Scott DuBar Illustration

Tag: Urban Sketchers

  • Three Ganeshas | Sketchbook

    Three Ganeshas | Sketchbook

    Three Ganeshas watercolor sketch by Scott DuBar
    Sketchbook drawing, Bali 2018. Ratu Bagus Ashram.

    Here are a couple of sketchbook drawings I did during my recent trip to Bali, Indonesia. I was there on a meditation retreat at a beautiful center near the island’s biggest volcano, Mt. Agung. The watercolor sketch is of the stairs leading up to the center’s dining hall. From this side, you can see three Ganeshas, two at the base of the stairs, and one at the top.

    It’s actually quite difficult for me to sketch in Bali because of how intricately ornate everything is. There is so much beautiful detail on almost every surface that it can be a real challenge finding something simple enough to sketch in a short time.

    The only other sketch from my visit is of a Balinese man reading the morning paper, Nusa Bali. This one was done with my trusty Pentel brushpen.

    Three Ganeshas blogpost image by Scott DuBar
    Sketchbook drawing while a Ashram Ratu Bagus, Bali 2018
  • Spudnuts Signed Print

    Spudnuts Signed Print

    Sketchbook drawing of Spudnuts Donut and Coffee Shop, Charlottesville, Virginia.

    Signed print of my sketchbook drawing of Spudnuts Donut and Coffee Shop, Charlottesville, Virginia.

     

    Did this fun little sketch awhile back of local donut shop, Spudnuts, with a few friends from the Charlottesville Urban Sketchers group. Little did I know that this local icon had been sold and was soon to shut its doors forever. For years, Spudnuts was a favorite among the locals and students at UVA. Happily, someone saw my sketch online and ordered a signed print. The original is part of my travel sketchbook and too small for framing, so I scanned it into Photoshop. I was able to enlarge it to 9×13 and give it a nice vignette. Thanks to T&N Printing for doing such a great job!

    Featured prints of my illustration work are available in my shop. Prints of anything in my portfolio available upon request.

  • Urban Sketching with the Galaxy Note 5

    Urban Sketching with the Galaxy Note 5

     

    [image_frame url=”https://scottdubar.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/107.jpg” border_style=”boxed-frame-hover” action=”open-lightbox”]

    Met up with my local Urban Sketchers group, eager to try out the S Pen on my new Samsung Note 5. I was running late that day, so didn’t really have time for more than the one sketch shown above. I used S Note, an app that comes pre-installed. Overall, I was very happy with how it came out, but I will need to look into some of the various drawing apps if I want to pursue digital sketching on a regular basis. S Note makes switching between different brushes, brush sizes, and colors a little bit cumbersome for sketching from life. It’s not terrible by any means, and I had a real blast playing with it, but the reality is what it is. There are also improvements that could be made on getting the most out of the S Pen’s pressure-sensitivity. It’s an awesome feature, but it only applies to one or two brushes. I looked at Sketchbook from Autodesk, but the free version does not seem to support pressure-sensitivity which is a deal-breaker for me.

    In the end, the S Pen is amazing, convenient, and fully eliminates any excuse for not keeping up with your sketchbook drawing- even if you only use it as a backup to your actual paper sketchbook.

  • Urban Sketchers Gallery Show at the VCA

    Urban Sketchers Gallery Show at the VCA

    I got to participate in a local Urban Sketchers gallery showing at the Virginia Center for Architecture in Richmond, which marked my first galley showing in a pretty long time. The event was organized by Jessie Chapman, who is a long-time board member of UrbanSketchers.org, an international organization that promotes sketchbook drawing.
    The exhibit features our Urban Sketchers group, along with work from Andrew Moore, Don Gore, and Washington Post news illustrator Richard Johnson.

    Above: Me standing next to my profound thoughts on the value of sketchbook drawing.
    Oddly, none of the sketches pictured are mine. Below: A few of the panels that feature some of my work, along with Stephen Haske, Jessie Chapman, and others.

     

    The show will be up through July 5, so anyone in the RVA area can drop by. Check out www.architectureva.org for more details.

     

  • Hanging with the Urban Sketchers

    Hanging with the Urban Sketchers

     

     
    Went to the downtown library today with some of the Urban Sketchers. Had a nice view of the street from a cozy window seat in the children’s book section. #urbansketchers #sketchbook

     

  • Super Bowl Sunday sketching before the crowds came.

    Super Bowl Sunday sketching before the crowds came.

     

    Met with the Urban Sketchers this Super Bowl Sunday at Buffalo Wild Wings. We got there well before the big crowds came, which was good since that gave us plenty of time to sketch, eat and talk without feeling pressured to give up our table. First image was colored digitally at home.

     

  • Urban Sketchers at the Miller School of Albermarle

    Urban Sketchers at the Miller School of Albermarle

       Miller School of Albermarle   

     

    Joined the Urban Sketchers for the plein air event at the Miller School of Albermarle. It was a gorgeous day of sitting in the sun and the grass! Here’s hoping we get a few more days like this one before winter sets in. You can see photos of other artists at the event here.

  • Urban Sketching On Water Street

    Urban Sketching On Water Street

     

    Did some sketching from  the Water Street parking garage with the Urban Sketchers this weekend. I’ve been wanting to go there for awhile now and was so happy that it got picked. Parking garages are a great place to get good city views, provided the security people don’t have a problem with it. The top image was done with a Pentel Pocket Brush, and then colored digitally at home. The bottom image was a quick 20-minute sketch with watercolor.

  • Carter’s Mountain Orchard Peaches

    Carter’s Mountain Orchard Peaches

     

    Did a little sketching with the Urban Sketchers this last weekend. We went to Carter’s Mountain Orchard, sketching tourists and freshly picked peaches. It’s been over a month since I joined up with them, and boy did I feel rusty!

  • Smartphone Sketching

    Smartphone Sketching

    Now I can finally justify my smartphone. Did these using Samsung Memo. I have to say, my favorite thing about this is that I now have no excuse to not do some sketching whenever I’m out and about.