Absolutely spectacular day in Chicago. Brilliant light, mild temp, people out & excited. This is Chicago coming out of a long winter like the butterfly from the chrysalis. Shot to Green City Farmers Market in Lincoln Park. Ate a baked good, & with a blues band playing to the shoppers, looked for a subject to eat up a good hour.
Enter Primordial Foods, purveyors of gourmet mushrooms & micro greens, from Bloomington, Ind. Loved the backlighting. Still serving customers as the afternoon traffic started thinning, one gent was seated & I was attracted to his shadowy profile balancing the standing figure of his partner.
Of course, of course, you guessed it, up he got as a second customer came up to the stall. I worked on the tent, table and mushroom monger #2 with the possibility he’d return to the chair, as the composition was a bit heavily weighted on the right. In time he did, then got right back up. Got on the phone, walked about the tent & behind me as he talked. Kept working & he kept teasing with the chair. As I stated, the market was nearing the end of a long day, so, did what I refrain from doing. That is interfering with the natural order of the universe. I walked over as they were without customers & said, “Hi gents. Been sketching y’all,(showed ‘em my progress), & I’m gonna break my rule and ask if you could return to that chair.” They smiled, dude #1 said ,”Sure, I could have a seat.” Said if you gotta get up for customers or start packing soon that’s cool. I just need about 8 minutes to toss you in. Intros made, Tom’s seated, Dylan tending the table, I got down to it. I mean, what about this day wasn’t life on the good side fellas? You’re young, making money, selling good product, in a beautiful setting, on a glorious day. Tom, my man, poured in that chair, with a cool breeze off the lake, blues music stirring the soul, the close of a job well done, you are the poster child of Got It Made In The Shade pardner.
Got him. Showed ‘em. Said I’d finish the sketch while they packed.
All packed up, pics were taken, hands got shaken, I wished those two fine fellas well & a safe return to lovely Bloomington.
Fountain pen and Pitt Artist Pens on Clairefontaine Rhodia notebook.
#primordialfoods #drawyourday #sketch
Mushroom Dudes
- May 10th, 2022
- Posted in Drawings
- Tagged backlighting, brilliant light, brush pen artwork, clairefontaine paper, drawing from life, Dudes, Farmers Market, Green City Farmers Market, mushroom vendors, Pitt Artist Pens, Rhodia notebook, shadowy figures, tent, urban sketching
Hi there,
Holly Worthen passed on the link to your buttnekkiddoodles a while back and now I always love checking in to see your latest drawing. The feeling therein is always so fluid and graceful, full of your humor and craft. The company you work for is very fortunate to have your talent to represent their wares. We live in rural Nelson County, VA, and have Farmers’ Markets here. You captured the feel and texture of our life around here as well. Even in Chicago you got the feel for us country folk!
Kind regards,
Trew Bennett
Thanks for the gracious comments Trew. I may be an urban cat for the most part but my wife and I each prefer to live where we get a taste of both. We have the lovely Lincoln Park and Lake Michigan directly across from our apartment. Interestingly enough, I was raised by a dad who hailed from Fort Worth and a mom who grew up on a farm not too far from you in Fluvanna County. We used to go down and visit cousins there and in Charlottesville and had a family reunion a few years back at a small church in Fluvanna county where I’m related to half the folks resting in peace beside that church. Spectacularly beautiful part of this old Earth.
Thanks for looking in on me Trew.