Friday 20 May 2016

Palisander Recorders at the Newbury Spring Festival

Palisander are a recorder ensemble. They play all types and sizes of recorder, the range of which surprised me. This was an Open Studio / Newbury Spring Festival sketching opportunity, a performance at the Newbury Corn Exchange.

This is a selection from my sketches at the performance.







Friday 13 May 2016

Moscow State Cellists


I was really excited to be asked, as an Open Studios Artist, to sit in on a number of Newbury Spring Festival events and draw them. My first event was this afternoon's rehearsal of the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra in the church of Saint Nicholas in the town. The music was incredible and the whole expeience was utterly fantastic.

The lead cellist made a special request of me (in excellent English) to draw the cello group. They stood patiently at the front of the stage... and I ran out of page. Fortunately, I had another one.

It's not the best drawing - I think I did not capture some members of the group very well at all - and it's a dreadful photograph and a bodged-up composite. but I did promise to post it, so here it is.
There were a few other drawings of the cellists, in action, that I think were more successful:
The lead cellist
The lead cellist lost in music
Another cellist lost in the music

I'm sure he knew I was drawing him

Concentration

Focus on the hands and instrument - and the cellist's face, not playing
At rest
All of these drawings were executed in fountain pens.


Thursday 12 May 2016

Fair time!

Highlights of sketching-at-the-fair today...
This morning, when the fair was still being set up

Teenagers

My son and his friend spent all their money
and time on the dodgems My daughter had one go.


The lady in charge of this ride wasn't very busy