View from Puke Ariki

Here's a view of the city from Puke Ariki (museum) showing the people moving around the hodgepodge architecture of New Plymouth. At the bottom, is the reverse side of part of the Festival of Lights Pop-up that was very popular with tons of people.

Peggy Gordons

 

If you've ever been to Peggy Gordons and thought that you may have had too many, don't worry. It's the building... NOT YOU! The toilet is in what used to be a vault. That door really IS that heavy. So have another.

National Corvette Convention

 About 100 Corvettes turned up at sunny East End, New Plymouth - much admiration at the gleaming chrome.  This 1958 Stingray was the oldest there.

Moturoa

 

Even though I'm sketching at the Moturoa shops, this really is just a sketch of this awesome tree on the top of the hill.

New Plymouth Gypsy Fair

 A beautiful hot summers day and I chose to draw Peter the Tinker at the New Plymouth Gypsy Fair.  He wanted his 'best side'.   Tinkling were many teapot and flattened spoon wind chimes selling for $150.  Then Geoff approached me, no not a tailor but a Blacksmith who wanted to be drawn.

Swiss French singer Dominique (Blatti) contacted me as I had sketched her band 12 years ago - she still had the tattered copy on her wall and now wanted a sketch of her new band, La Mer.  Thy were beautifully playing (in French) on the Gables lawn in New Plymouth last week, which enabled me to capture them.   

 

ANZAC Weekend

 Being ANZAC weekend this was an appropriate theme.

Fountain Lake

When I drew this lake before, I didn't draw the fountain since I didn't really know how to tackle it. The water jets change as it does its cycle. When it stops, you have to wait for some kid to push the button again. (It goes for about 2 minutes each time.) The mist goes everywhere and it just 'looks like white'. So I sort of just tried to not really draw that area, and hint a little at what was behind the water, as the trees behind it appeared through it.

Liardet Street Projects

The foodcarts in the Liardet Street Projects are humming.  A marvelous place to sketch, especially when Ricardo of Chiwi Catering kindly shouted us two rounds of delicious Chilean wedges.   

A couple of days later I had a call from a Taranaki Foodie writer - Ricardo had sent her a copy of the sketch.  She wanted the original, as it turns out she is the red-head in the sketch!

Collecting Seaweed at East End

This one was done in July before lockdown. It was just after a big storm and patches of seaweed were washing up on the beaches. Although I've never collected it myself, it's pretty good in a garden. There's a small window from when it shows up to when it washes back into the sea. At times, there were quite a few harvesters on the beach. While stuck at home, I gave this one this one the colour treatment.

Liardet Street

There's a pedestrian bridge that connects to a hill that overlooks the Tasman Sea. Of course I'm drawing in the other direction. I don't know. It just how I do it.

Classic Motorcycle Show

 The New Plymouth Classic Motorcycle Show was packed, even though it was being held over two days.  This 1960 BSA 600cc jumped out at me - wanting to be sketched.  

Fitzroy Motor Camp

 Summer camp - gorgeous weather with the world's second bluest sky

Wedding preparation at the Fitzroy Motor Camp - bridal doll just fixed to the grill

Naked Ladies

 Renate Verbrugge's Mothers and Daughters andesite sculptures look out over the Tasman Sea from the New Plymouth foreshore.  Each is a slightly different colour.

I guess it was a rather cheap life drawing class.

Infusion Food

 The vendor kindly swapped a plate of beef for a copy of my sketch.  Back to the days of singing for your supper - quite satisfying.

Palestine Protest

 Looking for reportage opportunities, we spotted this protest concerned about the annexation of Palestine.  They were at the Landing (where the original ship's passengers came ashore in New Plymouth). Apparently the protester numbers had doubled to four since their June protest.

1862 NZ Villa

 The Taranaki Sketchers were sketching early villas in the same area this past weekend.  This colourful old lady built in 1862 had its frontage added in the 1870's

Fitzroy Beach

 A no-breeze glassy-water morning at Fitzroy Beach. Lots of surfers. 2 hours later, a breeze made it cold, the water was choppy and the surfers were gone.

Alfa Romeos

 A calm New Plymouth morning found 50 Alfa Romeos from all over New Zealand parked up by the sea for their 'Show and Shine'.

Spider

The oldest there - 1958

All the way from Christchurch - with some coaxing when starting

I gather the cross is derived from the Milanese warriors, the right hand snake part was the symbol of the influential Visconti family.  The crown for when they became dukes in the 15th Century.  However I was puzzled about the bloke in the snakes mouth.  One owner suggested it represented a Saracen.  Alfa = Anonimea Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili. Originally made in Milan in 1910, it was bought by Nicola Romeo in 1915.  The company now owned by Fiat produces in the centre of the country in San Germano, not far from the site of the Battle of Monte Cassino - known to many New Zealanders.

Pou

 The installation of our pou was a good excuse to invite our Taranaki Sketchers around.  Kowhaiwhai patterns in aluminum at the base aim to enhance the story.  Like many pous it tells a story, in our case about our family, background, interests and origins.  The waka (for us, the ships our families immigrated on) are silhouetted with dates and ship names.  Sketching as a skill was helpful in developing each part and the overall concept.  It even includes the spacecraft our son designs.  The Southern Cross at the top is also echoed in one of the waka names - SS Zuiderkruis.  Of course I had to include me sketching in the carving. So I guess I was sketching me sketching!