books
Grab a pencil & take a tour of The World of Urban Sketching BY JANE WINGFIELD
I
could swear there were sparks emitting from my computer when I interviewed Stephanie Bower over Zoom about her new book, The World of Urban Sketching. She was so enthused to share the results of this project—collecting, cataloguing, organizing, and writing about work by 156 sketchers from 39 countries around the world to produce this 240-page book: “It was grueling, but I loved every minute of it.”
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Like its predecessor The Art of Urban Sketching by Gabi Campanario, published a decade ago, it features sketchers from around the globe in a city-to-city tour, but the new book offers a ‘10 years later’ look at new sketchers and the worldwide expansion of the urban sketching phenomena. A few of the same artists from the first volume are also featured here, comparing their work Then & Now, and sharing wisdom about what they’ve learned along the way. There are also lots of sketches done during the COVID pandemic, as sketchers had to quickly pivot and get creative when they were required to stay at home in isolation. This project started in March 2021 when Stephanie was asked by the publisher, Quarto, to take on writing the book. “We thought it would take four months, but it was actually a 16-month project, with 14 of those being seven days a week.... Coordinating so many artists and their work was a huge logistical challenge, but I loved it. I basically quit my job for three months and started doing research. I worked on it every day, but it was worth it.” Stephanie started this project by going to the list of Urban Sketchers chapters on the USk website, then she went straight to Africa, contacting sketchers there. “I was so excited by their work.” On any given day she was communicating with people on four continents. “They would send examples of their work and when I’d open my email it would literally take my breath away. People sent me the most beautiful work. It kept me going during the pandemic.” The book opens in Seattle, ground zero for the urban sketching movement. She walked me through most of the pages of the book as we spoke. I was wowed by the