A quick sketch relaxing in Starbucks as I wait for my oil change in my car. Faber-Castell Pitt pens in an Alpha Series 9 x 12 Stillman and Birn sketchbook.
Urban Sketchers
1913 Lewisohn Building – New York CIty
A detailed view of the building that our client is moving into the ground floor. In 1893 the Mendelssohn Glee Club, a group of all-male singers, moved into their grand new concert venue, Mendelssohn Hall at 119 West 40th Street. Lewisohn had received a building loan of $1.1 million from the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company to erect a skyscraper on the site of the Hall. The proposed 22-story structure that would stretch through the block from West 40th Street to 41st Street. While the architects refrained from over-embellishing the bulk of the structure, they added Gothic touches to the upper-most and lower floors; most striking being the carved figures along the fourth story cornice. The sculptures, dressed in medieval garb, all sit with their ankles crossed under Gothic terra cotta canopies. Each is a detailed allegory – Exploration holds a globe and compass, Industry has a large gear and Learning reads an open book, for instance. Faber-Castell Pitt black pens with Holbein watercolors in a Stillman and Birn Sketchbook.
Bryant Park – New York City
More work travel and it is to New York City this time. A beautiful morning sitting in the Paris bistro chairs watching people on their way to work and a Tai Chi group A beautiful shaded oasis in the city. Bryant Park is a 9.6-acre privately managed public park located in the New York City located between Fifth and Sixth Avenues and between 40th and 42nd In Midtown. Although technically the Main Branch of the New York Public Library is located within the park, effectively it forms the park’s functional eastern boundary, making Sixth Avenue the park’s primary entrance. Bryant Park is located entirely over an underground structure that houses the library’s stacks. Pilot Namiki Falcon fountain pen with Noodler’s Black ink and Pelikan watercolors in a Stillman and Birn Sketchbook.
Ridgewood Avenue School
A little free time prior to another country club meeting. Ridgewood Avenue School is an upper elementary school with approximately 600 students in Grades 3-6. The school builds on the foundation skills learned in the primary schools, and through an authentic and hands-on approach, encourages students to love and take responsibility for their own learning. The building itself is located in the heart of the Borough and is a tan brick with carved limestone details and a beautiful red clay tile roof. The school is listed on the State Historic Register. This charming turn of the century building houses the only auditorium in the district.
Baltusrol Golf Club
A quick sketch after my meeting today. A portion of the clubhouse at Baltusrol Golf Club in Summit, New Jersey. A small corner of the historic Tudor architecture of one of the premier country clubs in the country that will be hosting the 2016 PGA Championship.
Hear no Evil
I am always drawn to the water and the Port of New Bedford is very vibrant and challenging. The port of New Bedford is the highest valued commercial port in the United States. Most of the vessels are commercial scallop fisherman trolling south of Nantucket. Tonight I was able to draw this sketch on site (en plein air) on a beautiful summer evening. The “Hear no Evil” is a commercial scallop fishing vessel and was built in 1987. It is also one of the larger fishing boats out of New Bedford. This was a very challenging view in that now only was I looking at the tow vessels in the foreground, but also the masts, outriggers and lines of an additional 10 boars in the background. Pilot Namiki Falcon fountain pen with Noodler’s Black Ink, Pelikan watercolors in a Stillman and Birn Sketchbook.
Soldier’s Memorial Library
The Soldier’s Memorial Library is a historic library building on the town green at the junction of Park Row and Union Street in Mansfield, Massachusetts/ The 2-1/2 story Gothic Revival structure was designed by the noted Architectural firm of Peabody and Stearns, and built in 1899-1901. The building and land were primarily a gift from Elizabeth F. Noble. It was designed to house the public library on the ground floor, and provide a memorial to the town’s American Civil War soldiers on the upper floor. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. The building currently houses the school administrative offices and is connected to the Town Hall. Faber-Castell Pitt Art pens in a Stillman and Birn Sketchbook.
Fort Phoenix
It was a perfect day today to sketch outside. On my way home I stopped in Fairhaven, Massachusetts and did a quick sketch of Fort Phoenix. Fort Phoenix is an American Revolutionary War-era fort located at the entrance to the Fairhaven-New Bedford harbor in Fairhaven. Massachusetts. In 1775, only 25 days after the battle of Lexington-Concord, the fort was the site of the first naval battle of the revolutionary war when the Americans captured 2 British sloops. On September 5–6, 1778, Fort Phoenix was destroyed by the British when they were raiding the harbor. When it was rebuilt, it was given the name “Fort Phoenix” after the mythical bird that rose from its own ashes. Not a great subject or interesting sketch, but it was beautiful to sit by the sea and sketch. Pilot Namiki Falcon fountain pen with Noodler’s ink in a Stillman and Birn Sketchbook.
Quahog Republic
We had an impromptu dinner date tonight with our best friends Keith and Katherine to celebrate her birthday. They had spent the day on Martha’s Vineyard and we met at the Quahog Republic in the hamlet of Onset, Massachusetts. It is a great little casual restaurant across the street from the water in Onset. A quick ink line drawing in my Alpha Series Stillman and Birn.
Real Bodies Falmouth
Real Bodies store in Falmouth, Massachusetts specializes in women’s clothing and accessories in beautiful Batik fabrics from Bali. This was sketched on location with watercolor added later in the studio/ Faber-Castell Pitt Art pens with watercolors and accents with a white gel pen in a Stillman and Birn 9 x 12 Alpha Sketchbook.
A SKETCHBOOK ODYSSEY 