city and countryside in one sketching weekend

Last weekend was a busy time for Luxembourg sketchers!

On Saturday we met for one of the guided tours by Prof. Robert Philippart  around the Adolphe Bridge (Pont Adolphe). This bridge, one of the emblematic features of Luxemburg, has spanned the Petrusse valley since 1903 and links the upper city with the Bourbon Plateau. The bridge has been reopened only recently after a long period of rehabilitation. 

I faced a difficult choice between concentrating on my sketchbook or on the extremely well informed comments of our guide...

lines and thumbnails around the pont adolphe

and why not try a sketch with no lines, just surfaces and blotches?

On Sunday we enjoyed the early spring and had a very relaxing sketchcrawl on the sun-drenched banks of the Mosel at Grevenmacher.

a Mosel barge passes at a slow pace, but you have to sketch quickly

reflections on the water

a sketcher on the Mosel bank



drink & draw at a sunny terrace afterwards



The new USK Luxembourg logo

Following the USK logo identity guide, the new USK Luxembourg logo refers to the typical skyline of Luxembourg City ans shows its main monuments: the Spuerkess tower, the Adolphe Bridge, the Gëlle Fra, the Cathedral, the Grand Ducal Palace, the St Michel Church and the Bock.

We hope you'll enjoy it!

April Sketchcrawls

Hello dear sketchers,

For our monthly sketchcrawl we will go to Grevenmacher. Weather permitting, we will explore the town. Those who prefer can also discover the Kulturhuef (museum of printing and museum of card games).

Let's meet at the entrance of the Kulturhuef in Grevenmacher at 14:00 this Sunday 2 April 2017.

This weekend there will also be the sketchcrawl organised with LUCA for the occasion of the reopening of the Adolphe bridge. M. Robert Philippart will share his vast knowledge of the briges history while we sketch.

Don't forget the Urban Sketching meeting taking place on 29-30 April!! There is still time to sign up for the sketchcrawls and for the dinner on Saturday. Sketchers from the neighbouring countries have already promised to be there.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/usk-sketchcrawl-luxembourg-tickets-31707094774?aff=ehomecard 

A month full of sketches ahead! :)

Rainy afternoon at the Rotondes

At the last sketchcrawl with the USK Luxembourg, we met at the Rotondes in Bonnevoie. This location was first used keeping steam locomotives and their maintenance. Later it worked as a repair shop for buses.

Toward the end of the 20th century, they were added to the list of classified monuments and renovated to be used as exhibition spaces. Today, they host concerts, exhibitions, a pub and a variety of cultural events.

We met in the afternoon as usual and were joined by Jonathan, a fellow urban sketcher from the UK who was visiting the city that weekend. Unfortunately it had to be one of the wettest days of the year so far. We jokingly commented to Jonathan that it was probably not a big change from the weather at home.

Our group split between those who wanted to stay in dry space and those crazy enough to try to sketch on the roofed overpass between the Rotondes and the Luxembourg train station. I joined the second group.

It would have been a perfect location despite the rain, had it not been for the strong wind pushing water through some of the openings in the overpass. In spite of those conditions, I was pretty proud to manage a decent sketch.

However, after a while we all had to concede to the weather and headed inside to the Rotonde's pub, the Buvette, for a cosy session of hot drinks and sketching.

SPECIAL: USK+LUCA+Musée Dräi Eechelen session around the PONT ADOLPHE

For the first time there will be two USK session on the same weekend!

On Saturday the 1st of April, the Professor Robert Philippart (Histoire Urbaine) will welcome the all sketchers during a tour he gives for the Musée Dräi Eechelen.

We will follow him in a walk around the Pont Adolphe in the centre of Luxembourg.

From place to place, stopping in front of historical building and particular places, Prof. Philippart will give us the keys to understand the many places we like to draw.

Be prepared, with the right tools set, to make a series of kick sketches during this very interesting two hours tour.

