March 5 and 6 - Warm Places To Sketch At Lansdowne Park !

Saturday March 5

Tim Horton's Brier

The Ottawa Valley Curling Association says "Go to TD Place for some great curling action....and pay NOTHING!"  

TD Place: Tim Horton's Brier Ottawa

 
Folks might be interested in sketching at Lansdowne Park this Saturday morning (March 5) when the Ford Hot Shots and the Opening Ceremonies of the 2016 Tim Horton's Brier are taking place and admission is FREE! (FYI: The Brier opening weekend tickets cost $119.00)

For details and history on the Brier visit this link: http://www.curling.ca/2016brier/history-of-the-brier/

If you can't make it early to sketch the curling events and Opening Ceremonies, visit the Aberdeen Pavillion which is being converted to a "The Brier Patch" and a food court. The Patch is championship curling’s legendary party place withlive music etc! (Check out the schedule here: http://www.curling.ca/2016brier/fan-zone/)

This is an informal sketching session being offered at the very last minute.

Ottawa sketchers should plan to arrive at 11:00 am for the Ford Hot Shot finals. Stay for the Opening Ceremonies or wander around the other interesting venues in Lansdowne Park.

As always, be sure to post your sketches online for others to see on our Facebook group page

Sunday March 6

Farmer's Market @ the Horticulture Building

Because of the the 2016 Tim Hortons Brier Cup , the Ottawa Farmers' Market at Lansdowne will be relocating (out of the Aberdeen Pavillion) March 6th and 13th
into the warm and cozy Horticulture Building at Lansdowne Park.
Sundays 10:00 am – 3:00 pm,

For the history of the Horticulture building, visit Urbsite
http://urbsite.blogspot.ca/2014/06/separating-frank-sullivan-from.html

Source: Urbsite

 Ottawa’s Farmer's Market at Lansdowne is the only year-round, producer-only farmers’ market.
You can get your local grains, meats, cheeses, produce, locally produced baked goods, and sweets throughout the winter.

There will be plenty to sketch here!

This is an informal sketching session being offered at the very last minute.

Ottawa sketchers should plan to arrive around 10:00 am and stay as long as you wish and wander around the other interesting venues in Lansdowne Park.

As always, be sure to post your sketches online for others to see on our Facebook group page

A Great Night of Sketching at the Carleton Tavern

"The Carleton" sketch above by artist Colin White

About twenty urban sketchers stopped over at the Carleton Tavern on the chilly, snowy night of February 10. 

Ottawa urban sketchers get busy

The Carleton Tavern was established in 1935 and little has changed through its 80 + years.

Sketchers arrived when they could and stayed for as long as they were able.

The tavern staff were warm and welcoming and the place really filled up with the Carleton regular patrons as the night went on.

Sometimes the sketchers become the subject matter for other sketchers.
This was the case with artist Mawt Trood.

To see some of the sketches that Ottawa urban sketchers shared, visit our facebook event page (click here) or our facebook group page (click here)

Below is a sample of some of the sketches that were shared on the facebook event page:

We would love if you would join us on our next outing. Please visit our NEW Facebook Group page and "like" it to receive updates. https://www.facebook.com/groups/937458512999363/

Meet + Sketch + Share

We have moved our Ottawa Urban Sketchers presence on facebook from a "Facebook page" to a "Facebook group" so that YOU can post your urban sketches!

Please visit: https://www.facebook.com/groups/937458512999363/

Our previous "Urban Sketchers Ottawa" facebook page meant that the three administrators were the only ones who could post. We want you to post YOUR urban sketches for everyone to see.

Please Contribute Your Sketches!

Whether you have attended one of our organized sketching events or if you have spent the day urbansketching in Ottawa on your own, please share what you have sketched. 

As with all of our Ottawa Urban Sketchers events, all ages and all skill levels are welcomed to join us and contribute. 

There are just a few simple rules that apply:

Before sharing your drawings on our new facebook page, make sure they meet these basic criteria and they are done in the spirit of the Urban Sketchers Manifesto (below).

• You did the drawing on location, not from photos or memory. 
• You have written the location of the sketch (town and state/country) in the headline 
• No sketches from figure drawing sessions or posed models. 

We reserve the right to remove any drawings that don't fit our mission. We also encourage members to write descriptions and stories associated with each sketch.

• We draw on location, indoors or out, capturing what we see from direct observation. 
• Our drawings tell the story of our surroundings, the places we live and where we travel. 
• Our drawings are a record of time and place. 
• We are truthful to the scenes we witness. 
• We use any kind of media and cherish our individual styles. 
• We support each other and draw together. 
• We share our drawings online. 
• We show the world, one drawing at a time.

Q: "What Is Urban Sketching?"

