Beer Festival in Grand Place Brussels

Cafe Chaloupe d'Or

Grand Place de Bruxellas

Beer festival 

Grand Place de Bruxellas

Caught hurriedly on tissue paper I did these sketches a few months back when I was on a quick tour to Europe. Grand Place de Bruxellas was in the happy frenzy of an ongoing Beer Festival and the live energy amidst the beautiful and ornate architecture around brought out the artist in me. I was in the midst of sampling some delicious Belgium chocolate but I kept the confectionery aside to perch myself under a baroque lamp-post and capture these sketches! Unlike in India, people did not peer or gather around you when you sketched in the open. It seemed to be a done thing. Happy beer guzzlers bonding in camaraderie, stylish people wearing the latest fashion, parents with babies in strollies, selfie clickers straining their necks to get the perfect shot and introverted artists all comprised the mix of crowd milling around. I had a wonderful memory and the most beautiful experience sketching there!

Bespoke - Oil on Canvas

A sketch of myself in my new hairstyle which is fast wearing out. We all fear change but at the same time it excites us. I had quite an interesting time . Many people loved this hairstyle . Some didn't. Some behaved like I committed a crime by daring to have a temporary change. Some failed to recognise me. As for me, I enjoyed the sleek look that it brought. Little did I care about what the world thought!

I am hovering between my floral colours and skin hues. Hanging in confusion. I seem to love skin for the time. I seem to crave for contours and expressions . Shadows and light. Well, I let things take their course . You will know soon when I upload the next one.

Meanwhile I bumped into my florist the other day, who now seems to wait for me to come to his shop, as opposed to few months back when he would scoff at me ! He is almost offended at me for not having come to buy flowers and show him which of his florals I painted!

So much for change!!

Prithvi Cafe

 

Pen on Paper

B4 Size

 

The famous Prithvi Cafe' with its beautiful and artistic ambience. An artist's delight and an artiste's haven! This café is famous for its celebrity clientele and Irish Coffee! The Sulemani tea is one of my favourites. This sketch absorbed two Sulmani Teas, half a chocolate pastry and a chicken pan sandwich! The morning hours at Prithvi on Sunday are great. Many celeb...rities bring their kids for the morning children's show and the rest of the crowd comprise classy people with chic dressing. Prithvi is the place to bump into singers, actors, flautists and artists hanging around discussing projects or just sipping coffee thinking about the next production! When I sketched this, the food counters were still empty as the morning food batches weren't delivered .

 



Bandra Banter- Cottages and Churches of Bandra

Hi All, 

An article of mine, with some sketches that I had done on the cottages of Bandra, a sea-side suburb of Mumbai which is famous for its pubs and shopping got published in a local paper, Bandra Buzz.

Here's a link to the article:

     http://www.bandrabuzz.com/cottages-of-bandra-a-sketchy-story.html

It's been a while since I have been raving about the other side of Bandra ( not the shopping and pubbing) in my mind's artful eye. I haven't yet finished with all the sketching and discovering of the churches and bungalows, but here are a few of the ones I did:

A sketch of an old cottage near a brand new cafe which has sprung up recently:

 SOLD

A lovely old bungalow on a tree lined avenue speaking of the past and trying to stand out in the present:

SOLD

An old Bungalow with a large compound with tress and shrubs:

SOLD

A huge bungalow in the middle of a quiet neighbourhood slowly being overshadowed with tall buildings:

St. Andrew's Church near Hill Road in Bandra is the oldest church in Bandra and first church to be set up by the Portuguese.It is a white and grey sombre structure blaring the Portuguese connection of Bandra.(Photo courtesy Wikipedia).

Mount Mary's Church, featured in many Hindi movies has beautiful Roman architecture and people from all religions flock to this church: 

Bandra Cottage

A sketch of a cottage in Bandra, Mumbai. Bandra is a posh suburb of Mumbai usually famous for pubs and shopping.But beyond that lie the beautiful sceneries of Bandra dotted with old Portuguese styled bungalows and churches.This is one of the many sketches that I did to  retain my memory of the wonder and glee that I experienced whenever I discovered a new bungalow or church.How long before they submit to the vagaries of civilisation and trade hands with multi-storeyed apartments? Will the balconies and fluttering curtains just be frozen in art and poetry?

