Sketching on a Campus of San José State University

Two views from the same bench on the campus of San José State University. 

Stencils, printmaking tools, ballpoint pen and actyling markers. Click on the image to see a larger version and some finger smudges (somehow drawing with markers always ends up being a finger painting ordeal for me!).

House with Tulips

This was one of those outings that was planned, then did not happen on time, and then happened unexpectedly on a different day. And it was such a good part of my week that I loved these two sketches for that only. However, I struggled a lot with the shapes of the house and lack of focus on the page. I was overwhelmed by the abundance of shapes and colors, and let go of all the thinking and only moved paint on the page until it was time to run to the next thing in my day. Gouache is a perfect medium for this way of working I think - there is much layering on this page with paint, pencils, crayons - and it allowed me to create all the iterations. Click on the image to see it larger. 

Art exhibits that I want to see in 2025

(this drawing from my sketchbook is here because I think every post needs an image)

I posted my art exhibits that I want to see around the world before and it seems like this year I have a fresh list! Some I will visit, some I will only hear about and to some I might make it ;) Probably the list will grow later in the year but so far here it is:

1. David Hockney Is Taking Over the Entire Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. David Hockney is one of my all-time art heroes and his ability to work at put together such a huge exposition at 87 is definitely one of the reasons for that. There are several great articles about the show:

in Vogue: https://www.vogue.com/article/david-hockney-fondation-louis-vuitton

in New York Times (this article is unlocked via Austin Kleon's Newsletter which I recommend to people on a weekly basis!) 

2. Ruth Asawa: Retrospective - in San Francisco MOMA. In 2023 I wrote about Ruth Asawa exhibit in Whitney Museum of American "Through Line" and then read all I could find about her. Since then I slowly track down and visit all of her art (there is much to go still) - but this retrospective will move me a lot on my quest!

3. The Met has "Sargent and Paris" From April 27 till August 3 of this tear. Sargent is one of the painters whose works I love to see in person. There is so much in the dance of the brush, so much color and light in layers and so much in seemingly empty parts of the paintings!

4. Palazzo Barberini (check out their logo!!) in Rome has Caravaggio 2025 - which is an extensive collection of works, including some "recently authenticated" - but to see such a collection on one place? That is a gift!

5. Wayne Thiebaud: Art Comes from Art is in Legion of Honor in San Francisco! Did you know that Wayne Thiebaud played tennis even after turning 100? And painted too! And he was an artist who was thinking with both his art and words - as a teacher for many years.  Did you hear about a Cake Event in San Francisco - in honor of this exhibition? Here is a great article about it by Wendy MacNaughton (whose substack I also recommend). https://club.drawtogether.studio/p/let-us-eat-cake

Here is a video that accompanies the exhibit: https://www.famsf.org/stories/wayne-thiebaud-film

ANd an article: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/apr/16/wayne-thiebaud-san-francisco-exhibition

That's it for now. 

What exhibitions are you looking forward to? 

Glorious Godwood Trees

On one of my bike rides, I found lots of blooming dogwood trees and picked this particular set of two - with a carpet of tulips and daffodils under it - for a special little outing. 

I was in the middle of an experiment with several materials at once right before this outing and ended up with very little ability to plan this sketch - which means I ended up with several separate vignettes stitched together. 

Now that I look at my sketches from a few days ago, I have to run and catch some of these flowers in my sketchbook again!

Magnolia Season - Part Two.

I wrote about my adventures of sketching magnolias at the peak of their season in March. The season is over in the sense that the trees are no longer stunning bouquets of pink that make you stop everything and rush out to look. But they continue to bloom somewhat, now flowers are hidden by the leaves. As the summer comes, I will be looking for the next stage in the magnolia saga - when large, heavy-petaled white flowers of the largest Magnolia trees - Magnolia grandiflora. And after that - magnolia seed pods! 

However, I got a few sketches in before all the greens took over - here they are.