St Augustine Tower

The tower of St Augustine church, watercolored with a wide brush in sepia only. On a cold and windy Saturday afternoon. I forgot my pen at home, which made for an interesting challenge.

St Francis Xavier Interior

Sketched sitting beneath the vaulting on the north aisle of the St Francis Xavier Church. Pen sketch on location, watercolored in sepia later.

Brooklyn Conservatory of Music

 

The entrance and steps to the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. Autumn colors reflect in the glass entrance doors, and jazz tones filter down. Ink and watercolor on location.

10 Polhemus Place Rendered Version

On the morning of Veteran's day, I went back with my previous line sketch and watercolored it, adding the cast shadows and window reflections.

10 Polhemus Place

To be watercolored in the near future, weather permitting. Ink sketch on location

Rose Columns

Some columns in an arched entryway. Ink and watercolor on location.

Memorial Presbyterian Church

 

 Another delightful church tower in the neighborhood. 7th Avenue and St Johns Place. Ink and watercolor on location, on a chilly Saturday afternoon.

Cafe Regular du Nord

I must say, one of the nicest shop storefronts in the neighborhood. Ink and watercolor sketch on location, on a chilly Halloween afternoon. Please pardon my crudely drawn people, it's one of my weak spots!

Church of the Virgin Mary

A simple stone bell tower with arched openings. Ink and watercolor sketch on location. Corner of 2nd Street and 8th Ave in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Freehand Ink sketch and watercolor on location.

Kenmore Apartments

Study of an apartment building entrance on 4th Street and 8th Avenue. I enjoyed the dramatic cast shadows of the low October sun.

The Falls at the Japanese Garden

 

A serene 3-tiered waterfall at the Japanese Garden in the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. Ink and watercolor on location.

 A Lantern at the entry to the Japanese Garden.

Old First Reformed Church

Ink and watercolor sketch on location. The sun is getting lower and the shadows longer this time of the year. Some birds from my previous sketch migrated over.

Yalloween

Red hook birds steal a yalloween sky over Broooklyn. Black ink sketch with watercolor, in the spirit of the season.

St Francis Xavier Spire

The spire of St Francis Xavier Cathedral marks time as the interplay of shadow changes gradually throughout the day.

Ink and watercolor on location.

St Francis Xavier Gargoyle

A Gargoyle overlooks the churchyard from the corner of a projecting entry on St Francis Xavier Church.

Freehand Ink and watercolor on location.

10 Montgomery Place Entrance

Sketching at night, the warm glow of the foyer through glass and iron doors reveals the stair beyond. Leaves have just started to fall.

This landmark building graces the corner of Montgomery Place and 8th Avenue with its delicate detailing. A future sketch is needed to capture the building's unique windows.

The sketch took two nights. On the first night, the linework was drawn. On the second, the watercolor rendering was completed. It was challenging freehand sketching the arch accurately, particularly with the radiating stone reveals.

Ink and watercolor freehand sketch on location. Prints available in my Etsy shop

Park Slope Sketch at BROOKLYN FLEA Sunday, 10/17/2010

Park Slope Sketch is excited to be participating as a vendor in the BROOKLYN FLEA at 1 Hanson Place (Willy B Savings Bank Tower) on Sunday, October 17th. We will be in the Vault.

We will have Sketch Prints, Greeting Cards, and Coloring Books of Brooklyn for sale. They make great gifts. Come say hi if you are around!

If you don't already know about the Brooklyn Flea at 1 Hanson, you should check it out! It is a great venue in the beautiful former bank space on the First Floor, Cellar, and Mezzanine levels.

Montauk Club in the Evening

Walking by the Montauk Club in the evening, on your way from Grand Army Plaza Station down Lincoln Place. Soft light emanates from the interior, accentuating the delicate details.

Sketched in ink and watercolored on location, by the light of a street lamp. Prints available in my ETSY shop.

Walking Up Montgomery Place

Walking up Montgomery Place past elaborate curved-front townhouses towards Prospect Park. On a chilly October Sunday. Ink and watercolor on location.

Prints available in my ETSY shop.

Park Slope Sketch - Setting Up for AGAST Brooklyn

Setting up for Annual Gowanus Artists Studio Tour. We are at 332 Douglass Street #2F (second floor), between 3rd and 4th Avenue. We have framed and unframed prints, coloring books, greeting cards, and sketchbooks for display. Many items are for purchase at reasonable prices. And we have a restroom! Please stop by if you are checking out the AGAST studio route!

Park Slope Sketch is participating in AGAST Brooklyn

Park Slope Sketch is participating in the AGAST Annual Gowanus Artists Studio Tour. James's studio is located at 332 Douglass Street #2F, between 3rd and 4th Avenue. We are #7 on the Map.

The event is this Saturday, October 2nd between 12:00 Noon and 6:00 PM.

We will have prints, cards and coloring books on display and available for purchase

For those of you that are local, please stop by!

For more details about the event, check out:  AGAST Brooklyn

Full Moon rising over Brooklyn

Walking around the neighborhood, the moon follows me, peering above townhouses and tenements. Here, it rises over a 4-story tenement building, streetlamps competing for attention. Ink and watercolor on location. Prints available in my ETSY shop.

47 Montgomery Place

My opportunity to sketch in the middle of the street came. On Saturday, Montgomery Place had their block party and the street was closed to traffic. So, I set myself up in the middle of the road and sketched the day away. Between doing the line drawing and the watercolor, this one took me all day.

The weather was perfect, and the neighbors didn't seem to mind. The kids on the block paid me visits to check on my progress and played hopscotch around me. Ink and watercolor on location. Prints of this piece are available in my ETSY shop.

