Well, one thing’s for certain….I’m no architect. I really don’t dig drawing large wall after wall after wall of windows. Got back today to finish yesterday’s sketch of the pall over Chicago from the Canadian forest fires. I have a great vantage point of Lincoln Park as I sit by my north facing window. An interesting challenge of sketching the light at that time of day is that because of the haze, the buildings and trees in the distance resemble distant mountain ranges on hazy days; the top profiles are darker at their crest and lighten as they fall below the closer mountains. As each mountain range or ridge gets closer, its crest is darker than the one more distant. But, as the trees got closer to me, the sun lit the tops so that the closest trees had to be darker than the crest of the tree in front of them and closer to the viewer. The reverse of distant trees and features. So the challenge was to still get the sense of a pall from the smoke, the atmospheric perspective, and the raking afternoon sun striking the tops of the trees. One obvious trick is how you use contours, edges, contrasts, lines and details. Drop the use of line as you move into the distance, more clarity and detail in the foreground, greater contrasts in the foreground. It’s such a great view we have of the city and lake from our apartment but you might guess why I don’t perch by the window more often drawing these views; because it’s such a fun pain in the arse.
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The faculty ofUniversity of Illinois at Chicago went on strike this week when negotiations broke down. On the day I got this view of the demonstrators gathering on the UIC Quad, the weather was just above freezing and blustery. There was no way I was gonna tough it out long enough to get all the features on Mr. Netsch’s striking administrative building in the background. (years ago I worked inside this classic example of Brutalism by the firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and admit to having such a distaste for a structure that looks like Darth Vader’s summer residence) So, I went into the student union and got the clouds from there, added white to the striker’s signs and added the blue to their UICUF (UIC United Faculty) beanies.
 I went on the second day of the strike and found Scabby, the inflated union busting  rat that shows up a strike demonstrations. The weather was a bit cold so I hung in long enough to get the rodent but gave up on detailing the background.
Fountain pen and Pitt Artist Pens on toned paper.
Two days of very large turnouts marked the inauguration of Donald Trump to POTUS.
The demonstrations were peaceful by most accounts, though there were a few arrest on the night of the inauguration. So, Friday night, I went downtown to see what would become of a planned demonstration around the Trump Tower which sits beside theChicago River in one of the grandest public spaces in the U.S. of A. I was actually quite surprised and accepting of the building, for sure a large and unmistakably phallic structure from several vantage points. It’s large presence was well situated in the midst of Chicago’s downtown cluster, took full advantage of the immediacy of the river guaranteeing it’s inclusion on the armada of architectural tours popular with out of owners and locals alike. It was the later, unfortunate inclusion of very large letters spelling out the extremely well known developer’s name, that has made the already grandiose building more self aggrandizing and probably increasing the number of it’s detractors.
On my way to Trump Tower, I encountered a police barricade 1/2 a block north of the main entrance, just across from the House of Blues. The fellow in front of me identified himself as press, may even have shown a pass, so…”Evening officer, Don Colley, visual journalist writing for an independent blog”. The officer pointed to the next cluster of cops towards the bridge. I approached the one who seemed to be following me most closely and said, pointing a thumb over my shoulder,”The officer said to tell you I write for an independent blog…” and seeming either satisfied, indifferent, or not particularly impressed, she waved me on. I was on the north side of the river at the Wabash Street bridge and looking across saw the demonstration procession wrapping around the Trump Tower cordoned off a block or more in each direction. Hence, the less than informative view of the goings on as you look towards the bridge tower and the Church of Christian Scientists with the odd buttressed roof.
I got what I could from that view then strolled along the bridge to just behind the police line on the south end of the bridge at Wacker Drive. I got a good start on the drawing before an officer came over to inform me that while she liked my nice drawing, I wasn’t supposed to stop on the bridge and needed to head back or join the revelers. I said I understood but during the course of drawing in court, occasionally officers would permit me to sit in more advantageous spots and this was a particularly good vantage point, yes? She said she had to go back across the bridge and when she returned, I needed to have moved on. Fortunately, I got it done.
The following day I joined some friends and fell into what has been reported as a crowd of a quarter of a million participants for the Women’s March. The high spirited energy of the gigantic crowd was palpable and did not leave this observer untouched. A disclaimer perhaps should be that while I’m prepared to be objective should I witness things out of the ordinary, I was there not just to witness and record the event, I was there in full support of equal rights for Women and Planned Parenthood.
Pitt Pens and fountain pens in a Strathmore sketchbook.
By by the Block Museum on the campus of Nortwestern Univ after high winds and a hail storm blew thru.
Movie night at Pulaski Park, Chicago.
 
 
Faber-Castell Pitt Pens, various fountain pens, Platinum Carbon ink, Strathmore toned sketchbook.
