I rarely go out just to sketch. My big sketching days are the ones when I am meeting up with friends (or an official USK event) but  most commonly it is just trying to squeeze a sketch into my daily life.

This sketch – Sydney Hospital courtyard as viewed from the cafe –  was done in the context of all these things:

• I had an appointment in Macquarie St. It is a bit of a pain to have to travel into the city just for an hour appointment… but so be it!
• I arrived in Macquarie St an hour early to do a little scoping and preparation (organising with people) for my upcoming Sketching Architecture workshop in the area. If you are interested, in this I’m sorry but it’s fully booked but still taking names on the waiting list.
• I was thinking about the content for that workshop and the similar one that I will be teaching next week in Melbourne.
• I was thinking about some of the concepts I am writing about in my Sketching Architecture book which is consuming a lot of my time at the moment.
• I forgot my backup palette – my normal palette is filled up ready for Melbourne trip later in the week.
• I have been reading Lynne Chapman’s new Sketching People book and last week tried sketching people in my usual Albrecht Durer watercolour pencils. I wasn’t happy with the result (the lines were too soft) so thought I would test the Inktense pencils that Lynne uses so well. This was a good way to get to know them better.

So a simple quick 10-minute sketch is loaded with ideas (and memories).

It is truly amazing how I can rabbit on so much about nothing, isn’t it??? Was any of that of any use?… or is this just an example of my talking to myself too much?

When one blogs, the distinction between addressing your audience and raving to yourself is sometimes a little blurred!