In the embedded video (16:53) below, Jason Das, former president of Urban Sketchers, explains the Urban Sketching phenomenon to Sketchbook Skool students and suggests how they (and we) can be a part of it.

The Art Of Urban Sketching by Gabriel Campanario

Do yourself a favour and visit (and/or download) this FREE online book and have a look at some great urban sketches from around the world.

"The Art Of Urban Sketching" is a 324-page book by Gabriel Campanario (the founder of Urbansketchers) that is available online for free!

It is downloadable in 10 different formats:

And is being shared under creative commons license "Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported (CC BY-ND 3.0)"

A message from Gabriel Campanario

A Great Evening At The Canadian Museum of Nature!

Many Ottawa artists came out Thursday night to sketch the Canadian Museum of Nature.  It was our first event in 2016 and it was also our first event as an official urban sketcher regional chapter!

It was quite wonderful to visit each of the museum's galleries and find artists everywhere sketching!

Here are some photos from the evening

We are all looking forward to the next sketching event!

If you are interested in joining us

Please visit our facebook page to receive announcements 

https://www.facebook.com/urbansketchersottawa/

It's OFFICIAL!

We received word this morning that our application to have Ottawa become an official urban sketcher regional chapter had been accepted by the USk membership committee!

Artists Colin White, Kristina Corre and Cindi Foreman made the application in late 2015.

This is such great news!

Urban sketching is free and open to sketchers of all ages and all levels. Join us by liking our facebook page where we announce sketch meetups and share our sketches https://www.facebook.com/urbansketchersottawa/

 Urban Sketchers Regional Chapters

An Urban Sketchers Regional Chapter is a geographically-based community of individuals who practice on-location sketching in the spirit of the Urban Sketchers manifesto and has been recognized as such by the Urban Sketchers Executive Board.

Urban Sketchers Manifesto

• We draw on location, indoors or out, capturing what we see from direct observation.
• Our drawings tell the story of our surroundings, the places we live and where we travel.
• Our drawings are a record of time and place.
• We are truthful to the scenes we witness.
• We use any kind of media and cherish our individual styles.
• We support each other and draw together.
• We share our drawings online.
• We show the world, one drawing at a time.

Regional Chapters

From the urban sketchers.org website:

"The global Urban Sketchers community offers the opportunity to make new friends in your area and to learn from others as you start capturing your surroundings with pen and paper and sharing your results. 

We are a supportive group where you’ll find inspiration online and a network of sketching buddies all over the world. If you’re planning a trip, you may wish to arrange to sketch with members of an USk Regional Chapter in the city you will be visiting. 

You may also connect with fellow sketchers in our groups on Flickr and Facebook.

ARGENTINA

• Argentina (National chapter)

AUSTRALIA

• Australia (National chapter)

BHUTAN

• Bhutan (National chapter)

BRAZIL

• Brazil (National chapter)

CANADA

• Kitchener-Waterloo
• Montreal
• Toronto
• Vancouver

CHILE

• Chile (National chapter)

CHINA

• Hong Kong

COSTA RICA

• Costa Rica (National chapter)

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

• Dominican Republic (National chapter)

ENGLAND

• Birmingham
• London
• Manchester
• Southampton
• Yorkshire

FRANCE

• France (National chapter)
• Paris

GERMANY

• Germany (National chapter)
• Berlin
• Düsseldorf/Cologne
• Munich

HUNGARY

• Budapest

INDIA

• Pune

INDONESIA

• Indonesia (National chapter)

IRELAND

• Galway

ISRAEL

• Israel (National chapter)

ITALY

• Italy (National chapter)
• Milano
• Sardinia

JAPAN

• Japan (National chapter)

KOREA

• Seoul

LUXEMBOURG

• Luxembourg

MALAYSIA

• Kuching
• Penang

NEW ZEALAND

• New Zealand (National chapter)

PALESTINE

• Palestine

PHILIPPINES

• Philippines (National chapter)

PORTUGAL

• Portugal (National chapter)
• Açores
• Beiras
• Madeira
• Norte

RUSSIA

• Moscow

SINGAPORE

• Singapore (National chapter)

SPAIN

• Spain (National chapter)
• Girona

SWEDEN

• Eskilstuna
• Skane

SWITZERLAND

• Switzerland (National chapter)

TAIWAN

• Taiwan (National chapter)

THAILAND

• Thailand (National chapter)

TURKEY

• Istanbul

UKRAINE

• Ukraine (National chapter)
• Odessa

UNITED STATES

• Charleston, S.C.
• Chicago
• Cleveland
• Central Florida
• Hawaii (Oahu)
• Memphis
• Midwest (Regional chapter)
• Minneapolis-St. Paul
• New Jersey
• New York City
• Portland
• San Diego
• San Francisco - Bay Area
• San Francisco - North Bay Area
• Seattle
• Tacoma, WA
• Texas
• Washington State Tri-Cities
• Washington D.C.

