International Urban Sketchers Symposium 2026 - Online Program Toulouse by Drawing Attention

Description

The 14th International Urban Sketchers Symposium will be held in Toulouse, France, 15-18 July 2026

Sketchers of all levels, experience, and backgrounds are welcome.

What is the Symposium?

The International Urban Sketching Symposium is an annual educational event organized by Urban Sketchers (USk), a nonprofit dedicated to fostering the practice of on-location observational sketching. The goal of the Symposium is to celebrate and practice the art of on-location sketching in the host city. The event offers valuable field-sketching instruction and opportunities for participants to network and socialize. Following our spirit of “sharing the world, one drawing at a time,” we aim to bring the Symposium to new cities and countries every year. Portland, Lisbon, Santo Domingo, Barcelona, Paraty, Singapore, Manchester, Chicago, Porto, Amsterdam, Auckland, Buenos Aires, and Poznan have hosted previous editions of the Symposium.

Symposium Passes

There are two types of Passes: WORKSHOP PASS and SKETCH PASS. All pass types include access to the opening & closing receptions, 1 activity/demo, lectures, and Sketch Walks.

The Workshop Pass has 4 options which will give you full access to the number of workshops of your choice with a great lineup of international instructors.

• WP-4 (4 workshops + Big Crit) USD 650 + USD 45.44 Eventbrite Ticket Fee

• WP-3 (3 workshops) USD 550 + USD 38.73 Eventbrite Ticket Fee

• WP-2 (2 workshops) USD 430 + USD 30.68 Eventbrite Ticket Fee

• WP-1 (1 workshop) USD 320 + USD 23.31 Eventbrite Ticket Fee

The BIG CRIT - In this structured session, a number of workshop instructors will form a circle or line of tables, each with a seat for themselves and a guest. Each participant with sketchbook in hand will cycle around the tables, receiving a quick critique of their work from 5 different members of the crit panel - not unlike speed dating! This opportunity with a variety of teachers will provide a wealth of useful advice and feedback. Every ten minutes, participants will move on to the next table with the next panelist until their 5 sessions have been completed.

With the Sketch Pass (on sale at USD 180 + USD 13.92 Eventbrite Ticket Fee), you will have a leisurely experience. You’ll meet everyone for the morning gatherings and then explore Toulouse between meeting up with others for sketch walks during the day. You’ll be able to meet all the other sketchers during the receptions, demo, and social activities.

Registration starts on Eventbrite, 28 February 2026 at 12PM CET (check for your local time HERE)

Workshops

Workshops are one of the main components of the USk Symposium.

They are presented as a more formal educational experience for a smaller group to learn fresh skills first-hand, absorb new and old techniques while acquiring hands-on knowledge from a range of selected Instructors from around the world.

Workshops are accessible only to registered Symposium participants.

To help you select the Workshop most appropriate for you, we have indicated the experience levels as follows:

• Beginner - Little or no prior sketching experience

• Intermediate - Some sketching experience and understanding of basic techniques

• Advanced - Confident sketcher with experience in a wide range of mediums

Registration starts on Eventbrite, 28 February 2026 at 12PM CET (check for your local time HERE)

More Information

If you have not attended the USk Symposium before, check out our USk Symposium 101 at the end of this booklet !

Useful links

Download pdf version: https://bit.ly/4jT4XbA

Eventbrite Registration Page: https://usktoulouse2026.eventbrite.com

FAQ:

