Last summer I was able to take advantage of the sunny warm weather and do a series of sketches on the Stephen Avenue mall, some of which are posted below. Last November, I was fortunate enough to be in Hong Kong where the subtropical sun made outdoor daily sketching a pleasure. I shall post and describe those sketches in a another blog.
Back home in Calgary, in the cold and the dark, I wondered if it was possible not to mention practical to do the same in our northern winter. Here is what I found out!
On January 14, the forcast was plus 6 degrees, I grabbed sketchbook, pencils, pens and watercolours and headed to Olympic Plaza. Nothing says urban winter like skating.
On January 30, I was less brave and sought out an indoor yet mostly public and still urban in a sense. Taken from the fourth floor food court where coffee is available.
On February the tenth, my courage returned and I headed over to the old courthouse. At minus four degrees my fingers got cold after 30 minutes and its hard to draw details with gloves on.Did the water-colour later, at home!
February 13, Chinook conditions, have sketchbook will travel, Stephen Avenue.
My conclusion about winter sketching is that it is quite possible, best above plus 5 degrees. Dress warm, have a hot drink and a seat pad or stool because benches and concrete steps can sap your body heat afer a time. Looking forward to meeting everyone on a future sketchcrawl