Art transforms us not with what it contains but with what it creates in us — the constellation of interpretations, revelations, and emotional truths illuminated — which, of course, is why the rise of the term “content” to describe creative output online has been one of the most corrosive developments in contemporary culture. A poem — or an essay, or a painting, or a song — is not its “content”; it transforms us precisely by what cannot be contained, by what is received and interpreted.
— Ursula K. Le Guin
Today was the monthly Montreal Urban Sketchers meet-up day and we regrouped at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts… a grand architectural delight. I knew as I got in my car this morning that I wanted to sketch some crazy architecture and did not know exactly where and what I would sketch… but it was to be architectural details! This view is just at the entrance of the museum. I did take the time to do a quick visit of the Western Exposition Il était une fois… before and looked left and right, and I came right back here to sit down and sketch.
What I learned today was that for drawing the Travelogue Handbook is less than ideal, because it is made with watercolour CP quality paper (which means bumpy) which also means bumpy lines. This rattled me as I have a good hand and did not appreciate the bumps, but hey! nothing is perfect in life. I also decided to go low profile with my tools and used BIC Cristal pens, blue, green and purple… and even though they smudge once in awhile (at $2.60 for 12) they are quite comfortable in the hands and do a good job. The museum has strict guidelines as to what sketchers can draw with…
Paper: Travelogue Handbook 8″x8″
Tools: BIC Cristal Blue, green & purple, Pilot Grip EF
Location: Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, Québec, Canada
#urbansketching, #drawing, #sketching, #BIC,
I love the intersecting lines, and striking colours, very nice!
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Ooh! Thank you so much -)))
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Gorgeous work Jane. I’ve just started urban sketching. It’s pretty tough coming from mainly drawing people, put coming across work like this motivates me. Thank you for sharing!
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Thank you Joe! Welcome to the Urban Sketchers group — )
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And what a cool group to be a part of! Have a good weekend Jane.
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You too Joe -)))
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love the quote
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Thank you!
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I don’t do a lot of it but I like the results one gets from ballpoint pens and your sketch is a great example. I’m curious, though. USK Montrealers have been emphatic that the Musee des Beaux Arts is a pencil only location. Are ballpoints allowed? That opens up some possiblities.
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Hi Larry — in the exposition rooms it is lead only… however I was in the entry and the rest areas, non-exposition places they open it up to I guess ballpoint. I even did actually use a fountain pen which looks like a pen — I cheated there -))) No one was watching me.
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Oh darn. I was hoping those ballpoints could go anywhere :-) At least you can draw. Our Musee des Beaux Arts won’t let us draw at all. They don’t seem to understand the ‘raison d’etre’ of art museums :-(
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Is it not incredible to forbid drawing or even painting in a place that showcases drawing?
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Yes it is, but our museum lives in the era where abstraction was the ruling form of art and seems to believe that an ‘event’ means having everyone dress up, stand around, and drink wine. It’s quite odd for an instituion paid for by citizen tax dollars.
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Hello Jane, What a great sketch! They often say that it is not the tools but the people holding them . But I find that adequate tools does make a difference for me ;-)
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Hello Diane — thank you! And yes the tools are important — last night I sketched with my best fountain pen and what a difference!
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Jane: Wow, you did a darn good job with your architectural design – you have talent, Jane. You must have spent long hours doing this work. Truly, you have patience to undertake this type of work. Don’t ever give it up – Dorland would have been proud of you as I am. MOM >
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Great post — love the quote, I may use it.
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I found it on Brainpickings.org — thank you!
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Ursula Le Guin was a very famous science fiction writer who died recently.
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I know Larry — one of the most profound writers…
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