June 5, 2015 by Leonie Andrews

Westside Acton Park Containers

The most recent attempt to put some life into a neglected part of the city of Canberra is to establish an area of cafes and pop-up activities on the unlamented Futsal ground. Known now as Westside Acton Park, the venue is a precursor to plans to better integrate the city centre with Lake Burley Griffin. More permanent structures will follow at some time in the future.

The temporary structure is made up of a collection of containers, some of which are raised up on scaffolding (well quite substantial metal beam supports actually) and others that surround the futsal slab. We dropped by to see what the fuss was about after a non-local politician was bemoaning the negative impact of the structures on the picturesqueness of the lake shore. Poor possum, far be it that the people who live in the national capital should have something to enjoy.

We stopped by early in the week which meant that only the Damn Fine drive through coffee van was open. The good thing is that they do live up to their name. Suitably fortified we had our pick of locations to draw from. We decided to have a crack at the stack of containers. While the sun was shining we had had a -7 degree C overnight temperature, so prolonged sitting in the one spot wasn’t possible. I managed to get this far before numbness overtook me!

The big container stack at Westside at Acton, watercolour, 2 June 2015

There is going to be a big market at the site this coming Saturday and a big BMX jam on the Sunday so the place will be jumping.

May 18, 2015 by Leonie Andrews

Mt Aggie

It turned out to be a brilliant weekend weather-wise. A perfect pair of Autumn days. Striking blue skies, a crisp temperature of 17C and virtually no wind. So on Sunday we packed some sandwiches and headed out to Namadgi National Park for a spot of bush-walking and painting. Our destination was Mount Aggie, at 1,421 metres (4,662 ft), which sits on the ridge-line which marks the western border between the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales.

Mountain views, from Mt Aggie, Australian Capital Territory, 17 May 2015

Mt Aggie may not be the loftiest of peaks in the range but it’s summit is readily accessible by a fairly short and easy walking trail. From the top there is a truly panoramic view out over the Bimberi Nature Reserve and Kosciusko National Park and even down to the Bogong Range in Victoria. We were particularly pleased to see a Wedge-tailed Eagle flying overhead shortly after we reached the summit.

We had a great time drawing and only shared the summit temporarily with another small group of walkers. I tried to capture the ridges disappearing into the distance, using the double spread of my Moleskine watercolour book. I think I’d need 3 double pages to capture the full view.

The view to the northwest from Mt Aggie, watercolour and graphite, 17 May 2015

It was a truly magic day. I’ll leave you with a shot of this small paper daisy, one of the last flowers of the season.

Paper Daisy, Mt Aggie, 17 May 2015

May 17, 2015May 18, 2015 by Leonie Andrews

Lao Food Fair

Yesterday the local Lao Buddhist temple held its annual food fair. The place was packed and the food was delicious. We took it in turns to choose dishes to eat and in the interim sketched the scene.

Hundreds of people were there and overhead flags and bunting fluttered.

Two views of the flags and people at the Lao Food Fair, watercolour, 16 May 2015

After a while we shifted to a spot in the shade. I decided to paint the symbolic decorations on the top of the temple roof. Unfortunately I didn’t quite allow enough space for the very top of the central spire.

Decorations on the roofline of the Lao Buddhist Temple, watercolour and gouache, 16 May 2015

Did I mention that the food was really good. Having eaten our fill we bought some to take home for later.

May 13, 2015 by Leonie Andrews

On the buses

It’s been a while since I caught a bus into town so today I challenged myself to do one drawing for each leg of my journey – so 4 drawings in all. I used my small notebook (9cm x14cm) and my Duke 209 pen.

Here are the two on the way into town.

Smart phone trance, pen and ink, 13 May 2015

Every seat taken, pen and ink, 13 May 2013

After my appointment I caught up with my partner who was drawing in Garema Place. While he was finishing off his sketch I took the opportunity to draw Matthew Harding’s sculpture ‘Cushion’.

Cushin, by Matthew Harding,2001, cast stainless steel, pen and ink and watercolour,13 May 2015

On the way back home I finished these two drawings.

Relaxed Man, pen and ink, 13 May 2015

Shadows, 13 May 2015, pen and ink

May 3, 2015 by Leonie Andrews

Canberra Sketchers Group in Braddon

The first few meetings of the Canberra Sketchers Group were focused on Canberra landmarks, such as the National Gallery of Australia and Lanyon Homestead, but this time we decided to hit the city streets – or more specifically Lonsdale Street in Braddon. In the perfect autumn sunshine of a Canberra Sunday morning, the street was jumping. Cafes full of patrons, people cramming the footpath and more traffic than a busy weekday lunchtime!

The group was pretty unanimous in heading to ‘The Hamlet’ where a whole pack of food vans are ready to supply hungry people and provide a subject for our group to sketch. There were various food vans to draw which occupied many of the group for the whole of our time on location.

Chasing Mr Morris food van in Braddon, pen and ink and watercolours, 3 May 2015

Food Vans in The Hamlet, Braddon 3 May 2015

While the food vans and cafes represent the new face of Lonsdale St, I decided to focus on what was rapidly being knocked down and bulldozed away. Prior to it’s rejuvenation, this part of Braddon was home to car yards and mechanics workshops. This sign is about all that’s left of that era now.

Old Sign, Lonsdale St Braddon, graphite and watercolour, 3 May 2015

While I’m not sad to see the car yards go, I am sad to see that local landmarks such as the Cornucopia Bakery and The Electric Shadows bookshop have ceased to exist. At least I know I’m not quite alone in missing that local history.

Grafitti, Lonsdale St, Braddon, watercolour and graphite

Here are some of the day’s efforts.

Some of the groups drawings, 3 May 2015

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Tag / Canberra landmarks