Mail Truck

 

5/8/21 Wedgwood neighborhood

Years ago in a life-drawing workshop, the instructor said something that has stayed with me ever since. Mark Kang-O’Higgins approaches every pose, regardless of duration, as if it were only 30 seconds long. Even if he knows the pose will last 20 minutes (or two hours or several weeks, for that matter), he captures the entire gesture in half a minute. Then he spends the rest of the duration shaping and refining that initial gesture. Finally, at the very end of the duration, he puts in details. That way, no matter how much time he has, he will always have captured the most essential part of the pose.

The method he describes is basically what I practice whenever I do life drawing, but it is just as applicable when urban sketching, too. When I spotted this mail truck, I didn’t know if the carrier would return in 30 seconds or 15 minutes, so I captured the truck’s “gesture” (if a mail truck can be said to have one) as quickly as possible – probably less than a minute. Then I marked the essential shadows and other dark areas. For the remaining time (which turned out to be a leisurely 20 minutes or so), I continued to refine the shapes and put in details. I was completely done with the truck and already working on the willow when the carrier finally appeared. It turned out he was inside the truck all that time. He came out to deliver one package, then drove off. But even if the truck had disappeared after five or 10 minutes, I think I had enough on the page that I could have finished it. This method is especially useful when sketching people, who tend to walk off at the most inconvenient times.

Come to think of it, this lesson that has stayed with me is a version of the same advice I’ve heard from nearly every urban sketching instructor or author: Start with the large shapes first, then get progressively smaller and more detailed as time allows.

Mail Truck in Wedgwood

6/12/17 ink, Tombow marker, water-soluble colored pencils

So I like cheap thrills: I get excited when I spot a mail truck within sketching distance. It’s not just that they’re cute and fun to sketch; it’s the added challenge that its driver is likely to return soon. I’ve bagged two previously – one last January and one a couple of years ago.

Driving through the Wedgwood neighborhood yesterday, I pulled over immediately when I saw this one. Almost as soon as I put pen to paper, I saw the mail carrier returning. I drew faster and faster, quickly throwing on shadows as she rearranged parcels for her next stop. I was still making the last of my tick marks around the truck to help me place the cars and other elements around it when the carrier hopped in and drove off. Yes! Bagged another one!

You know what else I’d love to sketch? A garbage or recycling truck! I managed to get one from the distance several years ago, but I’d like to get more detail. Despite their ubiquity, they hardly stop at all, so they are truly elusive. Once I got stuck behind a garbage truck on a narrow residential street and had to follow it for quite a while; if I hadn’t been driving, I would have had plenty of time to sketch its rear end. 

Mail trucks have become too easy. I’m after bigger game now. 

Mail Truck

 

12/5/22 Maple Leaf neighborhood

Around this time of year, I feel gratitude for mail carriers and other delivery people for keeping all my packages moving, either to others or to myself. During the first COVID holiday season, I especially felt that way because of all the shopping I had done online to stay out of stores. I’m OK now with shopping inside stores, but I’ve gotten so used to the convenience of shopping online that I’m still doing it now as much as I did then. Sketching this mail truck seemed like a good way to express my ongoing appreciation.

Composition notes: Back in March when I actively studied composition for a month, I had gotten into the useful habit of consistently making a thumbnail study before beginning a larger sketch. I continued for quite a while after my 30-day challenge was over, but eventually I got lazy and stopped. This sketch made me realize I should keep doing them. I drew the mail truck first (and it’s a good thing I did, because the carrier returned and drove off before I was done, but I had blocked in enough to finish), then started filling in everything I could see around it (see uncropped version at bottom of post). That’s when I realized that most of the details I drew weren’t important to the story nor beneficial to the composition. All I needed was enough to show context.

Thumbnail made retroactively.

Retroactively, I made a thumbnail to force myself to think about how I should have cropped it. Even as I drew the rectangular-shaped box, I thought the composition was a landscape shape. The box got smaller and smaller until I found the tightly composed square I wanted.

Another challenge of this sketch was the ground. Though I often color dark shadows on streets, I typically do not color the pavement. But I had to darken the street to show the bits of dirty, slushy snow still hanging around. It made me realize how rarely I have the opportunity to sketch snow on pavement.

Everything I drew.

Lazy Mail Truck

3/22/18 Wedgwood post office parking lot

I have a thing for mail trucks. I’ve sketched them several times, usually when I’ve seen them parked in the ‘hood. I know their drivers will be back soon, so I enjoy the challenge of sketching as fast as I can.

