Sketches From Spain
- Zach E Bear
- May 23
- 3 min read
Here's the dump of everything I drew directly from life in Spain.
The boats and unique skyline were a must for me to draw as they were the most iconic landscapes of my trip. There were a few other areas like Park Güell, Arc de Triomf and the beach, but those places were so crowded I didn't want to stop and try to draw. I also
waited to see these places with my wife, and we were sort of on a time crunch at that point.
The boat docks were drawn on my first day in Spain, and the most fascinating thing about them was seeing hundreds and hundreds of masts climbing to the sky. I found a quiet place away from everyone to draw, and I as I put marks down on my paper I got a real silent and ominous feeling. The masts felt like dead trees in the winter; waiting for the warmth of spring to come back to life. In a sense, they were dead, because there wasn't a single person on any of these boats. I composed my first drawing/painting based off of this feeling; I wanted the masts to feel like tombstones and crosses clawing at heaven while the boats served as a winter ground.
The second painting I wanted to capture the reflections in the water. The masts were still a focal point, black and eerie and I supposed it carries the same emotional weight as the first drawing with the two harsh contrasts of black and white.
The third painting is a view from the rooftop of our second hotel. I don't like it. The brush strokes are too soft, too mute. I need harsher contrast and stronger brush stroke visibility. This is a technique thing I need to work on.
The last two drawings were also from the same hotel rooftop. My wife napped on a sunchair while I drew these. I'm unsure if I'll paint them or not; I'm still debating.
I'm sure some would consider these drawings incomplete, but they aren't. I took them as far I was intending to.
The last set of drawings were from a Barcelona Life Drawing class that I scoped out before we left Wichita. It was such a wonderful experience; it reminded me how enjoyable and beautiful drawing a woman from life can be.
I think people get wrapped up in with the wrong things when it comes to a life drawing class. It's not the instructors, it's not the socializing, it's not about technique. It's not about sticking someone in a stiff pose for hours on end while trying to fight a camera and capture reality with a pencil or charcoal. It's all about the model. It's all about life. The model is the whole reason for the class to exist!
As far I as i could tell there was no instructor; there was someone at the front who took my money for the class, but after that the model was completely charge of everything. A phone alarm went off at specific intervals, but she moved at her own discretion, very lively and very liberally, with her hula hoop prop.
Moments like these make me want to start my own life drawing sessions; I'm seriously considering it in the future when my art becomes more financially independent.
