Last week two new members joined our Tuesday night sketch group and we had a great time sketching in the bar at Spenger’s, an old, formerly family-owned seafood restaurant filled with ship-themed objects including giant mounted fish trophies (which we learned are just plastic), models of old ships, steering wheels, ropes, etc.
I tried several times to draw some of the mounted fish but mostly failed except for the one on the back wall above. Then I drew the lanterns hanging from the ceiling (below), interested in the perspective and how they overlapped as they receded in space. Then I used the rest of the page for a different view.
I was drawing the guy in the foreground with the hat, cellphone and martini, when I noticed the man behind him kept smiling at me when I looked up. I wondered aloud whether it might be a bad idea to stare at men at the bar—would they think we were flirting with them?
Everyone around our table laughed as it turned out we were all intently drawing the same foreground guy. He was a good sport and when we all finished we showed him his many portraits.
You can see Cathy’s and Sonia’s sketches on our Urban Sketchers blog.
Jana Bouc, Artist 