Buttnekkiddoodles

Two gorgeous days, perfect to draw out in the park. So yesterday I headed out to draw more of the renovations at North Pond. That was my intention until I came across the quirky sculpture by Robbie Barber next to the Lincoln Park Recreational Center. An old shell of a mobile camper/trailer mounted on a rusty outsized wheel rims. Channeling Claus Oldenburg a smidg, this very American, iconic mash up, part Conestoga wagon, part baby carriage on steroids glued me to the grass and out came the sketchbook. I started laying out the basic structure a bit after 3pm. At that point the trailer shell was partially in the sun with the raking light casting zebra shadows on the side. But with the sun moving quickly the whole piece wound up in the full shade of the building behind me. Not what I’d hoped to capture. So I worked on the wheels, background & grass and decided the drawing would be finished at roughly the same time today.
Today I headed out to complete the drawing and arrived at the perfect time. Okay, next up, I figured I head over to North Pond as planned the previous day. Well, en route to said pond, I spied the magnificent Eli Bates fountain by Augustus Saint-Gaudens of boys with scaly fin tipped fish legs (merboys?) wrestling with fish. The light was good, I was game and thus out came the sketchbook and pens.
Fountain pen & Pitt Artist Pens on a Rhodia notebook.

I’ve returned to court, principally to cover an ongoing case about a gang that has been pulling off armed robberies and carjackings in my neighborhood. One suspect is in custody with the possibility more may be indicted.
I’m also just randomly going in to get the pulse of what’s doing in Chicagoland with corruption cases et. al.

My friend Stuart, hand to head upper left, is a DA who also is a solid painter and teaches drawing and painting, never even got up to argue his case as it was

Because of Covid, defendants are given the option to appear in court, or via Zoom sessions, which many are choosing to and hence I had to go to a “Zoom Room” to watch closed circuit proceedings with everyone logged in. You can see my sketch of the computer, my scattered markers, and my reflection on the screen. It was a great work station as I had the room to myself, but it was also hectic as people often turned their cameras off until the judge called on them. So I had very little time to sketch participants. The judge’s screen was on full time and I got the two sketches of her, masked and unmasked, with her fabulous mane of hair.
Fountain pen and Pitt Artist Pens on a Rhodia Dot Grid notebook.

The month’s gathering of head studies. So, what DO you call a bunch of noggins?
A bushel??
Fountain pen and Pitt Artist Pens on a #Rhodia Dot Grid notebook. #uskchicago

Hung out near closing time at the mega brew corporate cafe on The Mag Mile. Lu Lu, Raven, and Abigail pumping the evening crowd full of caffeine so they can make the club scene till last call. Pitt Artist Pens and a fountain pen on Rhodia Dot Grid notebook.

Back in court. Cook County Courthouse, Skokie, IL, the Honorable F. Andreou presiding, Officer Valenza of the Cook Co. Sheriff Police, Cook Co. Clerk BH. Went to cover a specific case, the defendant was still incarcerated and trial date got moved. Stuck around to draw and watch proceedings which were a combination of Zoom meetings and and one witnessed that actually appeared in the courtroom.
I logged into the Zoom feature so I could see close ups of the judge, defendants, witnesses, and counsel but my very expensive iPhone kept dropping the signal. As a result, didn’t get the best representation of Judge Andreou nor Clerk BH but the attending lawyers and Deputy Valenza all felt the officer was clearly identifiable. One lawyer comment that I even got his salt ‘n’ pepper at the temples.
“Shucks ma’am, that’s my job.” {Mic drop}
Draw with fountain pen, DeAtramentis Document Brown Ink, and Pitt Artist Pens on a Rhodia Dot Grid notebook.