People watching and sketching - outside Tate Modern

Bankside people

8" x 10", pen and ink in Moleskine
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

A great place in London for watching and sketching people is the space just outside Tate Modern.

In the summer, if you sit on the ledge which runs between the silver birch borders you can face Tate Modern and sketch people sitting and lying on the grass between the museum and the Thames Path (see right)

Outside Tate Modern #1
(or what to draw in the summer
when life class is on holiday)
11" x 8"pen and ink
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

At other times of year you can sketch people sitting and standing on Thames Path (the 'Bankside' section) next to the River Thames (see above).

Plus if it rains you can always dive Tate Modern until it stops!

I like to focus on postures rather than features. It's all about how they distribute their weight.

I've summarised my other tips for sketching people in 10 Tips for How to Sketch People

I also like to write down 'odd things' that I hear people saying in my sketchbook. The statement in the bottom right hand corner of my recent sketch (at top) came from a young person with a mobile phone who walked past me. Obviously not everybody knows what's in that big building next to the Millenium Bridge!

Hello Hun, I'm in front of this big building with paintings on the wall
Overheard while sketching at Bankside

Hanging the Street Art exhibition, Tate Modern

(from the Millenium Bridge)
photo copyright Katherine Tyrrell

Links:

• Bankside
  
• Tate Modern - Street Art
  
• Making A Mark - 10 Tips for How to Sketch People

Sketching the Still Life

Still life at the ROI
10" x 8", pencil and coloured pencils
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

One of my favourite places for sketching people is the Mall Galleries. There are always people moving around the gallery looking at paintings and it's a great place, as all galleries are, to practice 'catching' people in a sketch before they move on.

However what I really like about the Mall Galleries is that in the middle of the gallery there are tables and chairs for people taking a break and a refreshment facility where I can get an excellent cup of tea and a blueberry muffin! As regular readers will know by know I do sketch an awful lot while on a tea break or eating lunch!

I paid a belated visit yesterday to see the Annual Exhibition of the The Royal Institute of Oil Painters. While sat having my cup of tea after touring the exhibition, I spotted this chap studying some still life paintings and managed to get him sketched in before he moved on. I then added the paintings on the wall to the sketch, then added values and a lot of colour notes to the sketch before completing the saturation at home.

One of the interesting things about the Mall Galleries is it's not uncommon to see other people also sketching and/or artists paying a visit. I spotted my gentleman model a little later making a drawing in a small sketchbook of the paintings he had been studying - so I sketched him again.

Sketching the Still Life

7" x 5", pencil in DR sketchbook
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

This sketch is unfinished as somebody sat down to have his cup of tea and unfortunately was right in my line of sight.

The camaraderie of fellow sketchers came to the fore and my gentleman model came over to see what I was up to and was very pleased with the result! It turned out he was an oil painter who loves painting still lifes hence why he was studying the still life paintings. He and his brother make a trip to London once a year from Bath to see the annual exhibition of the ROI at the Mall Galleries.

We had a bit of a discussion as to whether the 'somebody' who had obscured my view was Trevor Chamberlain or not - and it turned out that in fact it was! Trevor Chamberlain ROI, RSMA is a member of the Council of the ROI and an ex Vice President of the RPI. and past President of the Wapping Group of Artists and past President of Chelsea A.S.

You can read a review of the exhibition - The Royal Institute of Oil Painters - 121st Annual Exhibition - on my other blog Making A Mark.

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Exhibition continues until 1pm on Sunday 9th November 2008 and is open 10am-5pm daily including weekends. It's at the Mall Galleries, The Mall (near Trafalgar Square), London SW1.

Links:

• The Royal Institute of Oil Painters
  
• History of the ROI
  
• ROI members
  
• plus a sample of the paintings in the virtual exhibition
• Mall Galleries: web: www.mallgalleries.org.uk (which is out of action at the moment - they're working on it), Tel: 020 7930 6844, email: info@mallgalleries.com

Drawing on the London Tube

I like drawing on the tube but I find it works best and I can do slightly longer drawings (up to 10 minutes) if:

• I've got a corner seat
• I've remembered to include the small sketchbook
• The people opposite are absorbed in a book - or just taking some 'time out'.
• .....and, ideally, it's not the rush hour (ie nobody is standing and I've got a much better view of fellow travellers)
  

I tend to try and draw people about 8-10 feet away so that my sketching doesn't crowd their space. People who are nearer tend to work out what I'm doing. Plus I'm generally working on about two or three at the same time.

Repose
7" x 5", pencil in Derwent Safari sketchbook
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

I really enjoyed sketching this lady. She had that oh so typical tube pose of arms folded across her chest and eyes closed. Plus she was great at sitting still!

I also really like it when my subject is wearing something with interesting folds and creases. If I have the time and the opportunity, I tend to work up the head using value hatching and then work the clothing just using line.

This post is also being posted on Urban Sketchers