https://urbansketchers.org/usk-symposiumtoulouse-faq

For Symposium updates and news

Webpage

https://urbansketchers.org/usk-symposiumtoulouse-2026

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/usksymposium

FB group

https://www.facebook.com/groups/ usksymposiumhub

Event schedule

Bonjour

Friday, 17 July 2026

MORNING BRIEFING

Baudis / 8:30 - 8.45

LECTURE 3

09:00 - 09:30 Baudis

WORKSHOP 2/4

09:45 meetup

Place de l’Europe 10:00 depart for workshop locations

Workshop duration: 10:30 - 13:30

LECTURE 4 09:00 - 09:30 Baudis

SKETCHWALK 3/6

09:45 meetup

Place de l’Europe 10:00 depart

Sketchwalk duration: 10:30- 13:30

Throwdown: Sketchwalk endpoint

MARKET Baudis 9:00 16:00

Saturday, 18 July 2026

MORNING BRIEFING

LECTURE 5 09:00 - 09:30 Baudis

WORKSHOP 4/4

09:45 meetup

Place de l’Europe 10:00 depart for workshop locations

Workshop duration: 10:30 - 13:30

LECTURE 6 09:00 - 09:30 Baudis 9:00

SKETCHWALK 5/6

09:45 meetup Place de l’Europe 10:00 depart

Sketchwalk duration: 10:30- 13:30 Throwdown: Sketchwalk endpoint 10:00 11:00

Baudis / 8:30 - 8.45 8:00 ART MARKET Baudis 9:00 20:00

WORKSHOP 3/4

15:45 meetup Place de l’Europe 16:00 depart for workshop locations

Workshop duration: 16:30 - 19:30

SKETCHWALK 4/6

15:45 meetup Place de l’Europe 16:00 - 18:30

Throwdown: Sketchwalk endpoint

SKETCHWALK 6/6

15:45 meetup Place de l’Europe 16:00 - 18:30

socialise and relax

20:00 - 23:30

Venue: TBD

to 00:00 Baudis 20:00 21:00 22:00

Workshops lineup

THURSDAY 16 July 2026

WS 1: 10:30 - 13:30

WS01 Marina Abramova

WS02 Dan Archer

FRIDAY 17 July 2026

WS 2: 10:30 - 13:30

WS 3: 16:30 - 19:30

SATURDAY 18 July 2026

WS 4: 10:30 - 13:30

Watercolor Sketching: Thinking in Shapes and Lines

Mind Your (Body) Language: Incorporating Expressive, Dynamic Bystanders in Your Urban Sketches

WS03 Eduardo Bajzek Barboza The Architecture of the Midtone

WS04 Jane Blundell All That Colour!

WS05 Richard Briggs Unfolding Visions: A Simple Approach to Drawing Narrow Streets

WS06 Donald O Colley Drawing the Pulse: The Ebb and Flow of Urban Dwellers

WS07 Róisín Curé A Market In Toulouse: Gestural Sketching Of Local People And Products

WS08 Marielle Durand Light & Delights in the Pink City

WS09 Ian Fennelly Capturing a Busy Space

WS10 Marina Grechanik Cut and Paste the Neighborhood! Collage Adventure

WS11 Virginia Hein The Dance Of Line And Color - Expressive Storytelling in an Urban Landscape

WS12 Uma Kelkar

WS13 Nina Khashchina

Rooftop Revelations: Unlocking the Skyline

Think Like a Printmaker: Puzzle Together Landscapes with Simple Stencils and Exciting Textures

WS14 Owen Labbé Designing Stylized Architecture On Location (Line & Wash)

WS15 Lapin All You Can See!

WS16 Veronica Lawlor Sketching Joie de Vivre in the Pink City

WS17 Inhong Park Building Space Through Intentional Emptiness

WS18 Kek Hoon Pin Urban Sketching in an Artistic Way: Lines & Expressions

WS19 Peter Rush Urban Drama

WS20 Dietmar Stiller Brush Pen Drawing in Urban Sketching

WS21 Lis Watkins

WS22

Workshop timetable

Important information

WARNING: Make sure that you pick ONLY the number of workshop/s that is/are included in your Workshop Pass. Eventbrite ticketing system will allow you to pick 4. Workshops beyond your ticket entitlement will be deleted.

Lecture lineup

LT01 Stephanie Bower

LT02 Len Grant

LF01 NAN (Nadine Ramond, AnneJC, Nata Shilo)

