IF: FUTURE

"...Any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is is clearly a man to be reckoned with". Works pretty good for girls as well, I think.

US weekly theme: People on the Job

Trying to find some working people in the middle of the weekday in downtown Montreal I finally came across a postman in uniform with a huge mailbag full of mail. He was having a smoking break.

This is a thing about Montreal and work: on Wednesday, in the middle of the day - very nice sunny day indeed, I found about two hundred people relaxing at the stairs of Place des Arts, snacking, smoking, sunbathing and looking at three guys who were actually working: putting a new billboard up on the wall.

A group of red Cross volunteers was having a meeting in the park. Look at this guy with a huge beehive of dreads on his head! Suddenly a passing crazy man starts yelling at them. He was cursing and swearing, really nasty and loud. In a moment it was clear that all this flood of foul language was addressed to Canadian military. Why he was dealing it onto poor Red Cross guys - that is between him and all that people in his head.

And this is one of many street vendors setting up her jewelry stand.

Illustration Friday: FAREWELL

Wow, it was long since I did something for IF. It occurred to me that school is very soon be out for summer :)

Hand-made sketchbooks

So I finally came to that point in my life: I am making my own sketchbooks. I realised that I am only as good as my tools. I cannot pick up any sketchbook and any pen and draw something nice. I am a slave to certain types of paper and if I don't have it - I am useless. And if I have it, but it's wrong size - it's as good as nothing. Or if it's the right paper, the right size, but a pen stumbles on it - it's like I am missing the best half of my brain. Thus, I am learning a beautiful art of bookbinding.

In the last few days I managed to produce three rugged little books with different paper inside. All paper was cut to smaller size, folded and sewn together into two or three signatures per book. Apparently, it's called "Smyth sewn", people. I am learning. The result is not pretty, a little crooked, but perfectly functional. And cheap. Much, much cheaper, than the real sketchbooks. Which, by the way, solves another problem: sometimes I get so intimidated by a fancy sketchbook, I screw up just because I am that terrified to botch a beautiful off-white page spread. Not with these babies! They are hideous! they do open flat, but some of them don't really close...

I was thinking how to make the covers of my books at least a little bit prettier (they are just a very heavy cardboard), and finally came to a very neat decision if I may say so. There are a few helpful rules or tips for sketching that I'd like to remember while I am drawing and I never do. So what I did: I wrote them right on the front covers of my hand-made sketchbooks. Here! Now I always have my ten or so commandments   at hand.

What are the results of all my efforts? I think they are pretty damn good! I tried working with watercolors on a nice smooth vellum kind of paper and it worked beautifully. Then I tried color pencils on porous soft drawing paper - and it worked pretty well too! Happy, happy!

I have been struggling with watercolors for quite some time, but after yesterday's little talk with a friend and a short, but extremely informative article I stumbled upon this morning (apparently some people have all the same problems as I do, which makes them the best teachers), I finally figured out how to tame the beast. Well, at least partially.

I was hoping to go sketching the town today, but the wind makes it oh so uncomfortable to sit outside. Sun doesn't help much. So I am staying in and working with what I have. Although I would love to go and unleash my new understanding of color onto the world outside.

St. Patrick Day Parade

Traditionally, it was mind-numbing, cheek-pinching cold. I honestly can't remember St. Paddy's Day in Montreal that wasn't freakishly cold and windy. Enthusiastic city folks irished up their coffee, painted faces green, put their highest top hats on and went out cheering and yelling. The parade marched by us...

Frozen to the core security people do crowd control...

Top-hated girls in wigs whistling shrilly...

Complacent elders with green sashes, waiving and smiling...

Brave Karnak shriners swinging the flags and banging xylophones...

Highlander sporting bare knees and playing bagpipes...

For me it was the most challenging sketching outing ever. Try to sketch in the roaring crowd, half of it was already honorary irish by BAC, when everyone was moving, yelling, jumping, kissing, high-fiving and never stay on one place not for a moment! And did I mention it was FREAKING COLD? Still, I am happy I went there and mighty grateful to Jennifer and Natalie for sharing the experience!

Old town

 

I guess some old stuff becomes bigger with time and another  becomes smaller...