Meet the Correspondent: Marina Grechanik > Tel-Aviv, Israel$show=/search/label/Marina%20Grechanik


"Sketching is one of my passions. I don't feel comfortable when I leave home without a sketchbook and some pens in my bag. I think that my way to put things in my memory is to draw them. And taking pictures isn't the same thing.

I live in a very dynamic surrounding — Israel is a warm country with warm weather and warm people. Of course, we have seashores, which calm us a little bit. I love to sit in a corner of some Tel-Aviv coffee shop and explore relationships: between people, their environment, between myself. All this unique local mix of cultures, languages and styles is always a great source for inspiration. You need to be fast, because, as I said, everything is very dynamic. But that's why I love it so much.

Sometimes, I look around, and I find some usual items like sugar bags or napkins. I use them in my drawings to show the atmosphere. Sometimes I draw directly on placemats."

• Marina's art on Flickr.
• Marina's website.

Meet the Correspondent: Tina Koyama > Seattle$show=/search/label/tina%20koyama

"The dictionary says that a hobby is “an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation.” Although urban sketching certainly provides both pleasure and relaxation, I don’t think of it as my hobby. I think of it more as a way of life – something that has become such a normal part of my everydayness that it shapes how I view the world.

For most of my life I had both the fear of drawing as well as the desire to draw. In 2011, inspired by Gabi Campanario’s Seattle Sketcher column, I finally decided to overcome the fear. His drawings of Seattle – my birthplace and lifelong home – were of sights that I had seen many times, yet had never truly seen. I wanted to learn to see, and therefore experience, those locations (and any new ones that I travel to) more completely. Part 8 of the Urban Sketchers Manifesto, to “show the world, one drawing at a time,” has a flip side: Sketching enables me to see my own world, one drawing at a time.

In the last four years, it is not an exaggeration to say that Urban Sketchers has changed my life. I have met and sketched with many wonderful people around the globe, either at symposiums or during other travel, because the USk network brought us together. I sketch almost weekly with my local group, sharing sketches, art supplies and friendship. Even when I stay home and enjoy sketches online, I am still a part of that rich network, learning with every sketch about other people’s lives.

In May, my husband Greg and I went to France for the first time, and I sketched the Eiffel Tower. Sketching one of the world’s most famous icons felt like a dream come true – the ultimate in urban sketching. But although I can’t resist sketching world-famous icons whenever I’m fortunate enough to see them, for me, urban sketching is much more than that.

Urban sketching is a tree with its middle chopped away to accommodate Seattle’s ubiquitous power lines. It’s about a couple of women chatting over coffee, or about workers roofing the house next door. It’s about an excavator filling a hole where a cherry tree once stood. Or the Tibetan monastery I drive by frequently that I couldn’t resist because it’s bright orange. Urban sketching is a string band performing at a local farmers’ market – or perhaps in Villefranche-sur-Mer.

Celebrating the mundane as well as the famous is what urban sketching is all about. My sketches are not necessarily about “special” moments; they are moments made special because I sketched them."

Tina has been editor of Drawing Attention since 2013 and now serves on the Urban Sketchers editorial board. See more of her sketches on her blog, on Flickr and on Instagram.

Meet the Correspondent: Pete Scully > Davis, Calif.$show=/search/label/Pete%20Scully



"I am from urban north London, but now live in urbane Davis California. I sketch, I write, sometimes do things and go places and my name is Pete.

When not Davis, I sketch Sacramento, San Francisco, London, or anywhere else I happen to be. I tend to erase people and cars from my cities, but I'm starting to get over this.

Davis: calm, old-fashioned, progressive, quirky, very very hot in the summer. I use micron and copic pens, with watercolour."

• Pete's blog.
• Pete's art on Flickr.

Meet the Correspondent: Suhita Shirodkar > San Jose, Calif.$show=/search/label/Suhita%20Shirodkar

"I was born in Mumbai (Bombay) and lived in different parts of India until I moved to San Jose, California, where I now live.

Travel inspires my art, but, traveling or not, I try to view the world around me as a traveller would; so whether I’m capturing a moment of calm on the banks of the Ganges in India, or sketching over coffee at my local coffee shop, I aim to look deeply, and with wonder, at both the everyday and the exotic, the old and the new.