When I pulled into the Wedgwood Station parking lot, I saw a mail truck next to the building, so I chose a spot directly opposite and backed in. After finishing my postal business, I had an easy view sketching it from my car. It felt lazy – I knew that the truck probably wouldn’t leave until morning. But it was fun to finally have time to get all the stripes and details.

When I finished the truck, I saw that the Toyota parked next to it was still there. Now the challenge was on again, because I figured its driver would be back soon. But I guess there was a long line inside – I got done with time to spare.

Mail Truck and Recycle Day

1/20/17 brush pen, colored pencils, graphite

The last time I was able to catch a cute little mail truck in a sketch was more than a year ago. Although ubiquitous, they don’t stop for long, so they’re not easy to capture. This morning I was coming home from an errand in the Greenwood neighborhood when I spotted this one. I pulled over immediately, and just after I finished, the mail carrier showed up and took off.

1/17/17 graphite, colored pencils

Earlier this week I was driving around the Wedgwood neighborhood on recycle and garbage pickup day. As you can see, my standards for inspiring subject matter are low, especially in Winter.

A Mail Truck Instead of a Couch

10/2/15 inks

The problem with my Urban Couches series is that I have to be quick once a couch is spotted. On our way to an appointment yesterday morning, we saw a couch in our neighborhood, but I didn’t have time to sketch it just then. I went back in the afternoon, and apparently that “free” price tag was too good a deal to pass up.

But that didn’t stop me from a sketch. Less than a block away, I spotted a mail truck, which I’ve always wanted to sketch, parked behind a traffic circle maple that is just starting to turn. And wouldn’t you know it – I just happened to have pens with both green and orange inks! (And you wonder why I carry so many pens.) An Inktober score.

More Mail

1/30/17 brush pen, water-soluble colored pencils, ink

If you think you’re having déjà vu from a recent mail truck sketch, I wouldn’t blame you. But this one is a different type of truck – larger and full of parcels. Luckily for me, the carrier took her time making deliveries, because I had more than a few minutes to finish the sketch. (By the end of winter, I should become an expert on mail trucks, recycle bins and trees that grow near curbs.)

Snowpocalypse, Part 2

2/10/19 Maple Leaf neighborhood

On Sunday we stayed hunkered down, waiting for part 2 of our snowstorm of the decade to hit. Our neighbors’ cars across the street hadn’t moved since Saturday morning, so they were both still capped with snow in their respective driveways. I’m not usually interested in this view from our front window, but everything looks different, fresh and more sketchable with the snow.

As I was sketching in the warm comfort of our livingroom, a U.S. Mail truck drove up – on Sunday. At first I thought it was because we didn’t receive any mail Saturday, which was surprising but understandable, given the snow. But it wasn’t regular mail – it was an Amazon delivery! Say what you will about Bezos: Snowpocalypse may keep the U.S. Mail away, but two-day Prime stops for nothing.

Neither Snow Nor Rain Nor Gloom of Night

 

12/21/20 Maple Leaf neighborhood

Our poor postal service has been more burdened this holiday season than usual. Mail has been backed up at distribution centers for weeks, and my social media feeds are filled with complaints about delivery delays. I feel bad for postal workers; under COVID restraints and with many other issues, they are still doing the best they can.

The solstice was not only the darkest day of the year; it was also wet, windy and eventually snowy. Staying warm and dry, I sketched this mail truck through my rain-drenched windshield. As I was finishing up, the mail carrier appeared and opened the hatch: It was packed to the brim with Amazon packages. Thank you, postal workers, for all you have delivered to me and for me this year when I have needed your services more than ever.

Best wishes for a safe and happy Christmas from Weather Bunny
and her family (and me)!

Heatwave

 

6/27/22 Green Lake neighborhood

Thumbnail for sketch above

The sketch above was the result of an interesting progression: I began with a vertical study (the right side of the thumbnail), which is one of my typical parked-car-with-trees-and-street-shadows compositions. Then I saw a building in the background that I wanted to include. Although it goes against the practice I am learning of making a composition tighter, not larger (and often I regret the change when I do expand a composition), I decided to try making it wider.

By the time I started the color sketch, the foreground truck had driven off. Thankfully, the thumbnail came to my rescue! Who knew that thumbnails could be as helpful and effective as all my instructors and books have been telling me? In any case, I think the part I added actually improved the composition instead of weakening it. Bonus: I got to put in the cute mail truck.

