There’s a little cut through street in the heart of Conceicao that leads you to the main restaurant and shopping area. One of the fabulous aspects of not having a car is that I explore areas on foot, and get an opportunity to discover these picturesque area that those in a car would drive right by.

Loose Urban Sketch

I did an exploratory drawing in my sketchbook, and painted it when I got back home.

There’s so many things wrong with this sketch – perspectives and angles are off on many of the elements, especially that window on the left. But when I included this sketch in a FB post it was one that got the most likes. It really go me thinking about what I see vs. what others see, in a sketch. As an artist we tend to focus on the technical aspects of a sketch, but I think viewers connect to images on an emotional level, and for some reason. This scene made a connection.

Here’s where to find out more information about the Urban Sketchers organization.

Studio Sketch

So I went back to this street and took a photo from a slightly different angle. I knelt down took it from a different perspective.

This was sketched at home, and I took more time with the initial inking stage to make the perspectives more accurate. Technically it’s better (but still not a perfectly realistic interpretation of the scene). I’ve lost some of the wonky and dynamic elements, but I think the vertical layout works better.

I’m really drawn to the view of this street. Usually I can sketch a view once and want to move on, but there’s something in this street that endears it to me, and I’m wondering if the people that viewed and liked that first sketch, felt that connection too.

I’m going to be drawing this scene again and again. It’s simple enough to be enjoyable to re-sketch, and not too complex that I’m bored with trying to recreate it.

It’s OK to have Multiple Styles

Since staring my artistic adventure I’ve been distracted by discovering my style and I watched a lot of videos on YouTube and read a bunch of articles, with the intention of identifying my style and sticking with it. But I’ve realised that style is fluid, and you don’t have to just have one single style. Case in point, the two versions of the same scene above. One is a wobbly urban sketch and the other is a more precise studio sketch.

I enjoy creating both styles, so I’ve decided to embrace them both—wobbly and precise. When I’m painting people or scenes, I’ll just use the style I’m in the mood for. Does that make in indecisive or flexible?