A Passion for Passenger Sketching...

About 10 years ago I started sketching on road trips, whenever I had the good fortune to be the passenger.  They started simple and small with just pen and ink...a way to see how much I could catch of the scene rolling by at 65 mph.  Now, depending on the length of the trip, I work with layers--throwing down the first impression sketch quickly, and then adding whatever seems to work in the moment.  Of course, terrain that doesn't change too quickly makes it easier!














When you're traveling a familiar road, the fun begins when you see how you can sketch it differently every time.  Of course, it really isn't the same road...the season, weather and time of day can radically alter what you see...

A weekly shopping trip--up the hill above Los Angeles, and then down again...an opportunity to play and experiment.  I like to keep it simple sometimes, and other times keep layering until I've gone just a little too far!

Passenger sketching in town usually means drawing the traffic...

The greatest passenger sketching is on a nice, long road trip.  I travel from Los Angeles to the Mojave Desert several times a year, and count myself very lucky that I get to be the passenger--sketching all the way!  Here I'm working with pencil, watercolor and gouache layered on tan paper...

 Once in awhile, a vertical format--why not!

Driving through Joshua Tree National Park...splashing down some ink washes...

 The desert in December...golds and earth colors, and purple sky...

And returning to the city...

Sketching on the Road...

This past spring I've enjoyed traveling twice to Joshua Tree and the Mojave Desert town of Twentynine Palms--in March and again in May.  As much as I love my city, Los Angeles, I love the contrast of the desert--the wide open terrain and slower pace of life.

The trip always begins (happily for me) with passenger sketching...

Sketching life and my friends in the desert makes me feel right at home there...

Every desert trip includes at least one visit to the Country Kitchen in Joshua Tree...love this place not just for the great breakfast, but the wonderful atmosphere, a mix of the homey and exotic...

And then there is the Twentynine Palms Drive-in movie theater--what a treat to watch a movie wrapped in a blanket under the desert night sky munching popcorn!  "Zootopia" in March, and "Jungle Book" in May...(have to admit here that color was added a bit later from memory!)

 One of the things I love about these desert visits is painting what has now become familiar landscapes with media I want more practice in...gouache paintings in March and May on the outskirts of Twentynine Palms.  March's painting on a yellowish handmade paper, and May's painting on Canson Mix Media Artboard (ideal for gouache!)  More gouache painting to come!

 And of course, there is Joshua Tree National Park...I can never get enough of those rocks and that beautiful high-desert terrain.  Experimenting in thumbnail sketches with the set of Kuretake Gansai Tambi opaque pan watercolors I bought in Singapore...

A dry, drought-ridden landscape in Barker Dam...

And I keep returning to a favorite spot in Hidden Valley...

And finally, the drive home, back to the city...

"Creative Sketching Workshop"

I was really delighted to receive a great "Christmas present"...Pete Scully's book, "Creative Sketching Workshop"!  I'm honored to be among the contributors to this book, along with fellow sketchers Shiho Nakaza, Rita Sabler, Liz Steel, James Hobbs, Ilga Leimanis, Nina Johansson, Kumi Matsukawa, Paul Wang, Samantha Zaza, Melanie Reim, and a number of other talented artists.  I enjoyed writing about one of my favorite things to do..."high speed passenger sketching"!  Thanks to Pete and RotoVision for the opportunity to be part of this project!

I do this all the time (when not driving, of course!)  Here are a few recent sketches from my passenger seat "studio"...

A super-quick sketch made on Beverly Blvd. on Christmas day...sketching on a city street is far more challenging than a freeway, where there is usually some repetition in the scenery, and the ability to see distance...

A couple of sketches made on the freeway in the rain recently...

 Playing a bit with color ink washes...

Sometimes it's nice to keep it simple, with black and white...

And adding just a bit of color...or mixing it up with different materials...