http://www.painters-online.co.uk SUMMER 2019 37
2 Sketching for pleasure
The spirit of urban sketching is soaking
up the experience of time and place and
enjoying the sketching process itself,
rather than worrying about the end
result. There is no self-imposed pressure
to produce a masterpiece. You are just
sketching for the pleasure of it, which
means it’s open to everyone, regardless
of ability, from professional artists,
designers and architects to first timers
and everyone in between.
Ironically though, the reduced
expectation that comes with using just
a sketchbook and minimum materials, or
working outside in changeable light and
weather, often produces more pleasing
results than working indoors with no
time restraints and every conceivable
piece of kit to hand!3 No artist’s block
Urban sketching means an end to artist’s
block, when you wonder what to draw
or paint. You just sketch what you see
in front of you. At home, that might be a
view of a rusty wheelbarrow against thegarden shed or perhaps pots and pans
on the kitchen shelf. Better still, take
your sketch kit with you when you go
for a walk, into town or on holiday,
and capture whatever takes your fancy:
buildings, people, museum exhibits or
even the dentist’s waiting room.
Please first bear in mind that urban
sketches don’t have to be ‘urban’, you
can draw rural scenes, beach scenes or
boats on a lake. Secondly, capturing your
chosen subject doesn’t mean replicating
it. You can use your own individual style
and personality to interpret and express
the essence of whatever you’re
sketching, as you see and feel it.4 Great practice
Sketching for the pleasure of it and
allowing the results to take care of
themselves are enjoyable in their own
right, but it’s great practice, too. The
more you sketch on location, the better
your observation skills and eye-hand
coordination will become, and the more
you’ll develop your own style and
your own way of doing things,all of which adds to the enjoyment
even more.
I don’t often have the chance to draw
boats so I make a point of practising
them when the chance arises, usually
on holiday (above left). After hundreds
of sketches, I’ve evolved a quick and
simple three-stage watercolour process
that works for me, which can be seen
in Charterhouse Square, London
(above).5 Special memories
If you add place names and dates to
your sketches, as many urban sketchers
do, your sketchbooks will soon become
a unique and personal record of where
you’ve been and what you’ve seen.
As you’ve taken the time to observe
and draw, rather than pressing a camera
button quickly and moving on, your
memories of time and place will be
far stronger, too.6 Sharing with others
Art is generally a solitary activity, and
that’s often part of the attraction, but tTony UnderhillBoatyard, Totnes, pen and watercolour,
812 ⁄x 51 ⁄ 2 in. (22x14cm). I don’t often have the chance to draw boats on
location so seaside holidays are a welcome opportunity to practise.tTony UnderhillCharterhouse Square, London, pen and
watercolour, 8^1 ⁄ 2 x 51 ⁄ 2 in. (22x14cm). This was drawn on a sketchcrawl
with London Urban Sketchers. I made a quick pencil outline to
ensure the proportions were right then went in with a fibre-tipped
pen for the drawing and finally added watercolour – first washes,
second washes, shadows and details last.tLPS 36-39 Underhill_Layout 1 28/05/2019 13:19 Page 37