I love color. My sketch kit consists of Extra Fine Sharpies (the fact that they bleed into the paper as soon as they touch it works really well for me—it forces me to work super-quick), a small set of Prismacolor pencils and a little watercolor travel set".
• Blog
• Flickr

Meet the Correspondent: Omar Jaramillo > Berlin$show=/search/label/Omar%20Jaramillo

"I was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, where I studied architecture. I moved to Kassel (Germany) in 1999 to accomplish a master degree. Although I have always drawn and paint, it was not until I started studying in the Uni-Kassel, that I started keeping a travel sketchbook. I had a teacher there who used to do a lot of sketches when he travelled on university excursions. When he retired, I helped to organize an exhibition of his sketches. He brought a huge box full of sketchbooks he had filled since he was an architecture student. I spent a whole day selecting the most interesting drawings. It was a wonderful experience that opened my eyes to a new world. In the last 10 years I have the feeling of being in a long journey. I like to discover the cities where I live, to understand why a place is the way it is and what makes it different and unique from others. Drawing is for me a way to learn to love a place, to become part of it. I like to draw architecture but I am more attracted to urban scenery, portraying how people live in the city. Since I’m a foreigner, everything that locals find normal and taken-for-granted, for me is exotic. I always carry a small watercolor travel set from Windsor and Newton and my sketchbook in my bag. I always thought that drawing was a solitary experience until I found Urban Sketchers. It was amazing to find so many people doing the same thing. It is a great place to share!" • Omar's blog. • Omar's art on flickr. • Omar's website.

Meet the Correspondent: Luis Ruiz > Malaga, Spain$show=/search/label/Luis%20Ruiz

Standard Registration Opens Feb 18 for Chicago International Urban Sketchers Symposium

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*by Renato Palmuti

Thank you very much for the overwhelming response to our Early Bird Registration for the 8th International Urban Sketchers Symposium (happening in Chicago, USA on July 26-29 2017). We sold out in a few minutes, considering that there were so many sketchers all over the world, all logged in at the same time, to get a limited number of passes.

If you missed the early-bird workshop registration, don’t worry -- there's still plenty of time to secure passes and select your workshops. Standard registration opens on Saturday, February 18 at 5 pm CST (23:00 GMT).

This year, we are offering passes at two levels: Workshop and Basic.
To learn more about the levels of Symposium passes, click here.

Programming and faculty details are available on the Symposium Site, and the schedule is available on the Schedule page.

To register, visit https://uskchicago2017.eventbrite.com/

Standard Registration
Opens February 18 at 5 pm CST (23:00 GMT)
Workshops pass US $475
Basic pass US $160

Keep in mind that this event is likely to sell out. There will be no onsite registration in Chicago.

Tips for successful registration:
For best results, sign up for an Eventbrite account before registering. Go to https://www.eventbrite.com/ and click Sign up.

If you log in to Eventbrite before the symposium registration start time, be sure to refresh your browser, or the registration information might not display.

  • Be prepared to select your workshops and demo when you register.
  • When workshops are full they will appear crossed out. Please select a different workshop
  • All participants (both Workshops and Basic pass holders) can choose one demonstration to attend.
  • All participants are welcome to attend the lectures and sketchwalks.
  • On the Eventbrite site, make sure you fill in any fields with a red asterisk (*) next to them.
  • Once you select a pass, Eventbrite gives you 10 minutes to complete your purchase. This ensures that passes still unpurchased after that time are released for others.
  • If you purchase a Basic pass and then wish to upgrade to a Workshops pass, you will need to purchase a new pass and email symposium@urbansketchers.org to request a full refund for the original pass.
  • Once you are registered, you can log back into your Eventbrite account at any time to make changes to your personal information or symposium selections until June 18.
  • If you have any questions, please email symposium@urbansketchers.org. Sorry, but we cannot guarantee an official response if you post your question on the Facebook page or other social media.
Payment Options

On Eventbrite, you can pay with an existing PayPal account OR checkout as a guest (meaning you don't need a PayPal account) using a credit or debit card.

Updating Registration Information

The last day to change your symposium selections in Eventbrite is June 18. After that, you will be able to see your selections but not make any changes. Click here to see how to update your symposium information and selections in Eventbrite.

What is the refund policy?
Urban Sketchers reserves the right to apply a $85 (USD) cancellation fee for all refunds. Due the need to finalize facilities, supplies, and programming, no refunds will be offered after May 11, 2017. Email symposium@urbansketchers.org for refund requests.

Can I upgrade my pass type?
To upgrade a pass from Basic to Workshops you must register again and cancel your original registration. Email symposium@urbansketchers.org for a full refund.

Thank you for your enthusiasm, support and love for urban sketching.

See you in Chicago!

The Symposium will be held at 501 South Wabash Avenue, Chicago, IL 60605, United States
For more information, contact: symposium@urbansketchers.org

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