LF02 Rita Sabler

LS01 Suhita Shirodkar

THURSDAY - SATURDAY 16 - 18 JULY 2026 9:00 - 9:30

Ten Tips Every Sketcher Should Know About Perspective

Publishing a Neighbourhood Sketchbook in 154 Easy Steps

Three Hands: Collaborative Drawing on Giant Recycled Wallpaper Roll

Practical Guide to Reportage

Bit-by-Bit Reportage: How To Build Reportage Projects Into Your Everyday Life

LS02 Delphine Zigoni In the Wake of Scientists

Activity/Demo lineup

ACT01 Maru Godas

ACT02 Natasha Maurits Collage Sketching

ACT03 Peggy Wong Toulouse Travelogue: Sketching the City, One Story at a Time

DEM01 Marina Abramova

DEM02 Dan Archer

DEM03 Eduardo Bajzek Barboza

DEM04 Jane Blundell

DEMO05 Richard Briggs

DEM06

DEM07 Róisín Curé

Sketching With a Limited Watercolor Palette

DEM09 Ian Fennelly Layers of Looking

DEM13

DEM18 Kek Hoon Pin

DEM19

DEM20 Dietmar Stiller

Activity/Demo lineup

DEM21 Lis Watkins City Greens

DEM22 Katie Woodward Sketching a Panorama

DEM23 Stephanie Bower Soaring Spaces of Saint-Sernin

THURSDAY 16 JULY 2026

16:00 - 17:00

DEM24 Renata Brito Your Personalized Lay-Flat Sketchbook Made from Scratch

DEM25 Elena Klimova Urban Shades

DEM26 Hyoju Ban ( Lewis) The Light Sketch : Light Tools, Lighter Thoughts

DEM27 Natalia Li Maximum Impact with Minimal Markers

DEM28 Barbara Luel Granulation, Splashes & Colored Pencil: Layered Architectural Sketching

DEM29

DEM30 Daniel Pagans Too Loose

DEM31 Peter Richards

Ways of Seeing While Moving Through Place (the Hardest Part of Doing a Sketch Is Choosing the View)

DEM32 Alrun Schmidtke Leave Your Mark: DIY Stamp-Making for Sketchers

DEM33 Inma Serrano

DEM34 Suhita Shirodkar

DEM35 Irena Spector

in Four Moves: Wash, Shape, Line, Life — Building a City Sketch Step by Step

Activities/Demos

WS01

Marina Abramova

Berlin, Germany

Watercolor Sketching: Thinking In Shapes And Lines

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate / Advanced Learn More Here

Workshop Description

In this workshop you will learn how to sketch with watercolor without getting lost in details. We will practice seeing not the objects themselves, but spots and lines that help create light and expressive sketches. Through playful warm-ups with small monochrome studies, you will discover how to simplify what you see. Step by step, you will be guided in choosing a minimal color palette, mixing tones, and applying bold watercolor washes. After these exercises, we will create a complete light and atmospheric watercolor sketch. The workshop combines short demonstrations, independent practice, and personal feedback.

Supply List

Paper: watercolor paper or sketchbook (A5–A4). Ideally 100% cotton, but cellulose watercolor paper is also OK . Minimum 150 g/m2.•

• Colors: a diverse set of watercolor paints, either in pans or tubes. 6–12 colors maximum.

Brushes: diverse watercolor brushes, one big round brushes, on middle round brushes, thin small brush for details

• 2B pencil, Sketch paper, Eraser, Paper towel, Water container

About the Instructor

Marina was born in 1988 in Kolomna and currently lives in Berlin. She is a regular participant in watercolor festivals and Urban sketchers symposiums, and has been teaching workshops in Germany and across Europe for about ten years. Marina’s specialty is expressive watercolor, focusing on dynamic urban sketching and architectural scenes. She enjoys sharing fast and playful techniques that help students capture the spirit of a place with confidence and joy.

https://www.instagram.com/abramarin a

WS02

Dan Archer

Hong Kong

Mind Your (Body) Language: Incorporating Expressive, Dynamic Bystanders In Your Urban Sketches

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate / Advanced

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

This is a workshop aimed at the self-confessed sketchers who “can’t draw people”, to get you out of your comfort zone and into the practice of capturing the dynamism and energy of bystanders as they walk through your frame. We’ll start with the essentials: proportions, perspective and framing, then cover tricky body parts like hands and feet, before moving onto body posture and gestures in a variety of the essential poses: sitting, standing, eating and, of course, people on their phones. By the end of the session, we’ll have also experimented with advanced techniques such as foreshortening and even overheard dialogue before finishing by putting it into practice with a live-sketched interview of a local.