Of Bags, Biscuits and Bards

 

This lady was trying to open a biscuit tin on the flight, but she was so busy trying to see who was eyeing her biscuits, that she kept on looking steadily across the aisle. I didn't want to lose this opportunity of sketching her. Of course she regarded me as one of the biscuit watchers!



This guy was sleeping right next to my seat, clutching a camera in a bag, which he had fished out some time during the flight to check out some pix, which I couldn't help prying into! He was a young executive, who had gone to his home town for a break and was flying back to his place of work! 

As I upload this, I also pay tribute to a great maestro of Indian music, Dr. Bhupen Hazarika,who departed for his heavenly abode yesterday . He hailed from the Indian state of Assam and was a writer, composer and singer all rolled into one. We grew up listening to Assamese songs sung by him and I had the great fortune of seeing his live concerts many a times. He also largely contributed to the overall Indian music scene and directed movies and composed music and sang for Hindi films. He was popularly known as the Bard of the Bramhaputra (mighty river from Assam, India).

All in all a literateur , singer, composer, and revolutionary, a rare personna. May his soul rest in peace!

Below is the link to one of his songs in assamese, which was later also converted into Hindi and sung in the film Rudaali.

 http://youtu.be/iu4BR6fUVlU

Bhut Jolokia- Acrylic Sketch

 

Tried a quick sketch of the 'Bhut Jolokia', juxtaposed with an olive, both fruits growing in Assam, India. Bhut Jolokia, is the hottest chilli in the world.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhut_Jolokia_chili_pepper.

I love the smell , which wafts from at least a meter and makes your tongue water. The beauty of this chilli is that it's a good appetizer and is supposed to aid in the therapy of gastric ulcers . The olive, on the other hand , is a green winter fruit (bigger than the international variety) and the olive trees, which are fast disappearing at least from  the urban areas in Assam, get laden with this fruit in the winter. I remember childhood afternoons when we used to pick them and eat them with salt. My daughter does the same now,  when we visit Assam in the winters. It also goes well with Dal and Rice as a boiled and mashed delicacy. Of course olive pickle is a big delicacy in Assam.
This was a quick sketch, meant to finish the very last bit of those acrylic paints.
I couldn't really capture all the crinkles, but I needed to hurry as I have a flight to catch. Let's see if I can do an oil painting of this bright chilli! Till then...

Oh yes, the raaga I'm humming today is Bhimpalasi.

'Right flight'

This guy was fast asleep on a long flight , which I boarded at Delhi ( Capital city of India). He slept throughout the journey and was good sketching model for me.

This woman was just across the aisle and was fast asleep. But her next seat owner was very suspicious of my sketching her and I had to rush through this, as I didn't want to land in trouble.

                                                                                                                                                                                                    

I was in Delhi after a long time and was amazed at the way the airport had developed. It's now huge and impressive with scores of terminals . I sketched this at one of the terminals . t was early morning and there wasn't too much of a crowd.  

My people watching told me the following facts about people in airports and flights:

1) Most people in airports are either checking their mobiles, talking on the phone, are working on their laptops or sitting and staring. Very few of them read.

2) Most people on a flight sleep and few of them read or play games on their mobiles etc.

3) People in airports and flights are very suspicious of sketchers:). I bore the curiousity of everyone and   got disdainful but interested looks! 

 

Air- Flair

I caught this man reading on a flight.This was exactly thesight I saw from across the aisle. I couldn't draw the seat with a right perspective, as I had to really strain my neck to capture the pose  successfully. I drew a lot of attention from the person sitting next to me and also got some disdainful glances from  few others. But well who cares? Am a sketchoholic and I ain't gonna let such a golden opportunity pass by! Meanwhile, the subject never got to know what I was upto!  

The Wait

This is a quick sketch done about a month back, in the Doc's waiting room, where I had gone to seek advice for some minor a allergy. This lady in the Burqa looked bored and tired, as if she had been waiting for a long time.
The most interesting aspect of this experience was trying to sketch her unawares. Once or twice she did look at me as I was furiously sketching, as two kids who were there were intrigued by what I was drawing and hovered around me as I sketched. Nevertheless, I managed to stealthily catch her posture successfully . I must say that this sketch resembles the woman to a considerable extent. I was tempted to show her my sketch once it was done. However I resisted, not knowing how she would react. Would she understand an art lover's inherent desire to catch a pose? I'd used a ball point pen on one of the rough paper bills lying in my bag. By the time my turn had come, I'd sketched her, the sofa in the room, the ac and one door! Also managed to entertain some curious onlookers !  

