Flowers for Mommy

So in an ever relentless and seemingly unimproving exercise of love, the flowers given to my wife on holidays (namely Valentines and Mothers day) are forever recorded in a watercolour sketch. But as I amass more and more of these visual ventures I'm always confronted by my own impatience and shortcomings when it comes to watercolours. So the sentiment is always more sweet then the work, but the lessons remain both invaluable and humbling...

The best bit of it is...my kids watch me do these little labors and they now watercolour, too. Even getting a little paper snobby on me when I try to give them inferior paper. Another cool thing is, for mothers Day, my wife doesn't want me buying flowers...that doesn't mean she doesn't WANT flowers...so my boy and I go the park and pick out what ever we can that will work...not much blooming this year so we got a bunck of colorful weeds and grassy plants. Ha! the memories are often times the product of the skecth!

Airline perspectives

So I have been flying around a bit. I love to fly. Despite the thrill of leaving terra firma and soaring through clouds and looking at the scale of the earth as it diminishes as the flight rises...the extended time in one location, taking in a singular point of view, having to pass time. I don't know about you...but I can read for about 6 minutes on the plane before I'm awkwardly asleep against the window or an unsuspecting neighbor. But if I draw, I stay engaged. Looking for compositions...here are a few of a common theme.

O'Hare layover sketch

Traveling back from Dallas to Syracuse this week,  I had a flight cancelled in Chicago. This gave me an unexpected 4 hour layover. Ample time to traverse the concourses and see the many spaces that link travelers with commerce and flights. So I walked by Wolfgang Puck's restaurant and noticed they had paper atop there linen covered tables. I also saw an opportunity. Since I had the time, I chose a seat that provided a great perspective through the terminal. and so through the course of the meal this drawing was generated.

and then a quick re-peat in the sketchbook.

At the end of the meal the waitress asked if I was going to throw it away. I said it was her table and she could do with it what she'd like. I paid my tab, got up and left. When aptly lost in the many passing by I looked back and saw she had brought some staff over. She loved it and kept it. Funny how a simple sketch can connect with someone...when what they take for granted is elevated to art asking them to take inventory of their location in a new (and maybe inspiring) way.

Oddfellows - Dallas

I was in Dallas a few weeks ago and thanks to a savvy city guide, they listed this quirky restaurant in Oak Cliff, a district near Dallas, Texas. Oddfellows is an amazing, warm, unhurried environment, where I out did myself with Breakfast...The Bacon...perfect, huevos Rancheros: spot on; and the coffee...worth the trip alone from Syracuse! If you are in Dallas, go here. Sketch. Eat. Enjoy. no rush.

Andrew Petrie comes home

To cap off an amazing year...we had the amazing blessing of wecoming Andrew into our lives. My wife delivered Andrew at 6:57 am Dec 31, 2011. He weighed in at 8 lbs. 11 oz. healthy and fiesty, he and mom are doing great. We just brought them home today. En route we stopped at Kubal for a nice lunch and coffee.here is his first coffee sketch. Below, a photo of his first hour of being here and his first impressions. so happy!

Armory Square Sketches

One of the central places to visit in Syracuse is Armory Square. In such a small area there is a broad range of food, activity, shops and social mixers that each visit makes the area seem a little larger. While looking for a certain sketch to post for a new subscriber to this blog, I discovered that, over the last few years, I had amassed quite a series of armory square inages and it's surrounds that it might be interesting to post an abbreviated collection.
This post will be followed by "restaurants" of Syracuse...of which field research is still being done! Enjoy!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Every Year it remains a challenge to make my own Christmas cards. Last year I had an idea to do a series centered on the warmth of a mug of coffee or hot cocoa and depict in the back ground a snap-shot of our little home. Below is this year's card. Merry Christmas everybody!

Chelsea Market Sketch

A few weeks ago Amy and I were in NYC and were able to visit Chelsea Market. We took in the interior street with an assortment of sweets from Amy's Bread and coffee from 9th st Espresso. While we didn't run into Bobby Flay or any other iron chef, it was pretty cool to be in the hallowed halls of the Food Network!

Cafe Kubal Opening Downtown Syracuse

Cafe Kubal had their first day in Downtown Syracuse on December 12th. It was a quiet opening as they were fixing all the kinks. But It just happened I was downtown that day and was surprised to see them brewing the espresso. So I popped in and documented the opening in a brief sketch.

Three Thank you's

Thank you notes are a special form of communication and one that retains a great and simple joy for the author and the recipient. Here are three "thank you's" that brought joy in the making and equally, if not exceedingly more, in the friends that received them.

Lunch and Coffee at Pastis in the Meat Packing district in NYC.

A Thank you to Jackie! I can only think more to come.

 

Syracuse Office Interiors open house at Pioneer Companies, Syracuse, NY

A Thank you to Marb and Rebeccah for the invitation! An amazing space!

George Washington's compass. A special Thank you to Glenn for the privilege.