Recently, I came across two blogs that are similar in nature, and belong to a larger blog project called: Urban Sketchers. The idea is that artists around the world capture the cities they visit and live in through drawing and share them on this central website. Artists are invited to participate, and links to their own works are included on the site by their city of origin. And, I believe Austin’s undying and one-of-a-kind love for art and culture is yet again proven by the fact that there are two artists listed for our esteemed city.
I think this concept of immersing oneself in a city, creating an ad-hoc studio in a setting, and capturing the scene as it occurs through art is somewhat like stopping time, which as we know, is not actually possible. To take in one’s surroundings, and produce a candid artistic representation of it in the moment, one that will last beyond that moment for the artist to remember and others to enjoy, is a beautiful thing. I Rebeccammend you take a moment of your own time to observe and appreciate these artists’ ability to stop time, and perhaps think about what it was like for them to be living and breathing in the scene they have beautifully represented through drawing. We may feel like we’ve stopped time for a short time, and maybe this will will help us pause, reflect on, and absorb unique moments as we live our daily lives.
I Stare at People- by Lavanna Martin– shares images of people the artist sees at coffee shops around Austin. Austin is definitely a coffee-shop city—local ‘jo joints are everywhere in town and each have a different feel–perfect people-watching scenes. Lavanna has captured images of people through drawing at Cafe Caffeine, Cafe Medici, Epoch Coffee, Halcyon Coffee and Bar, JPs Java, Little City, and Spider House. Look at this painting of a retired military man at Epoch Coffee that was completed in 15 minutes!
Studio 712, Adventures of an Urban Sketch Hunter– by B. Scott Shaevel– captures the epitome of what one might think of when hearing urban sketch. Most are black and white, allowing the artist to pay attention to detail and clearly represent each chosen scene in a raw, yet intricate image. Here is a sketch of South Congress Avenue, looking North towards the Capitol.
As I have been inspired by these two incredible local artists, I Rebeccammend that today, you take a moment, soak up your surroundings, take a mental picture, and remember to live in the present.
Have a great day!
8 thoughts on “Capturing Real-Time Beauty”
Pretty Project October 27, 2009 at 10:54 am
These are very pretty in a haunting kind of way! 🙂
http://www.theprettyproject.com
NEIL LORD GUITANG October 27, 2009 at 11:08 am
I like paintings and I used them as an inspiration in writing poems. They create so much meaning and message.
http://tatakblogong.wordpress.com/2009/09/07/haikuno-2-the-desert-is-me/
gustavo sire October 27, 2009 at 1:23 pm
I loved. It’s beautiful.
ashleythinks October 27, 2009 at 4:51 pm
Wow!
paulwmitchel October 27, 2009 at 5:59 pm
That’s beautiful!
Love Malhotra October 28, 2009 at 12:29 am
wow It’s beautiful. http://artistidea.blogspot.com/
psychologist1 October 28, 2009 at 3:14 am
the first one is a strange way of painting. i like arts but this one is not of my taste for sure… nothing personal, it is just my personal point of view.
Corel November 7, 2009 at 5:13 am
I like how your blog is laid out I have bookmark this look forward to seeing more.