Wednesday, July 31, 2013

One step at a time

Whenever I begin a new hobby, I have instant expectations that I will be awesome at it. No matter what it is. I will learn to crochet a exquisite afghan in a day, I will figure out ways to grow basil quicker in one hour of research. I know how unreasonable it all sounds, but let's admit we all do this sometimes. With the culture of instant gratification that we live in, we want everything at our finger steps quickly without effort or disappointment. 

Needless to say, I have learned the very hard way that it is not possible to get everything right the first time :) Proof is my first crochet scarf which looks more like a table cloth than a scarf. After that, it was so difficult for me to continue because I was scared of failing at it. 


I took up another hobby this year. Yes there are so many things to explore, that sticking with one hobby all my life did not seem fair :) Urban sketching is what I am exploring off late. Not too crazy and tough if you like drawing buildings. Sit outside a cafe in a city and simply sketch and paint what you see. Simple enough right. I bought the book," The Art of Urban Sketching: Drawing On Location Around The World". Read it. Looked very tempting.

Well I have 10 pictures that I have taken in the past few months that I need to sketch. Somehow I am not able to bring myself to start the process. The reason, I am scared that I will fail at it miserably and all the effort will go to waste. Yes, I am procrastinating, shying from my sketch book and colors :) So stupid you would say, still we do it. 

I listen to this song called," One step at a time" by Jordan Sparks. So simple, One step at a time. Easier said than done right. The book said one very simple thing. What you paint does not have to be an exact representation of the view you see. It should be a representation of your outlook. It is your creation and you can make it the way you want. You don't have to make it exactly like it is. I agree with all of this, yet I am not convinced if I can make it. 

Tsk tsk. I finally got down to doing some sketching.  

Below is my recreation of a picture I took in Elizabeth City, NC. A simple building in the corner of a sleepy town. 


Original picture








My water color recreation















 This is my interpretation of the building above. Drew a basic sketch and water colored it. Finished off with a black pen outlining. This is my first attempt at urban sketching. I must say that I am happy with the outcome. The process was very easy and simple. It was not as bad as I thought it would be. 

One step at a time, right!

Leena --<@