Language: FR

cost: free

meeting point: at 2 p.m. Place de Bruxelles (bâtiment Pôle Nord, av. Marie-Thérèse)

USK+LUCA at 1535° in Differdange

This Saturday our urban sketching session with LUCA will take place in Differdange's 1535°

http://www.luca.lu/news/urban-sketching-au-1535-creative-hub

See you there Saturday from 2 pm until 5 pm!
Jean-Paul + Arnaud

Rainy day, but happy sketching

On Sunday we visited the Rotondes in Bonnevoie for our monthly skwtchcrawl. The ugly weather didn't stop a few courageous sketchers from sketching from the overpass between the train station and and Bonnevoie, but most os us found shelter (and hot drinks) at the Buvette, the Rotonde's pub,

We even welcomed our first guest from faraway lands, Jonathan Dixon, from the UK. It was a pleasure meeting him!

All in all, another fun afternoon out.

Good times at the Rotondes in Bonnevoie!

Looking downs on the tracks from the train station overpass. Michèle Graedel

Drawing at the bar at the Rotondes in Bonnevoie. Michèle Graedel

March Sketchcrawl

Hello dear sketchers,

This month, we invite you to have a look around the Rotondes in Bonnevoie.

Between their interesting architecture and their proximity to the Luxembourg train station, we will be able to try out a few more unusual subjects.

Let's meet at the bus station in front of the Rotondes in Bonnevoie at 14:00 this Sunday 5 March 2017.

See you on Sunday!

USK + LUCA 25/02/2017

Une dizaine de courageux sketchers étaient présents ce samedi au centre-ville sur la place de Clairefontaine. 
Les clochers de la cathédrale vus depuis la place était le sujet principal. Chacun a pu rendre à sa manière leur découpe sur le ciel très lumineux et le jeu des différentes profondeurs.

Une session très froide qui s'est terminée par un bon chocolat chaud bien mérité et à l'abri.
Bravo à Anneke, Nancy, Sacha, Monika, Veronica, Elia, Marc, Laurent, Julie, Joé et Pit pour cet exploit ;-)

Prochain rdv USK dimanche  prochain le 5 mars!

Antiques & Art Fair Luxembourg

Béliza nous attendait ce 1er dimanche de février dans le sas d'entrée de la foire des Arts et Antiquaires au Kirchberg et nous a très gentiment négocié un accès de groupe. Merci mille fois! La tentation de flâner et chiner entre les stands était vraiment très forte, mais nous étions là pour dessiner.
Ce foisonnement d'objets, de transparences, de couleurs et de brillances empêchait mon regard de se poser. Après avoir réussi à choisir une étagère de figurines colorées, peut-être un peu kitsch, il a fallu trouver un endroit pour s'installer. Je me sentais comme une pierre dans le flux d'un torrent de badauds que je ne voulais pas gêner, ni encombrer les commerçants. Enfin, j'ai trouvé le seul point me permettant l'immobilité sans cacher une quelconque vitrine. Pas de chaise, donc dessiner debout. Il y avait tant de choses, je voulais rendre l'amoncellement, la fragilité, les reflets, le cache-cache entre les étagères.

Les négociations chuchotées, les commentaires en aparté accompagnaient le défilement des visiteurs. Pas une seconde d'ennui. Un spectacle permanent de "murmures et lueurs" à défaut de "sons et lumières". Au risque de m'enraciner, je n'ai fini qu'une étagère. Dommage que je n'ai pas osé la couleur.

Après nous être retrouvés, nous avons tous pensé qu'une heure ne suffisait pas à relater cette belle ambiance et nous voici repartis pour un tour.

Une seconde étagère de vases des années 20-30 avec leurs motifs de volutes végétales et leurs teintes douces sur des matières translucides. Une impression de grande fragilité. Pas le temps de faire tous les étages…

…il était déjà l'heure du café.

Je me suis un peu perdue entre les stands, et finalement j'ai retrouvé mes amis sketchers dans la seconde cafétéria bien cachée dans une salle un peu en retrait de la halle principale…et enfin un siège!! 

 

Mudam en janvier

Avec un bon mois de retard voici les impressions sur notre sortie de janvier dernier au Mudam. C'était le dernier jour de l'exposition Wim Delvoye. Comme je l'avais déjà vue mon choix a été facilité, mais pas le dessin!
J'ai d'abord choisi de me cacher dans la salle des "Truck Tyres".
Tranquille dans le noir, enveloppée de l'odeur insistante du caoutchouc, seule avec ces énormes pneus de camion que juste quelques rais de lumière font apparaître dans la pénombre en éclairant leurs folles ciselures.

