Sketching meetup: Cuba Street, Sun 18th May

A new sketcher, Andrew, has offered to run a sketching meetup. Thanks Andrew!

Where to meet: Cuba Street, at the the Bucket Fountain.
When to meet: 2pm, Sunday 19th May.

To rsvp, email back to Wellington dot Sketchers at gmail dot com. I will forward your email onto Andrew and you can exchange mobile numbers. You don't have to rsvp to turn up to sketch, but if you want to be texted of cancellations due to weather etc, then you need to rsvp. There is always heaps going on at Cuba Street and it is a great location for sketching!

On hold...

Hi everyone
Sorry, I won't be able to run sketching meetups for a while. My family commitments etc seem to have increased this year and I can't see that changing in the immediate future.
If you want to run a sketching meetup in Wellington, I am still happy to advertise it on this website for you. Alternatively, if you want to try your hand at both running sketching meetups and the website, I am happy to hand over the reins entirely.
It has been so, so wonderful getting to know you all, to meet other sketchers, and to see the amazing artwork everyone does. I hope everyone keeps having fun sketching around Wellington. All the best & take care! Kerrie

8/9 March sketching meetup cancelled

My apologies, but I am no longer be able to make it to the Otaki Kite Festival to run a sketching meetup on 8/9 March. Sorry everyone!

Of course, the festival itself is still on, and will be terrific, so feel free to head up there and sketch away on your own if you are keen.

I will sort out another March date for a meetup. Any ideas or places you want to go? Email Wellington dot sketchers @ gmail dot com if you want to suggest a sketching location or event in March.

Sketching Meetup: Thorndon / Botanic Gardens

Wellington Sketchers will be having a sketching meetup to sketch around Thorndon. We'll meet at the Founder's Gate entrance to the Botanic Gardens on Glenmore St in Thorndon (Tinakori Rd becomes Glenmore St past the gardens). We can either sketch around the Botanic Gardens or sketch down Glenmore St/Tinakori Road in Thorndon, whichever option strikes people's fancy. We might have a coffee afterwards at a nearby cafe. 

The Founder's Gate entrance to the Botanic Gardens on Glenmore St, Thorndon

Where: Meet at the Founder's Gate entrance to the Botanic Gardens on Glenmore St in Thorndon

When: 2.30pm, Sunday 23rd Fenruary 2014. Sketch until 4-ish?

How: There is parking up on Glenmore St (I think it might be coupon parking there, 2hr limit), or you can catch the Karori number 3 bus from Wellington Station, which stops right at the Founder's Gate.

As usual, if the weather is awful, we will postpone. I will notify anyone who has rsvped to me in this case. You don't have to rsvp and you are very welcome to just turn up, but if the unforeseen happens and my car won't start, my train is running late etc, I can only text people who have rsvped to wellington dot sketchers @ gmail dot com.  

PS - I have put up a poll on our website for where we will go sketching for the 43rd Worldwide Sketchcrawl on 19 April. The poll is anonymous, so vote away! You are not committing yourself to coming along by voting.

Some new urban sketching books on the market

A couple of ¨how-to¨ urban sketching books have come onto the market this year. These books have lots of examples of people's sketching work, but also practical tips for sketching/painting on location.

Urban Sketching: The Complete Guide to Techniques, by Thomas Thorspecken. I have pre-ordered this one (it is released in 17 days) and will bring it along to a meetup as soon as it arrives in the mail, if you want to take a look at it.

Sketch Your World: Essential Techniques for Drawing on Location, by James Hobbs. Incidentally, this book seems to change cover design alot (???), so you may see it with a different cover (same name though). I already have this one and have found it an interesting read. I'll bring this one along to the next meetup, if you want to have a flick through it.

Worldwide Sketchcrawl #42

Gosh, is it that time again already...? The next Worldwide Sketchcrawl is on this Saturday. The worldwide sketchcrawls are organised by Enrico Casarosa on the www.sketchcrawl.com website. Individual sketchers and sketching groups from all over the world can participate, sketching around their hometowns. Afterwards, people usually post their sketches on Enrico's website. Our group, Wellington Sketchers has done a few of these, and I've really enjoyed them.

There is an Ocean Sports Open Day on Wellington Harbour which I thought would be fun to sketch. Please note that we are just members of the public sketching around that area - I haven't made any contact with the event organisers, and we are not a part of their event in any way.

When: Saturday, 25th January 2013. Meet at 10am, sketch until whenever!

Where to meet: on Oriental Parade, near the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club (which is 115 Oriental Parade) and the marina next door.  

Rsvp? You don't have to. However, if there are any plan changes, my car won't start, or any cancellations due to horrible weather etc, then I can only text people who have rsvped to me. Rsvp to wellington dot sketchers at gmail dot com.

[POSTSCRIPT: to view the sketches we did on the Sketchcrawl website, click here.]

Sketching meetup: Sat 7 Dec, 10am

Wellington Sketchers will be having a sketching meetup on Saturday 10th December 2013.

Where to meet: at the lion gates to Parliament & the Beehive on the Bunny St/Lambton Quay intersection. I'll put a photo up in this post of the gates I mean next week, so if you are unsure, check back on this website mid-next week.

When to meet: 10am, Sat 7 Dec 2013

Wet weather options: If it is raining, I'll be waiting undercover outside Bennett's bookstore across the road, and we can sketch in a nearby cafe instead.

RSVP: you are welcome to just turn up, but if you want to be notified if I am running late because my car won't start etc, then you will need to email Wellington dot sketches at gmail dot com to give me your mobile number.