Uganda’s landscape and wildlife in watercolor and pencil
“I traveled to Uganda to make one of my dreams a reality: to witness the mountain gorillas.”
—Joan León
Hot off the press!
Barcelona-based sketcher Joan León, the author of Ilustrando Sudamérica*, takes us to a whole new continent in Cuaderno de Uganda ($16.77 on Etsy), a publication he released last week just in time for the traditional Sant Jordi Book Fair.
The 60-page, full color stitch-sewn booket is an actual-size replica of the hardbound sketchbook he brought along during a two-week trip to the landlocked country in East Africa in December 2021.
The book opens with tranquil nature scenes sketched near the source of the Nile River and other tropical landscapes. The rest of the pages feature delightful illustrations of every wild animal León came across while touring several national parks with the help of a local driver: zebras and giraffes in Lake Mburo, lions taking naps and hippopotamuses bathing at the Queen Elizabeth National Park, chimpanzees in Kibale, monkeys in the magical lake of Nkuruba and many other species.
I love how León blends beautiful watercolor washes with sharp lines of color pencil. I can’t wait for my copy of Cuaderno de Uganda to arrive.
The Visual Anthropologist
Artist Kay Van Bellen has found a fascinating niche for reportage in the world of fashion and style. She draws live at shows where denim industry professionals and enthusiasts congregate.
Last week, she was at the Kingpins Show in Amsterdam, where she presented a striking 64-page illustrated magazine to launch her brand as “The Visual Anthropologist.”
Previews of the magazine on her Instagram account show lively watercolor drawings running full bleed opposite to handwritten text.
This is another publication I look forward to flipping through. It’s available for purchase on Van Bellen’s website.
The World in a Sketchbook: International comic book salon will include an ‘Urban Sketcher Village’
When the Bavarian city of Erlangen kicks off its 21th International Comic Salon May 30, a team of 10 international urban sketchers will be on hand teaching workshops and inviting the public to sketch from a custom built “Urban Sketcher village” just a few minutes away from the main venue where the comic salon will take place.
The hub, designed by urban sketcher and scenographer Johanna Krimmel, will be made out of shipping containers and scaffolding and include murals, a pop up exhibition, a shop, and space for the public to hang out and sketch right in the heart of the city.
Krimmel told me via chat that she got involved in the project when the cultural office of Erlangen approached the Urban Sketchers chapter in Rhein-Main back in 2020 with the idea. “They always have a very interesting range of exhibitions, workshops and other side activities and were looking for a ‘special.’”
The pandemic put a stop to it, but now things are finally happening. Krimmel says that she and Jenny Adam, an urban sketcher from Hamburg, had free rein to curate and design the exhibition, the program and the whole setup.
If you have an opportunity to travel to Erlangen, this promises to be a very special event where comics and urban sketching intersect. Here’s one of the promotional images listing the participating urban sketchers:
Reportage book
Artist and academic Louis Netter, the author of Reportage Drawing, Vision and Experience, was the guest of one of my Artist Talks last year.
If you are in London this week, take note of this book launch event Thursday, May 2, at the Topolski Studio.
Gary Embury, Mario Minichiello and Jill Gibbon are some of the artists featured in the book who are scheduled to join Netter at the event.
From the archives
Art professor Gary Geraths was a courtroom sketch artist during the 1995 criminal trial where football star O.J. Simpson was acquitted of killing his former wife and her friend.
Following the news of O.J. Simpson’s death earlier in April, Geraths wrote on Instagram that sketching the proceedings was quite a ride.
“450 pages of drawings of all sorts of events, people, emotions, interviews and even a visit to O.J.’s jail cell. Being just a little-ol’ college art teacher and just wanting to sketch and record the events, having no agenda, I actually moved around the families, court personal, lawyers from both sides and witnesses and reporters.”
Artist Talk with Lapin coming up
In case you missed my announcement last week:
What is the secret of Lapin’s career success? How has he been able to publish so many books? What projects is he working on now? Does it help to wear a hat and colorful shirts to stand out in a crowded field of talented artists?
I will be asking the French-born reportage artist those questions and more during a new Zoom Artist Talk exclusive for On the Spot members May 4 at 10 a.m. PDT.
On the Spot members, see the link to register after the calendar listing. Non-members, you may book a ticket on the Sketcher Press website to receive the link.
Calendar
- May 1-7. International Urban Sketchers Week.
- May 2. London. Lou Netter at Topolski Studio.
- May 18-20. Nantes. 11th Rendez-vous USk France, Nantes (I plan to be there!)
- May 30-June 2. Erlangen 21th International Comic Salon, including “The World in a Sketchbook” urban sketcher village.
- June 27-29. Neuchatel. 6th Swiss Urban Sketchers Symposium.
- July 12-14, 2024. Chicago. USK Chicago Seminar
- July 19-21. Edmonds, Wash. Sketcher Fest Edmonds
- October 9-12, 2024. Buenos Aires. 12th Urban Sketchers Symposium