Urban Sketchers Peterborough. A Day in the Sun.

An ideal day for sketching with the Urban Sketchers of Peterborough, perhaps a bit too ideal!
The sun was shining, the birds were singing and my trusty bike had the tyres pumped up and sketching kit loaded.

As I never stop boasting I have my sketching kit finely honed,
a pencil case full of pens and pencils,
and two spiral bound sketchbooks. (If weight was an issue it could be one.)
Also in my rucksack was a hat with brim,
sun glasses,
mobile phone camera 
and bottle of water.

An extra luxury this time was a small camping stool, but I didn't need it as there were plenty of spare chairs.

We meet every second Sunday of the month and our base is The Green Backyard in Peterborough a vibrant community garden nestled among towering flats, Victorian cottages and the main line to London.

The Green Backyard. Peterborough

It was an enjoyable meeting even though there were not a lot of us, holiday season being at it's height. Even before we got started we had to partake of Sara's mum's chocolate cake.
Then it was down to work, dispersing into the site to draw. 
There are so many things, detail of plants and flowers, the allotments and greenhouses, a caravan that seems to grow out of the ground.  And there's the wider environment too, the big picture, which is the task I set myself.

Mary Kemp. Sketch of the Green Backyard

In my drawing I wanted to show the contrast between the surrounding buildings of the monolith of  the flats, the ghostly new building under construction, the Victorian cottages, and the wild environment underneath of ethereal willows and chunks of bog oak. (The allotments and greenhouses are to the right.)

This is the link to the Urban Sketchers Peterborough facebook page. Please take a look, and perhaps join us next time.