help them with the composition or gestures that can be caught. I  have a very talented crew of students for the next six weeks and I am excited to share my thoughts on how to capture life in a sketch. One of my students showed me a fordable devise with magnets that can be used to hod a palette and water jar. It is a smart design and I might incorporate something similar into my work flow. By teaching I often find that I learn things  as well.