Fast urban sketching for beginners - when time is short

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Urban sketching is incredibly popular. It's all about connecting with the place you are in. But how do you get started? And what can you really do if you only have a limited time, say 20 minutes? After a short trip to Amsterdam (what a wonderful city!) a few weeks ago, I thought I would share my process in this film. It's all about trying to capture lots of information quickly in case it rains, you freeze to death or someone parks a car in the way. I like to use a Stabilo Point 88 pen, but any water resistant pen will do - even a fountain pen and ink. The link is still visible when you put water on on, but some of the ink moves to give you shadows. It really is fast.

Equipment: Stabilo Point 88 pen in black, waterbrush, Moleskine sketch book, Artistro paint set

I also show a concertina sketch book, and you can find the link on how to make one yourself here:    • How to make a watercolour sketchbook - eas...   or a different one here:    • How to make a watercolour sketchbook - sim...  

Colour is optional and if you are outside, often you don't have the correct colours anyway, but don't worry. I'll show you step by step how to use a little colour to bring your black and white sketch to life. Of course, you are welcome to leave it monochrome or to add colour at a later point.

Urban Sketching is reportage - it's drawing or painting on location in the cities, towns, or villages that you live in and travel to. You are capturing a moment in time in a unique way. I saw this lovely quote from Roisin Cure "The essence of an urban sketch is that its primary function is not to be beautiful, but to capture what it feels like to be human. This could be in a man-made building, the hand of man on the landscape, or human beings in action, wherever they are or whatever they are doing."

If you want to have a go at this scene, I have put a picture on the community tab on this channel. I would love to see what you do.

Don't forget I run a Facebook group which is a great place to meet other artists, get tips and to share your work. You can join here:   / watercolourstudiowithlizchaderton  

If you are interested in learning more about line and wash, I have a really comprehensive course over at https://www.lizchadertonstudio.co.uk/... and my book Line and Wash Painting is available from The Crowood Press and online book shops worldwide.

Of course you can use whatever materials you like to sketch with, but pen and watercolour are very popular, because of the speed you can work at and also that the kit is light and portable, so that you can do a quick sketch while waiting in the car or sitting drinking a coffee. Give it a go and you will see the world in a different light.

Of course going out sketching on your own can be intimidating. So maybe sitting in a coffee shop is a good place to start and having your back to a wall so no one can look over your shoulder, also helps! Most people are just impressed you are doing it. If they are a painter, they will be supportive and if they aren't an artist, well they will wish they were. So try not to care what people think! There are urban sketch groups around the world, usually organised through Facebook, so there's safety in numbers and perhaps you could go out with them - just search your local area.

#lizchaderton #urbansketching #lineandwash