J'aurais aimé mieux rendre la finesse de ce travail de dentelière absurde grignotant petit à petit la grossièreté du profil qui se troue en arabesques et volutes parfaitement inutiles…mais si élégantes. 

Je me suis trop longtemps acharnée dans ces noirs et ombres pour qu'il me reste assez de temps pour dessiner une autre de ses œuvres particulièrement tourmentées.

Finalement j'ai tenté, avec un feutre grossier, une rapide esquisse du "Dual Moebius Quad Corpus", objet beaucoup plus lumineux installé dans un espace immense. Tout le contraire de la précédente salle sombre et confinée. C'est un christ en croix, doré, brillant, tordu à souhaits au point de rendre le sujet méconnaissable…et auquel mon esquisse achève hélas d'ôter son restant d'identité.

Enfin, la récompense, se retrouver à la cafétéria pour siroter cafés, thés et chocolats en échangeant et commentant nos esquisses.

Leen discutant

‘DRINK & DRAW', or rather ‘TASTE & DRAW’

luxemburg riesling tasting

I am blessed with a wine loving husband, but not with delicate taste buds. So when we were invited to join a select club of wine tasters in Luxemburg, I agreed on the condition that I could sketch while tasting.

We meet once every six weeks or so. The host couple chooses a specific wine region, grape or label and every couple brings one bottle in a price range from 5 to 30 euro. It is a ‘horizontal’ and blind tasting, during which all the aspects of the wine are discussed and noted: appearance, aroma, in-mouth-sensations and aftertaste. At the end the one who brought the winning wine receives a little award.

aloxe-corton wine tasting, luxemburg...and the winner is: aloxe-corton premier cru 'les valozières' 2005

I love the terminology: leathery, tar, stewed prunes, chocolate, liquorice, roses, prunes, bramble fruits, earthy, smoky, wet wool, petrol... But I quickly lose track and then I start to observe and try to sketch my fellow tasters. I always spit the wine in a spittoon, but is true that some alcohol can loosen up the sketches!

south american chardonnay wine tasting

south american chardonnay wine tasting: taking notes

saint-joseph (rhone) wine tasting

alentejo white wine tasting: looking, tasting, thinking

alentejo white wine tasting: smelling, tasting and taking notes


Adding some colour to the wine!



malbec wine tasting, luxemburg: the winner is catena alta 2011





vacqueyras wine tasting, luxemburg, and the winner is: les halos de jupiter 2010

Once in a while the wine tasting club goes on a little wine trip to a famous wine region. Last weekend we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the club with a trip to the nearby Alsace wine region, where we visited some remarkable producers:

Bernard Weber tasting





Réné Boehler tasting



Here a link to our Piemonte trip in 2015.

And here  you can see the whole collection of my wine tasting sketches PLUS some useful information about lesser known wines, and even more useful, the winning wines...

February Sketchcrawl

Hello dear sketchers,

Since the cold still bites too much, we will find refuge at the LuxExpo for our meeting of February.

We'll have plenty of choice of subject between the Antiques and Art Fair and the Wine Salon.

Let's meet at the entrance of the LuxExpo (Kirchberg) at 14:00 this Sunday 5 February 2017.

See you on Sunday!

Belated accounts

I have been remiss with publishing my sketches form the last Urban Sketchers' sketchcrawls, so here they are now.

In December we went to the Christmas market, which is slowly becoming a tradition of ours.

The Christmas market in the capital has grown a lot over the years an can now boast three main locations. This time I focused on the small ice skating rink on Place Guillaume II. The day was wonderfully sunny and the rink was full of people.

A mulled wine at a nearby café surrounded by friends were the perfect end to a lovely aftenoon.

In January we went to the Mudam. I was very pleasantly surprised at the big turnout: 17 people came to sketch with us this time!

It was the last day of the Wim Delvoye exhibit, an artist that has already been shown at the Mudam several years ago. Here are a few of his works. Tattooed pigs (I have mixed feelings about them, but they looked so friendly I couldn't resist sketching them).

One of his Cloaca machines.

I'm not sure these metal trees were part of his exhibit but I really liked this view, specially with two of my fellow sketchers in the background.

Sketching at the Mudam

Amazing turnout at our last sketchcrawl in the Mudam museum! 17 sketchers, old friends and new came to start the year on a merry note.