Adios Mexico Sketches

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink by Black Elephant Blog author

Today the remaining sketches done before leaving Mexico are now ready to post.  Each was done in pencil at the site, and filled in later with watercolor and some ink.

Returning to San Miguel de Allende from Guanajuato,  it was possible to observe the different feeling of  each city–with the former seemingly slower-moving relative to Guanajuato, which buzzed with the energy of the college town it is.

The tranquility of the beautiful courtyard of the Belles Artes cultural center in San Miguel de Allende was a must for a last-look.  Tree branches extending over the fountain drooped with ripe oranges, while a security guard waited for his shift to end. This seems to be the quietest spot in town.

 

Illustration: Watercolor, gouache, and pen-and-ink by Black Elephant Blog author

Finally, it was off to Mexico City where a visit to the high Castle of Chapultepec provided an unforgettably well-done overview of Mexico’s history and an equally spectacular overview of the modern capital city.

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink by Black Elephant Blog author

Chapultepec means “at the grasshopper’s hill” in the native Nahuatl Aztec language and so it shouldn’t have been surprising that there was a big statue of a grasshopper in the center of the fountain adjoining the enormous castle built on this hill (at 7,624 feet above sea level) beginning in the late 18th century and surrounded by the largest city park in the Western Hemisphere. (But it was!)

Watercolor sketching in Guanajuato, Mexico

Visiting Guanajuato can be overwhelming because there’s so much to see.  Sketching priorities compete with sightseeing and dining priorities and end up falling to the bottom of the list.  So the following watercolor sketch was done from a reference photo taken from an overlook over the city.

Guanajuato City is part of the State of Guanajuato in central Mexico.  It is a university town tucked into a deep valley and surrounded by the ruins of once majestic  haciendas from the Spanish Colonial period.  In the sketch below, the steep steps up to the entrance of the university are clearly visible.

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink by Black Elephant Blog author

The University of Guanajuato has about 30,000 students–and shares the town with a number of elementary and high schools.  Needless to say, at lunch time, the city’s small plazas and narrow alleyways are filled with students.  Fortunately for them, most of the main roads pass through the city via underground tunnels which were formed long ago by rivers.

There’s a whole lot to learn about this city from its past as a Spanish colonial city, a silver-mining town, its role in the Mexican War for Independence, and the birthplace of Mexican artist Diego Rivera.  Dining on the outdoor patios of one of the historic restaurants lining the main plaza is a real treat, and the chef in the one we visited clearly was world-class.  There is enough to do here for several days at least, but we must move on…

Overlooking San Miguel de Allende

On the first day of our stay we climbed up to the “Mirador”, or overlook, for a view of the city of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.  The oldest structures in town, the “Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel” (pink wedding cake-style Neo-Gothic church built in the 17th century) and the bullring, are still the most prominent features in the landscape.  But in the last few decades the town has expanded for miles outward into the hinterland.  Below this spot, one can hear the church bells ringing their deep chimes to mark the hour and the faint sound of music playing in the Jardin, or central square.  People who have lived in the town for decades voiced frustration with the extent of the development and the gradual destruction of the views of San Miguel, but it’s still possible to appreciate the beauty of the town.

In this piece, sketched by pencil initially at the overlook, I tried using De Atramentis “Fog Grey Ink” for the first time, which blended sometimes unhelpfully with the watercolor.  This ink is made for use in fountain pens but is not as waterproof as it’s claimed to be.  Knowing that it will run makes it useful for experiments.  Finally I ended up using Platinum Carbon black waterproof ink and then a Tombow brush pen for some accents.  Art is all about “problem-solving,” it turns out:  how to shield oneself from strong sunlight, sketch in bright light, carry the right supplies, and develop a sense of composition.  A visit a few days ago to the Museum of Modern Art in Mexico City provided powerful reminders of the value of side-stepping the details and aiming for simplicity.  This is very hard for anyone trained to focus on details, and who isn’t?  But more on that later…

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink sketch, “View from the Mirador of San Miguel de Allende, June 2016” in a Stillman & Birn “Zeta” sketchbook by the Black Elephant Blog author

Watercolor Sketching Around San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

Getting away from it all is pretty easy in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, a little bubble of old world charm, at least in the historic center.

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink sketch. “Sidewalk Cafe in San Miguel de Allende, June 2016” by Black Elephant Blog author

This is a city with strong traditions and connections to the arts–all of them from weaving to dancing, music to painting–and a place where there is some sort of fiesta, complete with parades, moving around the central “Jardin,” nearly every day.

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink, “Belles Artes,” by Black Elephant Blog author

The downtown area features cobblestone streets, narrow stone sidewalks, little shops, and beautiful architectural details, as well as some fascinating trees in the “Jardin”–central square– which are regularly clipped to maintain their squarish umbrella-like covering over the benches.  A main “activity” in this town is people-watching here in this square,  and listening to the the mariachi bands playing for paying customers.

Illustration: Watercolor and pen-and-ink sketch, “Jardin in San Miguel de Allende” by Black Elephant Blog author

There is so much to sketch and record here that it’s probably going to take more than one post. Nearby, of course, are more attractions, such as the former silver-mining center of Guanajuato, a gorgeous city built into a canyon, and south of here is Mexico City. So I will post a few more sketches in the days ahead…

Plein Air Watercolor Sketching

These days, when so very much is so obviously at stake more even than usual, it is sometimes a great solace to lose oneself in sketching a complex scene, without too much regard for the outcome.  The weather has turned marvelous, helping this bit of escapism to flourish.  Moreover, a new set of field watercolors has arrived, making experimentation–as well as getting outside–absolutely the order of the day.

Illustration:  Photo of newly arrived Yarka St. Petersburg paints set up with a bit of Uhu Tac under each pan and marked for “lightfastness” according to the manufacturer’s claims

So, when early this week I found myself enjoying a park-like setting together with  some of those closest to me, it was quite natural to sketch some architectural scenes around me.

There is always so much detail that one can’t capture particularly in a short time, but perhaps the impression of these majestic buildings, part of a national historic landmark-registered site in Towson, Maryland, comes through in the watercolor sketch.  If the news at large gets still more difficult to absorb, it appears that one remedy will be to focus on some really ornate rococo architectural details!!  (And, while it is too early to evaluate the Yarka paints, it already has been fun to try them out.)

 

Illustration: Watercolor sketch in a Stillman & Birn Beta journal, “Towson, Maryland”, by Black Elephant Blog author