Model Cars

I never drew cars very much as a kid so this was kind of fun. Here’s the story: I took our car to have it serviced and told the service manager I’d wait for it in the dealership. He told me it would take about an hour and a half. As I walked down the hallway of the dealership I saw a nice toy car on the desk of an office with an open door. I asked around to see if I could take a photo of the little car and was refused at first. But then someone came around and told me he would escort me into the office for the purpose of taking a photo. As I walked in he pointed out a car on another display surface that I hadn’t noticed. I took pictures of both. While I waited for my car I started to draw the little race car in my sketchbook. After I paid up and started to leave I noticed the general manager had arrived and was in his office at the desk with the little race car. A very smart, meticulous guy. Well dressed. I tapped on his office door and asked for “just a few seconds.” He invited me in and when he saw the sketch I did of his little car, he lit up entirely. He launched into a lengthy explanation of all the details of the toy cars and the history of the real cars they were modeled after. Here’s this grown man in a pressed shirt and dapper tie who turned into a little kid before my eyes. I guess he was just very happy to have discovered someone else who could appreciate his toys. He loved it that I did the drawing and I promised him a print made from it.

Salsa PINata

Big Brothers and Big Sisters of the North Bay have an annual fund raiser. They give used bowling pins to artists all throughout the county and ask them to put a work of art of the pins for an auction. Here's my contribution. You can see all the other pins and bid on them at bfks.org. Last year they raised over $150,000. You can see their website at bbbsnorthbay.org .
I wish them all good luck!

Sketchcrawl 21 San Francisco

I didn't calculate the mileage so ended up walking more than drawing.  I started out over by the free parking near Crissy Field. With such great weather, people were everywhere. Here's a couple and their dog soaking up the sunshine and a guy with his bicycle enjoying a fresh air read.

Then I walked over to the Exploratorium which is a great place to draw. Lots of kids, lots of different kinds of activity. People of all sizes and shapes ages and colors focused on one repetitive activity or another.  Here's a kid working on a roller skate table learning how sailboats are pulled by the wind.  Here's a man with a large ring at a soap pool trying to make huge bubbles float in the air. 

There was construction blocking access to the Palace of Fine Arts so I could only see it from the duck pond. What a fabulous building.

Then I headed out for Golden Gate Park.  I thought it would be a quick trip, but I walked and walked and walked. . . . it turned out to be three and a half miles each way.  Whew!  But it was good and much needed exercise. And a great view of the city, block by block.

We were close to a hundred at the San Francisco Sketchcrawl this time. A great group of talent all gathered together at the De Young Museum Café. It was a real  pleasure to be there.  

After we traded looking at each others sketchbooks to see the work done that day, someone took a group photo then I started the long walk back to Crissy Field.  I saw the moon full and rising enormous over the city glittering with streetlights and still warmed in pinks, pale orange and lavender by the lowering sun.  I finished my trek in darkness. 

What a great day.