Cafe Sketching...

...the perfect thing to do on hot summer days around Los Angeles!
From August and September...


Quick sketching with ink and watercolor on a Saturday morning at a bakery in La Canada, in the hills above Los Angeles...the bicyclists have already had their ride and the shoppers are just getting started...

...afternoon coffee at Lamill, an elegant little bistro in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles...

More leisurely sketching with pencil, watercolor and gouache on tan paper...Blue Bottle Coffee had just opened, but was already attracting a crowd in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Echo Park...

A morning sketch over breakfast at the Highland Cafe in the northeast Los Angeles neighborhood of Highland Park.  The lady on the phone stopped briefly in front of me as I sketched...

...and back at Lamill, this time enjoying the street-side view of Silver Lake...the business of the week is discussed on a Saturday afternoon...

Summer Sketching on Sunset Blvd.

...from Silver Lake to Hollywood...

Sitting in the shade of a flowery alcove outside The Casbah Cafe at Sunset Junction...with a view of the Boulevard and the hills above the Silver Lake neighborhood...

Traveling west on Sunset to East Hollywood, I returned to a favorite place to sketch...Barnsdall Park with its panoramic views in all directions of the city, and the Griffith Observatory...

...and some sketching in Hollywood...at Sunset and Vine--almost hidden from the street by the giant ficus is a bell signpost for El Camino Real.  The old "royal road" runs most of the length of California, and apparently this section of Sunset was part of it--the bell markers are part of the history of California which I love seeing!

... and just down the street is a modern piece of history, and a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural monument...the Cinerama Dome...

Exploring Los Angeles Neighborhoods

...more views of the interesting Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake,

moving further west on Sunset Blvd...

views along the Boulevard...above the bluffs, and a mystery door...

the area around Sunset Junction...

Intelligentsia coffee and 

Silver Lake people...

Exploring Los Angeles Neighborhoods

...continuing west on Sunset Blvd. through the Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake...small cafes and shops, and lots of interesting people!


At an intersection on Sunset,
there's a tiny, green polka-dotted plaza
called "L.A.'s first pedestrian plaza conversion".
Local residents shoot a few hoops
while others enjoy the summer afternoon...

...at a small, weekday farmer's
market, the bluesman sets the mood
with some casual riffs...

...a block south of Sunset on Vendome, a narrow side street, is an important Los Angeles cultural site...the original location for Laurel and Hardy's 1932 film, "The Music Box"...what a treasure!  It's used by neighborhood people walking their dogs, and film fans regularly visit.  You can't help but wonder how they ever got a piano up those steps!

Exploring Los Angeles Neighborhoods

...heading west on Sunset Blvd. next takes you through Silver Lake.  I spent the first 7 years of my life in this neighborhood...perhaps it wasn't as hip then, but it's always been the home of artists, film makers and other creative people...

The hilly neighborhood just north
of Sunset as you leave Echo Park
heading towards Silver Lake...

When you're out drawing on location, you never know what you'll see!  I was sitting at the corner of Sunset and Silver Lake Blvd., almost finished with my sketch of this green jewel of a hamburger restaurant...

...when around the corner came a group of bicyclists whooping and hooting...as you'll notice, minus the usual bicycle gear!  I later discovered that I just happened to witness the "Los Angeles World Naked Bike Ride"!  This was going on in cities around the world that day...






A few blocks west, I found a corner with interesting views in all directions...El 7 Mares, old and new houses across the street, and street-side "antiques" for sale on Sunset Blvd...

Evening into Night

...is a favorite subject of mine--fading daylight, when colors shift and then deepening into night...

 early evening on Sunset Blvd.
along the bluffs between Echo Park
and Silver Lake...

 a watercolor sketch at sunset...

fading sunset on a Los Angeles
neighborhood street...

last light on the longest day of the year, last June...

night in Los Angeles neighborhoods...

July 4th fireworks seen over the freeway...

and Christmas lights...