'Side Over' - Sketch

A quickly captured sketch, done with water colour pencils. This divine scene greets me often, as the buildings on the other side of lake Powai throw beautiful reflections on the serene lake.I have watched this scene longingly for at least two years, always making strokes with my brush and almost smelling the buttery oils as I spread over the buildings, the reflections and the greenery. But, somehow or the other, I haven't been able to come and paint the scene on spot.

Well, the nearest I could do was capture it  on my sketchbook. I finished it within 15 minutes and touched up later.

Let me hope that this is only take one and I do several sketches/ paintings of this so that I come up with a great one, which actually brings forth the beauty of this! 

Urbania- Acrylic sketch on A4 size canvas

The creek, electrical/telecom towers, buildings and boats! Contrasts which complete a beautiful picture along with the sunset. That's the beauty of Mumbai .A city replete with the beauty of its concrete silhouhettes  against the backdrop of nature.   

Horizon - Acrylic on canvas sheet

A sketch done to refresh similar sights I saw very often while going to Shillong ( Hill Station in Meghalaya) in my young days. Upper Shillong has beautiful sights, where the grass from the hill tops melts with the blue sky.
We have had many a stop over to picnic and lay down on the grass strewn with small flowers. Bliss! 

From my sketchbook

Some more pages from my sketchbook. Hiranandani buildings and eastern express highway done from imagination with soft pastels. I actually want to do detailed plein air sketches and have sketched them a million times in my mind..but till then I'll settle for this.

Eastern Express- Sketch

A page off my sketchbook. Sights of Eastern Express highway impressioned in my mind. Done with gel pen and crayons.

Flight Plight- Sketch, Gel pen

I had done this sketch about a year and a half back when I was flying to some work destination. I was bored in the flight and sketched this with a gel pen, just  to while time.It was done from the photo of a celebrity. 

Floored!- Sketch , carbon pencil

This squatting posture caught my fancy and I made a quick sketch of this maid sitting on the floor.

She was excited at this sudden interest on her and posed wonderfully. She would have given any live art model a complex! Well, I enjoyed this quick live drawing session and so did she! Little does she know that she has occupied pride of place on this blog and is on view for the world!

I do not feel like painting today and so decided to close my drawing with this. Tomorrow is another day.

Bookshelf - Sketch

A charcoal sketch of a Bookshelf, made from a photo.

I have been sketching on some great paper of late.. It's called acid free drawing paper. The texture is smooth and great for pastels and pencils both. 

I was listening to 'All of my Love' by Led Zeppelin while doing this sketch...

Link below: Pl do not miss. Especially the saxophone (not too sure whether it's sax or some kinda flute though) bit in the middle of the song!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpJia1TrzL8

Fall Vista - Soft Pastel Sketch

Had done this sketch out of imagination with soft pastels. I love those pastels, save for the fact that they generate too much dust and after sometime one starts sneezing. When I was halfway through this sketch, I started sneezing and it made my hand unsteady.

Tips for artists:

Have a rag cloth ready with you if you are using these pastels.

                     

Do not wear light cloured clothes.

Either use a fixative spray if you want to preserve them, or frame them right away, or the colours may 'dust' away. 

This sketch is better than the photo!When will I click pix with my cam or rather, will I ever take the effort to click snaps with my cam?

I have got a half done oil of a girl sitting in a boat in the wilderness on the easel. but i seem to have abandoned it. Till then, expect more sketches!

Jammed! Sketch- Soft pastels

I came early from work yesterday as I had to reach someplace for some work but couldn't reach because of this in Hiranandani, Powai (Mumbai, india)!

Well, the first showers that we were so waiting for are gonna also bring these jams..that means long hours in traffic, clutch- brake- escalator syndrome, petrol bills hike and exhaustion! Phew!

This is a tiny sketch I did to try out some soft pastels that i bought the other day. They are amazing and blend very well on plain paper.

They are Artists' Soft Pastels by brand Gallery ( munovo) . They come for INR 300 ( in India).