One Week 100 People

Last week was consumed with an international event for sketchers. Every year, the challenge is to draw 100 people in one week. Having done the same task last year, I was better prepared to develop a strategy to complete the exercise. First, you stake out your victims, then use the same venue each day to become familiarized with the types of poses and people you sketch.

Due to the pandemic, many people this year could only draw from photographs, magazines or online images. I was fortunate to be in a country where I could still go down the street to sketch real people in their natural environments.

I chose the Christchurch Turanga Library. It is remarkable in many ways, as a “third space” for living. It is neither home nor work, but it fills in the voids in between. It was perfect for capturing teeming humanity, primarily in the Foundation Cafe, but also at computer stations, playing chess, and at the children’s center, where tired and exhausted mothers could catch a few minutes of sleep with their infants.

The sketches provide an example of the types of characters at the library–many engaged at activities yet to be appreciated in the States–surrounded by others without distancing, staff working close together, and active conversations with friends and families while eating. Let’s hope this is a mere taste of what’s soon to come in San Francisco and elsewhere in the U.S.

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The Vaccination Dilemma

Speaking of the U.S., we hear that vaccinations in California will be available to anyone over 16 by the end of April. That’s good news for my daughters. One plans to return shortly with a baby. The other daughter is comforted to know that she and her colleagues in the food business will be protected.

We are waiting to decide whether to get vaccinated in New Zealand or in the States. It’s a tricky decision that depends on where we can get inoculated first, and for both doses. There are advantages and disadvantages for either location. We are weighing them as news changes daily and impact our decision. Add a minor stress of booking tickets and accommodations timed for the yet-to-be-determined exit and you have the picture.

Willowbank Nature Reserve

In the meantime, I continued sketching with Christchurch City Sketchers, who visited Willowbank Nature Reserve outside the city last weekend. Native kiwis are featured in their natural habitat there. Unfortunately the area was pitch black so none of the four kiwis were visible!

An unusual auction of rare breeds of birds and animals was held the same day. Unfortunately, I did not take full advantage of the llamas, cows, and a Clydesdale horse on display. I focused on drawing human animals in the cafe instead. After drawing so many people the previous week, I was fixated on capturing more tantalizing eyes, noses, ears, and saggy profiles. After leaving the park, I kicked myself for missing the golden opportunity to sketch all those voluptuous animals!!

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Being in Christchurch has filled our time with interesting activities and new adventures. I took my daughter for her first round of golf! We only did six holes, but that was plenty enough to entertain and challenge us for a solid morning at Hagley Park. A momentary hiatus in the sandpit was not enough to discourage me from future outings.