This sketch follows the #Sketchtober2023 prompt of ‘watch/clock’ for Day 14. I don’t recall who gave us this clock. It stayed in storage for quite a while, then our previous one (which of course I’ve sketched before) kind of fell apart (it’s above the hob so it got all grungy), so this one went up after we redecorated.
Fri-27-Oct-2023
This sketch has been hanging around in my sketchbook waiting for me to finish it for ages! I did the ink work when we went into Makati in September to get our printer repaired (it is now busted again). This sculpture is one of several on the traffic island outside Glorietta 3 (they call it a park), near the UCC Park Cafe. There are several other sculptures (I assume by the same artist) in the area. With a Google search I could only find out that Abueva was known as the “Father of Modern Philippine Sculpture”, nothing about this actual piece of work.
Fri-8-Sep-2023
I usually post one sketch at a time, but I have such a backlog of stuff to post, here are all the sketches I did on Sunday when I joined #UskQuezonCity. Quezon City launched the Katipunan Freedom Trail as a bike run on Sunday (according to one website 500 cyclists joined – but we didn’t see any) and we just tagged along in a jeepney sketching at each of the 5 historical sites, where important events took place during the revolution to overthrow Spanish rule in the 1890’s.
The first site was the Andres Bonifacio National Monument. He founded the Katipunan society in 1892. Nothing says Metro Manila more than an important historical site, overwhelmed by a giant ugly mall.
The second site was the Apolonio Samson Marker – he was a farmer and a lieutenant who led a group of Katipuneros (revolutionaries) in Novaliches. The marker is in front of the Barangay hall and in my sketch is a bit dwarfed by the amazing birds nest of cables.
The third site was the Cry of Pugad Lawin. This place marks the moment when Bonifacio gave a speech and convinced the people joining a clandestine meeting to destroy their ‘cedulas’ (community tax certificates) as a symbol of their defiance towards the Spanish, raising the cry of ‘revolt!’. I am not sure who made the sculpture that occupies the site.
Our last visit was to the Shrine of Tandang Sora. I learnt that her real name was Melchora Aquino – and that she became known as Sora (from Chora) and that Tandang means elder. She was a key figure in the Filipino revolution who offered shelter and medical aid to the Katipunan revolutionaries.
Sun-22-Oct-2023
Here is my last sketch from our #PistaSaUskQC (Urban Sketchers Festival) event on the weekend. I did a little composition talk on Sunday morning and pointed out this view as an example of layering and having objects in the foreground, middle-ground and background, to get depth (in a scene without much perspective). I thought I’d better have a go at sketching it too…I’m not sure it really worked as the red jumps into the foreground!
Sun-15-Oct-2023
Here is another sketch going back to the #Sketchtober2023 prompts (Day 9 – ‘Pet’). We have two Siamese cats (I think they are seal points) – named after Tintin characters. Captain Haddock is the oldest (they are brothers)…he’s kind of lethargic and never stops eating. The other is General Tapioca – I’ve rarely sketched him as he is a bit more skittish and doesn’t stay in one place for long…and when he does he is hiding somewhere!
Wed-11-Oct-2023
I did this sketch on the second day of our #PistaSaUskQC (Urban Sketchers Festival) event on the weekend, after doing a little composition talk. I had thought it was overcast and not too hot – I was wrong, it was sweltering, so I drew this as quickly as I could. The statue of Manuel Quezon (president of the Philippines from 1935-44), by Jose “Al” Rabino Giroy – was put up in 2017, and replaced another by Tolentino.
Sun-15-Oct-2023
Here is the third sketch I did during our #PistaSaUskQC (Urban Sketchers Festival) event on the weekend. In the afternoon my sketching friend @ReuelGarzon was slated to do a sketching demonstration – so I joined him in front of our booth. What caught my eye for this sketch was the sweeping curve of the tents (though I didn’t manage to capture this as well as I wanted), contrasting against the green trees. It’s also a bit more splashy than usual, because I forgot to bring my smaller squirrel brush!
Sat-14-Oct-2023
I am not planning to make a habit of this, but just by chance I am killing two birds with one sketch again, following the day 2 prompts of #Inktober2023 (spider) and of #UskQuezonCity #Sketchtober2023 (plant). Spider plants (technically Chlorophytum comosum), are one of the few things we manage to grow…though I should water them a lot less!
Tue-3-Oct-2023
I am posting out of order as usual, and with this sketch I am making a tenuous link to both the first day of #Inktober (prompt of “dream”) and #Sketchtober2023 from #UskQuezonCity (prompt of “chair”). Killing two birds with one sketch as they (don’t) say. The most tenuous link is to the prompt of dream – on the stool is the next book I am going to read – part two of a series, the first of which was called “The Dreaming Void”.
Mon-2-Oct-2023