October 3, 2023 by Leonie Andrews

Quietly Contemplating

It seems like only minutes since our feet touched home again after being away for four months, but again we have jumped back on a plane to join fellow Urban Sketchers in Suwon, South Korea. This is the location for the Asialink Sketchwalk, where sketchers get together to draw for 4 days.

We have been staying in Seoul for a few days and have been doing a lot of walking and some drawing. Yesterday we went to the National Museum of Korea which holds many treasures. I was intrigued by the space called ‘The Room of Quiet Contemplation’, which holds two statues made in the 7th century of Pensive Bodisattvas. I took the opportunity to do blind contour drawings of both sculptures, remembering to breathe slowly as I focused my eyes on following my way around their forms.

As often with this type of drawing I feel that it captures an essence of what I saw more effectively than any detailed academic drawing would.

August 22, 2023August 22, 2023 by Leonie Andrews

A visit

Ancestral voices unheard. Pervasive shouts of ‘make a silly face’ selfy talk.

Sit on the grass itself. Notice rabbit poo – no rabbits in sight.

Five breaths. Inhale and release.

Offer – nutty bar and paint water.

Unspeaking ravens watch.

Tune in your eyes, a light pass then shadows. Dry faced lichen stones.

The formalities done with. Mix the paint again.

Hands strike across the page. In that place we dance.

[Observations made when painting at Stonehenge, 21 August 2023]

May 28, 2023May 28, 2023 by Leonie Andrews

All quiet …

You might be wondering why everything is so quiet on the blog front. It’s simple really. I am currently walking the Camino di Santiago across Spain with my partner. I am posting to other social media channels and I have run out of steam for the blog. Sorry!

We are sketching as we are walking. We walk up to about lunchtime, find our accommodation and then go out sketching in the afternoon .

Looking from our hostel to the church tower in Villafranca Montes de Ocas

Abandoned buildings in Redecilla del Camino.

If you are interested in following our journey we are both sharing our sketches on a dedicated Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092387762574

I am also sharing, a more or less daily dump of photos on my Instagram page (at) leonieandrewsart.

June 29, 2022 by Leonie Andrews

Walks, Cafes etc

We have been doing a lot of walking since the pandemic started, originally prompted by restricted exercise periods for months at a time. Now walking is a regular activity and each week we try and do a slightly longer walk. We often break this up with a coffee, in our Thermos, or at one of the pop-up coffee carts that seem to be proliferating along popular walking tracks around the city.