Color note: This sketch uses primary triad No. 3 (Caran d’Ache Ice Blue [185], Purplish Red [350] and Yellow [10]). I’m warming up to this triad (pun intended) – I used a higher ratio of yellow to blue in the trees, and it feels like the right amount of warmth I have been looking for. I’m not finished experimenting, though – I have a couple more ideas to try.

Incidentally, warmth was on my mind in more ways than one when I made this sketch: It was not yet 90 at the time, but eventually it became the hottest day of the year so far. I stayed very still in a cool spot, and the whole process took less than an hour. By early evening, strong breezes blew the heat off, and by bedtime, it was cool enough to sleep. That’s what I call an old-school Seattle heatwave of the type I grew up with. After the longer, more severe heatwaves we’ve had in recent year, this one made me nostalgic.

Peeking Through

1/9/16 inks, watercolor, colored pencils

By noon, this morning’s thick fog layer had finally burned off, though more slowly than usual. In its place, clouds started drifting in, but I was happy to see blue sky peeking through. (Wish I could have finished sketching the mail truck in the foreground before the mail carrier came back from her route and drove off.)

Back to the MOHAI

1/19/14 Platinum Carbon ink, watercolor, Zig markers, Fabriano Studio hot press 140 lb. paper

For the second day in a row, I was back at MOHAI – this time in the company of 44 other Seattle Urban Sketchers. On this quiet morning before “the” game (I won’t even bother naming it), we sketchers had the museum practically to ourselves. It was fun to look around and see sketchers everywhere.

1/19/14 Platinum Carbon ink, watercolor, Fabriano Studio hot press

Since yesterday I focused on the views outside MOHAI, today I sketched three colorful Seattle icons on the main floor: the bright pink Lincoln Toe Truck (next to Gail sketching), the original Rainier Brewery R, and the 1919 Boeing B-1 mail carrier (Boeing’s first commercial plane). I sketched all three icons last May when I first visited MOHAI in its new location, and these eye-catching images from Seattle’s past are still fun to sketch.

I had only about 10 minutes left before our meeting time – enough for one more. I was looking down over the railing from the second floor when I spotted Dan sketching next to the front admissions counter.

1/19/14 Diamine Chocolate Brown ink, Sailor pen

Thanks to Gail, Jane, Gabi and MOHAI for arranging a great sketchout!

Museum of History and Industry

5/2/13 Noodler's Lexington Grey ink, watercolor, Stillman & Birn Alpha

I took advantage of free admission on first Thursday to visit the Museum of History and Industry at its new location on Lake Union. As an occasional visitor of MOHAI at its old location, I was familiar with some exhibits, but many other artifacts were able to come out of MOHAI’s archives in the larger facility. The new spacious, well-lighted building is a well-deserved home for Puget Sound-area history.

 

Although I hadn’t planned it, my visit turned out to be more than one lesson in composition (Frank Ching, I was paying attention during your lecture at last Saturday’s workshop!), though I could have saved myself time if I had spent more time seeing and less time drawing as Frank had recommended.

 



5/2/13 Lexington Grey ink, watercolor, S&B Alpha

A Seattle native, I was immediately drawn to a couple of colorful and nostalgic icons from my childhood. One was the large red neon R that had been a landmark above the Rainier Brewery in south Seattle for decades. First I sketched the R by itself from the main lobby (at left), but after I finished I realized the composition was blah and gave the R no context. A little later as I was climbing the stairs to the third floor, I saw a more interesting composition of the R (at bottom) behind an ancient Boeing B-1 mail carrier (I learned from a docent that the small plane was made of ship parts).

 

5/2/13 Lexington Grey ink, water-soluble colored pencils, Zig markers

The bright pink Lincoln’s Toe Truck is another familiar icon from parades and other public events. I started sketching it from the second floor railing directly over the toes, but I realized quickly that I didn’t leave space on the page for any context, so the composition was strange. Fortunately, I saw this before I had wasted more than a few minutes, so I abandoned the line drawing right away and started over. This time I put in some people nearby for both context and scale: a better composition (at top).

 

After a grilled caprese sandwich at MOHAI’s Compass Café, I sketched three figureheads leaning out from the second floor near the ceiling (at right). I couldn’t find a placard about them, and the docent I asked didn’t know, so I have no idea what ships these figureheads originally sailed with.

 

I had given myself four hours on the parking meter, so it was time to go, but I’ll be going back again sometime soon – there’s plenty to sketch at MOHAI as well as plenty to learn and enjoy.

5/2/13 Iroshizuku Take-Sumi and Sailor inks, Zig markers