JAN 21 An Evening of Sketching at the Canadian Museum of Nature

Source: KPMB Open Buildings

Join us on Thursday evening January 21, 2016 for an indoor evening sketch meetup at the Canadian Museum of Nature. The Canadian Museum of Nature (CMN) was the first purpose built museum in Canada! CMN is home to 10 million specimens gathered over 150 years.



To keep our sketch meetups free, we will be sketching at the museum Thursday January 21, 2016 in the evening between 5 and 8 pm.

NOTE: Some CMN galleries require an admission fee (see details below) but, if you want to see them for free, you can check out the OPL "Borrow A Pass" program (if you have an Ottawa library card)

Architecture

If the weather permits, there is plenty to sketch on the exterior of this magnificent CMN building.

The impressive limestone building (built in 1905, and beautifully renovated in 2010) is known to locals as “the castle.” Canada's Parliament was held in this building from 1916 to 1920 after the Ottawa fire of 1916.

Canadian Museum of Nature
240 McLeod Street, Ottawa, Ontario
(At the corner of McLeod and Metcalfe)
Photo Source: PCL : Victoria Memorial Museum Building Rehabilitation

The original building – known as the Victoria Memorial Museum Building (VMMB) - has been described as Scottish Baronial in design.

"The museum is one of the first public buildings to incorporate into its design animals and plants that are found in Canada. These are found in windows, exterior walls and interior embellishments, in addition to the two carved moose heads that guard the main entrance." (Source: CMN)

A stylized fox head, oak leaves and acorns adorn the newel of the main staircase.
It is carved from Missisquoi grey-green marble.
The cap and base are carved in Missisquoi bolder grey marble.
(Photo Source: CNM)

Two mooseheads appearing at the main entrance to the CNM
Source: Building The Victoria Memorial Museum Building 

The architecture inside the CNM building is stunning and would be very interesting to sketch.

The Lantern at the Canadian Nature Museum
Click here for interactive photosphere

Don't forget to visit the recently installed arctic-inspired iceberg sculpture by artist Bill Lishman (http://williamlishman.com/)!

Artist Bill Lishman in front of his sculpture at the CMN
(October 2015 Source CBC: All In A Day)

The Galleries

Two of the galleries (Birds and Animalium) are presently closed for renovations until June 2016 and two other galleries are special exhibits and require admission purchase even on the free Thursday night. 

There is a lot to sketch in three hours at the following open galleries:

• Talisman Energy Fossil Gallery
• Water Gallery
• Vale Earth Gallery
• Mammal Gallery
• Stone Wall Gallery

Galleries excluded/unavailable:

Closed temporarily:

• Animalium (closed for renovation until June 2016)
• Bird Gallery (closed for renovation until June 2016)
• Ultimate Dinosaurs: (opens June 2016)

Not included in the free evening. (Special exhibitions are excluded from free Thursdays) They will cost extra

• Bugs: Outside the Box (additional charge of $4)

The Details

• When: Thursday, January21, 2016. Free Admission to the Permanent Galleries Thursday evenings: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm. We will meet in the main lobby at 5 pm and sketch until 8 pm; (If work schedules prevent you from arriving at 5 - no worries - arrive whenever you can and look for other sketchers)
• Admission Cost: Free Admission to the Permanent Galleries Thursday evenings: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
• Show and Tell: 8:30 pm The Lieutenant's Pump, 361 Elgin Street, Ottawa, ON K2P 1M9 

• How to get there: The following OC Transpo buses will take you to the Canadian Museum of Nature:  
• Route 5, 6: Bus stop at the corner of Elgin and McLeod, one block from the museum 
• Route 14: Bus stop at the corner of Gladstone and Metcalfe, one block from the museum 
• Route 1, 7: Bus stop at the corner of Bank and McLeod, two blocks from the museum
• Parking: Paid parking is available on the Canadian Museum of Nature grounds; evening flat rate: $5 (4:30 pm – 4:30 am); there is free evening street parking at night in centretown but there are special restrictions if there is snow.
  
• Museum Rules: When asked about sketchers in the nature museum, the officer of Visitor Experience Guy Romain advises, "Thank you for your question.  The only thing we ask of artists is that they do not set up easels or tripods or lighting.  They need to be mindful that the museum is open to all visitors so they cannot block any exhibits, panels, doorways or stairways. Please let me know if you have any further questions or comments." We asked  a follow-up question about artists bringing portable, small sketch stools and the museum replied (Jan 14) that artists are welcome to bring small stools.
• Official website: http://nature.ca/en/home
• Downloadable App: There is FREE Wi-Fi throughout the museum and there is a FREE android/iPhone app 
• Nature Trek "Show and tell" videos of CNM researchers and educators lead you through the galleries.