Ottawa Urban Sketchers Visit the National Gallery of Canada

The last gathering of the Ottawa urban sketchers for 2015 took place at the National Gallery of Canada and everyone is looking forward to more sketching meetups in 2016!

The National Gallery of Canada

A great group of sketchers showed up for a wonderful evening at the National Gallery of Canada. There were some familiar faces and some new faces as well. We love that!

New sketchers are always welcome!

Part of the Ottawa urban sketcher group posing under the Christmas tree

There were many fun challenges on this sketchcrawl:

• There was a museum rule of "pencils only" and "no erasers"! 
• The time frame was short (5 to 8 pm) and there were so many galleries to choose from!
• The exhibit: Monet: Bridge to Modernity" drew large crowds.
• The busy holiday season meant that many of the Ottawa urban sketchers that wished to attend had to send their regrets instead.

At the end of the evening, everyone shared their sketches and it was clear that everyone enjoyed themselves overcoming the challenges and creating some great sketches

Our sketches from the show and tell.

Join Us!

If you are interested in sketching with this group, follow ("like") our facebook page where we announce events. We always contact the organization or institution in advance to announce our intentions to sketch in a group and ask that they let us know of any guidelines for artists sketching at their venue.

Our "sketch crawls" are free and open to sketchers of all ages and levels. Anyone who sketches in Ottawa is welcomed to join us!

Ideas for 2016 

Other indoor venues for this winter that we are looking at include:

• The Nature Museum (they recently responded to our email request)
• Three free indoor green spaces: Tropical Greenhouse (Arboretum);  Carleton Greenhouses; and  Rideau Hall Greenhouses (we will be contacting them regarding accommodations for a sketching group)

Outdoor venues being considered for future sketch crawls include:

• Winterlude (Jan 29 - Feb 15, 2016)
• Rideau Canal Skateway

Free things to do and sketch in Ottawa

If you have an idea for a great indoor (or outdoor) 

place to sketch this winter in Ottawa, 

please let us know in the comment section below!

Documentary: Forgotten Spaces by Justin Nalepa

This is an 8-minute video by filmmaker Justin Nalepa 

of Ottawa urban sketchers who spent last summer 

urban sketching Ottawa's "Forgotten Spaces" 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvkkgu60X0Yiuguyyd

Filmmaker Justin Nalepa says, "I'm very proud to share with you my latest documentary, Forgotten Spaces. A huge thanks goes out to Colin White for all his help in bringing together an amazing group of people and leading us on a journey around Ottawa's alleyways.

"Alleyways in Ottawa are forgotten spaces. They serve as loading zones, garbage pickup and areas for bar staff to smoke. More interestingly, they serve as rudimentary pedestrian zones. People use them to get off main streets or create shortcuts. There is a strange beauty in the aesthetic: because they are not being officially presented to the public, they are often decayed and decrepit. Alleys display the hidden operational needs of a city: dumpsters, scary bundles of hydro wires, venting and piping, grim and grease traps." - Colin White 

Featuring the remarkable works of Emma Cochrane, Marc Adornato, Mawt Trood, Kristina Corre, Cindi Foreman, Anthony Parravano, Colin White, Stephen Frew, Beccy Murphy and Chris Roussakis.

The Artists

• Marc Adornato http://www.adornato.com/home.php
• Emma Cochrane http://emmacochrane.ca/
• Kristina Corre http://goodthingsottawa.ca/
• Cindi Foreman http://moynahanstudio.blogspot.ca/
• Stephen Frew https://stephenfrew.wordpress.com/
• Beccy Murphy https://www.behance.net/BeccyM
• Anthony Parravano http://www.anthonyparravano.ca/
• Chris Roussakis http://www.roussakisphotography.com/
• Mawt Trood https://www.flickr.com/photos/trude_514/albums
• Colin White http://www.colinwhite.ca/

Reminder: Two Great Sketching Events This Week

There are two great evening sketching events this week: life drawing on Tuesday at the Atomic Rooster on Bank St (the theme is Star Wars) and museum sketching on Thursday at the National Gallery of Canada.

Both events are free and both events welcome sketchers of all levels. All you need is a pencil and something to sketch on so please join us!

Dec 15: 

Drawing at the Rooster

https://www.facebook.com/events/137964166571077/

There will be multiple models and short and long poses. Drawing at the Rooster is a relaxed and non-judgmental creative environment where all skill levels are welcome. 

As always, there are food and beverage specials, so bring your sketch book and your creativity. Be sure to come early to get a good seat.

No Cover or pay what you can | 19+

Dec 17: 

An Indoor Evening Museum Sketchcrawl

https://www.facebook.com/events/693187980818238/

Ottawa Urban sketchers are moving indoors to sketch this winter.

We will take advantage of Ottawa's Free Museum Thursdays and Dec 17 we will be sketching at the National Gallery of Canada.

Details can be found here: http://ottawaurbansketchers.blogspot.ca/2015/11/thursday-december-17-indoor-evening.html

This Friday: "Forgotten Spaces" Documentary

The documentary "Forgotten Spaces" by filmmaker Justin Nalepa will be screening at the Digi60 Filmmakers' Festival this Friday!

Forgotten Spaces follows a group of talented artists as they explore alleyways around Ottawa. Featuring artists Colin White, Emma Cochrane, Anthony Parravano, Marc Adornato, Cindi Foreman, Mawt Trood, Stephen Frew and Kristina Corre.

More information about the festival and the other films found here: http://www.digi60.org/documentary-filmmakers/ 

Poster design by Colin White, photo credit Chris Roussakis.

The Artists

• Marc Adornato http://www.adornato.com/home.php
• Emma Cochrane http://emmacochrane.ca/
• Kristina Corre http://goodthingsottawa.ca/
• Cindi Foreman http://moynahanstudio.blogspot.ca/
• Stephen Frew https://stephenfrew.wordpress.com/
• Beccy Murphy https://www.behance.net/BeccyM
• Anthony Parravano http://www.anthonyparravano.ca/
• Chris Roussakis http://www.roussakisphotography.com/
• Mawt Trood https://www.flickr.com/photos/trude_514/albums
• Colin White http://www.colinwhite.ca/

What is Digi60? 

The Digi60 Filmmakers’ Festival is a grassroots, local “catch” film festival where filmmakers have 60 days to create and complete a seven-minute short film. These films are evaluated by a jury of industry professionals from across North America. The films are screened at a public gala event, taking place this year at the Centrepointe Studio Theatre.

Digi60’s long time mandate has two important components: to provide opportunities for new and emerging filmmakers to create and screen their work while networking with other filmmakers, and to build a professional skill base for the participants of the Festival to enter the filmmaking industry.

Source: http://www.ottawalife.com/2015/09/taking-filmmaking-to-the-limit/

You See More When You Draw

rijksmuseum.nl

Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, which was recently renovated and restored by Cruz y Ortiz, have launched The Big Draw campaign, encouraging visitors to ditch the camera and pick up a pad and pencil. 

Under the tagline 'You See More When You Draw', the Dutch national museum want to "help visitors discover and appreciate the beauty of art, architecture and history through drawing" as a counter to what they describe as an often "passive and superficial experience" when seen through the lens of a smartphone. 

 https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/startdrawing

In response to the initiative, Wim Pijbes, General Director of the Rijksmuseum, has said: 
"In our busy lives we don’t always realise  how beautiful something can be.  We forget how to look really closely.  Drawing helps because you see more when you draw."

rijksmuseum.nl

rijksmuseum.nl

rijksmuseum.nl

rijksmuseum.nl