Sketches and Notes from the Workshops: Buildings

I chose Symposium workshops to conquer my weak spots: sketching buildings and using colors effectively. A big "thank you" goes out to all the instructors and staff who made it happen - I learned a lot and had lots of fun! I jotted down some notes on what I learned, mostly as reminders for myself but hopefully you can get something out of it, too.

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First up: buildings! I took Personal Viewpoints architecture workshop taught by Liz Steel and Frank Ching at Catedral Primada de América. Here is a sketch that came out of this workshop:

• Figure out the direction the sun is moving - and sketch in the shade accordingly. (Very important in a hot climate like Santo Domingo! I suppose you'd want to sketch in the sun in colder climates.)
• Add dark lines to the foreground to give a sense of depth.
• Draw a measurable vertical line in a building first, and draw a horizontal element in relation to that to get the proportions right in a building.
• Looking at the plan of the building first can help you understand the structure (for example, this cathedral had a vaulted ceiling that I was struggling to draw, and I understand it better after I saw the plan and Frank explained that top of the vaults are attached to every other column.)

I also took a panorama workshop with Simo Capecchi and Claudio Patané at museum inside Alcázar de Colón overlooking Plaza de España. I drew this panorama and colored it at home - I am disappointed in how the painting turned out since Moleskine watercolor sketchbook does not take glazes or washes the way I expect. I also did not leave enough space at top to paint in wonderful cumulus clouds that I rarely get to see at home. But I did get to practice painting shadows and trees.

• Be aware that cone of vision is less than 360 degrees: take into account that you are drawing in sections that you see, or draw the edges warped on purpose like how you would see out of your peripheral vision (a fish-eye effect). 
• Do some thumbnails and contour drawings of the scene first to get the relationship of the elements.
• Draw cast shadow areas first since shadows will move quickly.
• Leave some white spaces "for the birds to breathe" when painting.

I also took a Decisive Moments workshop with Veronica Lawlor and Jonathan Schmidt at Calle El Conde, which is a shopping street filled with people hanging out among buildings with a variety of colors and texture. Putting people in their environment really gives a feel for the place. Here is a drawing from the workshop that I colored at home. You can tell from the perspective in this sketch that I was at eye level with crowds of people below, while looking up at the balconies above (an echo of what Simo and Claudio mentioned at their panorama workshop):

• Walk around the area to sketch and jot down thumbnails of scenes that catch your attention. You can then decide which drawing will tell the story of the place the best.
• Look up and around - often something interesting is happening, like people hanging out at the balcony in a sketch above.
• Experiment with distance - zoom in/out of the scene to get close-ups/long shots of the scene (as in photography).

The important thing I learned overall is to not feel too pressured to draft buildings "perfectly" once I get the measurements right. These workshops gave me the incentive to practice sketching buildings some more!