I attended four terrific workshops at the Urban Sketchers Symposium in Chicago in July. The first was with Renato Palmuti, a wonderful illustrator/artist/sketcher from Brazil. In his workshop, entitled Watercolour Techniques for a Fast Cityscape, he had us work with a single neutral colour, beginning with a simple light layer to identify basic shapes, then a second mid-tone layer with more detail, and finally the darkest tones to add further definition and detail. He also emphasized “less brush strokes, for a more energetic sketch.” Thanks to his excellent instruction and inspiration I produced this sketch of the ornate Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park. [Painted in sepia in a Pentallic Aqua Journal.]