Midnight Moon at St Francis Xavier Church

It is a warm night, and a brilliant moon rises in clear skies at St Francis Xavier Church. Ink and Watercolor on location, around 1 AM on Friday, September 24th. Prints of this piece are available in my ETSY shop.

Palma Chemists

Here's a sketch of a familiar corner on 7th Avenue in Park Slope. It is the entrance to Palma Chemists drugstore on the corner of 7th Avenue and Garfield Place. I enjoyed the nostalgia of the signage and the cantilevered 3-story bay window, with the brilliant blue September sky reflecting in the windows. The steeple to the old First Reformed Church is visible in the distance. Freehand ink and watercolor on location.

Prints of this piece are available in my ETSY shop. I also plan to make greeting cards of most of the watercolor pieces I've been doing recently, which will be on the shop too as they are ready.
 

Manhattan Bridge from DUMBO

Here's an ink and watercolor of the Manhattan Bridge from DUMBO. This was a quicker and looser study for me than usual. It is sketched from Washington Street, with the entrance gate to Brooklyn Bridge Park on the left in the distance. I always enjoy coming to Brooklyn Bridge Park. There are so many vistas of these magnificent bridges to draw!

If you'd like to purchase a print of this piece, you may find it in my ETSY shop.

Colorful Brownstone Foyer and Stair

This is a marker-rendered version of my original ink sketch of the Brownstone Stair and Foyer in the building I live in. I tried a graphic version with primary colors, leaving the ornate woodwork as line art.

Prints of this piece are available for purchase on my ETSY Shop.

Rose of Sharon Townhouse on Montgomery Place

A spectacular September day inspired my study of an ornate brownstone townhouse graced by a flowering Rose of Sharon bush. This building is on picturesque Montgomery Place in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Inked and watercolored on location.

787 Carroll Street Entry in Watercolor

This is an ink and watercolor freehand drawing of a classic Brownstone step and entry on Carroll Street in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The interplay of shadow accentuates the classical details and adds richness and a true sense of arrival that is so unique with these landmark buildings. The wrought iron railing has delicate detailing.

I could not think of a nicer way to enjoy this brilliant Labor Day than drawing and rendering such an entry!

Reproductions of this piece are available in James's ETSY shop

'The Lillian' Column Capital and Entablature

I've always admired the classical porticos on this building on the corner of Garfield Place and 8th Avenue. This is my ink and watercolor rendering of the composite column capital and entablature.

Reproductions of this work are available on James's ETSY shop

8th Avenue Townhouses

This is a group of five curved bay townhouses on 8th Avenue near the Methodist Hospital. I enjoyed the rhythm of the repetitive bay windows. I took the liberty of giving each building a unique color. In reality, they are all brownstones.

It has been a while since I have been able to get out and sketch. It's nice to be back! The weather was perfect for sketching, and I was able to chat with a few nice folks on the street. I even sold a few of my sketches.

Along those lines, some of my blog visitors have expressed interest in purchasing my work, so I've been putting some effort into an etsy shop that carries prints and greeting cards. I'm stocking it up.

Please check out James's ETSY Shop

Park Slope Sketch Coloring Book

I've created a 'coloring book' comprised of reproductions of 20 of my Park Slope line drawing sketches and spline-bound into an 8.5" x 11" book. I make them by hand here at the office. They're available at my Etsy Shop.

Brooklyn Bridge

Brooklyn Bridge Park

Perhaps it's not in Park Slope, but I could not resist a sketch while visiting Brooklyn Bridge Park this Sunday.

9th Street Bridge Spanning the Gowanus Canal

The 9th Street Bridge has a drawbridge for car traffic and a truss bridge for the elevated train above. The Gowanus Expressway is visible beyond. Ink and watercolor.

Under the Carroll Street Bridge

I suppose I am not allowed to be down here. But who could resist such a subject? The bridge's wheel assembly rolls diagonally along rails allowing the bridge to slide open.

Night Sketch-Brookyn Skyline

I sketched and watercolored this from my roof after dark. I could not see much.

It was too dark to differentiate colors, so I just used some grey.

Another Fire Escape

A 'looking up' perspective. A Fire Escape rising up the facade of a 5-story multiple dwelling. Ink on watercolor paper.

A Fire Escape

An essential part of the Brooklyn Architectural landscape.

Brooklyn Rooftops

Later that evening, from the terrace

Brooklyn Sunset

A Brooklyn Sunset on a warm summer evening, from the terrace.

Union Street Bridge Control Tower

A framework of painted steel and rusticated concrete beneath the control tower of the Union Street Bridge. Gritty and industrial, and surprisingly well maintained.

Union Street Bridge

Hanging out with mosquitoes below the Union Street Bridge, sniffing creosote.

Carroll Street Bridge

 

The Carroll Street Bridge, jewel of the Gowanus.

Gowanus Canal at 9th Street

The elevated train makes its way around various industrial sites. It was raining lightly. A man was practicing saxophone nearby.

Terrace Bridge in Prospect Park

Terrace Bridge spanning Lullwater in Prospect Park. A secluded, pictureque spot. Perfect for sketching, fishing, or playing guitar.

Lullwater Bridge in Prospect Park

With the hot weather, it was time to get off the grid and into the Park. Sitting by the Lullwater Bridge, it's easy to forget you are in the City. Ink and watercolor.

St Augustine Rectory

This castle-like building is adjacent to the St Augustine Cathedral on 6th Avenue, which I have also sketched. Ink and watercolor.