Sketcher Fest Edmonds Workshop W7
Learn the language of urban sketching
Michele Cooper
Hieroglyphics is a writing system that uses pictures and symbols instead of letters and words.
You could say that urban sketching is somewhat similar. We use symbols for clouds, people, buildings, cars, rocks and trees to tell the story of a particular time and place. The great thing about this “language” of art is that anyone can read it, regardless of age, home location or literacy.
Improve your ability to communicate your story. Learn to put together easy symbols for what we see from direct observation.
In this workshop you will start with a basic “vocabulary” of easy symbols drawn from the scene before us. Learn to describe the sky in watercolor, create a street corner with two lines, show the glistening light on driftwood and wet rocks and portray a figure in 6 brushstrokes.
Then learn to put together these symbols to tell the story in your own way.
Your first urban sketch may have looked something like this:
Figures
What would an urban sketch be without people? As a child, you may have included stick figures in your drawings. The enduring appeal of stick figures lies in their ability to convey complex ideas through a minimal, yet recognizable, representation of the human form.
Let’s see if we can add our own urban sketching contribution to the iconography of human figures.
Practice 1:
Materials: sketchbook, #8 pointed round watercolor brush or Aquash brush pen, watercolor
Make the most interesting subject your focal point. Colors are less vivid in the distance and similar shapes are smaller. You need less detail in the distance and on the periphery.
Building up your sketching vocabulary - trees, cars, buildings
A similar approach can be taken with all the other subjects found in the urban environment.
Trees
Vehicles
Cars, Trucks, Public Transit, Vans & Work Vehicles
In order to tell the story of your urban sketches, you need to practice drawing the appropriate transport used in your location. Here are some tips on drawing and painting a few typical ones.
Buildings
Details such as signage, surface texture (stone, brick, wood, stucco) and architectural features are key factors in communicating the true experience of a unique place. Combined with the style of the surrounding neighborhood you can often depict an era or historical reference.
Some buildings are generic, some notable for their function and some are landmarks. Use these identifiers as the main feature of your urban sketches and you will have an entertaining, enlightening and edifying story to tell.
Think of your practice of urban sketching as a pictorial language. Soon you’ll be able to tell the story of your surroundings, where you travel, and the places we live with effortless fluency!
Sketching Equipment - Choose from the options in this list
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