Outside Urban Sketching from the Inside

11/29/14 Pilot Iroshizuku Take-sumi ink, watercolor,
Stillman & Birn Beta sketchbook

We’re having unusual weather here this weekend. Yesterday we had high winds and heavy rain all day, but the temperatures were in the mid-50s. The mercury dropped by more than 20 degrees overnight, and we woke to a couple of inches of snow. Then the wind kept blowing, despite sunshine, and with the wind chill factor, we’re down to 22 F (although the thermometer currently reads 31)! Brrrr! I know that’s nothing by east coast standards, but it’s pretty dang chilly for these parts.

Needless to say, I didn’t go out to sketch, although the sun looked tempting, even in the brutal wind. As I was admiring the snow through our front windows, I noticed interesting shadows that the power lines were casting on the new pole (on the left) in front of our house. (That’s the pole that was installed in August right next to the old pole.) The lines themselves formed a fascinating abstract pattern (once I got over their stark ugliness). And then to top it all off (literally), a flicker landed on the top of the old pole and stayed long enough for me to sketch him several times.

11/29/14 Take-sumi ink