Supply List

1 main waterproof black pen for drawing (with a fine tip, 0.3 or more – preferably with a pressure-based variable nib)

• 1 main method for applying color (watercolor/water reservoir brush pen OR colored pencils/markers)

• 2 lettering pens: 1 for normal text (0.3 fineliner suggested) and 1 for bold text (0.5 fineliner suggested)

• 1 watercolor sketchbook for final sketches

• 1 dry media sketchbook (not as fancy) for quicker studies/ warm up sketches

About the Instructor

Dan Archer has used cartooning and visual storytelling to connect with people from all over the world for over 15 years, from the Colombian jungle to the Winter Olympics in South Korea. He is passionate about live sketching as a practice for capturing the present moment and establishing a unique connection that transcends borders. His debut graphic novel, Voices from Nepal: Uncovering human trafficking through comics journalism was published by University of Toronto Press in September 2024. When not drawing, he uses immersive technology to explore new metrics of engagement and empathy using biological signals.

https://instagram.com/archcomix

WS03

Eduardo Bajzek Barboza

Sao Paolo, Brazil

The Architecture of the Midtone

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

We will focus on the subject’s whole body, building it up with successive layers of graphite on toned paper. The drawing will progress in cycles, each pass increasing density and contrast. The highlights will be reserved for the final stages, allowing the image to emerge with a strong sense of character and atmosphere. This painterly approach leads to evocative and personal results because it opens new paths for the line-driven mind of the sketcher. Its quiet, steady rhythm invites a meditative workflow, allowing intuition and sensitivity to flourish. Graphite is one of the most friendly and versatile drawing mediums. With a few practical tips, you can learn how to carve forms from graphite to intuitively establish correct proportions and perspective. It has been remarkable to witness how students, even those with little previous experience, achieve results that are both elegant and expressive with this approach. For those with more skills, this method may expand your knowledge.

Supply List

• Pencils from 3B to 6B;

• Sharpener;

• Eraser: white, soft, latex-free;

• Kneaded eraser;

• Precision erasers (pen-like body): Tombow Mono Zero Round 2,3mm and/or 3,8mm;

• Sketchbook with toned paper or loose sheets of toned paper (beige, tan, preferably warm shade). The surface should have a bit of texture so the graphite grabs onto the paper;

• White chalk pencil;

About the Instructor

Eduardo Bajzek is an illustrator and art instructor from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Awarded by the American Society of Architectural Illustrators, his portfolio includes more than 2,200 illustrations spanning a 25-year career. He has worked in Portugal, France, England, Ireland, and Hong Kong.

Since 2010, he has shared his passion for drawing in courses and workshops in Brazil and abroad. A devoted urban sketcher, Bajzek has taught workshops and demos in six ‘International Urban Sketchers Symposiums’: “Straight to Colors” (Santo Domingo), “Straight to Masses” (Barcelona), “The Potential of Pencil Sketching” (Chicago), “Graphite is the Matter” (Porto), “Hidden Amsterdam: Atmosphere and Character” (Amsterdam) and finally “Immersive Drawing: Slow Down, You Sketch too Fast” (Auckland).

He has published three books: the awarded winning “Rio Sketchbook” (2016), “Técnicas de Ilustração a Mão Livre” (2019) and “Percursos da Aquarela” (2024). He has also contributed to several publications on the art of urban sketching.

https://www.instagram.com/bajzek

WS04

Jane Blundell

Sydney, Australia

All That Colour!

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate / Advanced

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Working in a really colourful location, we’ll sketch the row of buildings, or single chosen façade, preferably in pen. We’ll work on creating a limited palette, based around an earthy primary triad,that will enable us to capture the accurate colour scheme without losing colour harmony. Some confidence in sketching is expected for this workshop, as the subject will be quite complex. There will be the opportunity to discuss methods for scaling and measuring to create an accurate sketch in pen (or pencil.) by the end of the workshop participants will have a complex sketch with accurate colour and a solid range of tone. What a record to have of Toulouse!

Supply List

Sketchbook or loose paper – make sure it is watercolour paper – and a pencil and waterproof pen. Grey or black are fine as preferred.

• Watercolour kit. Brushes and other sketching tools as desired.

• A portable seat will be helpful

About the Instructor

Australian born, Jane started sketching as a child, with first sales as a teenager. She completed a degree in Visual Arts, worked as an etcher for a year, then completed Grad Dip Art Education, graduating with distinction. She spent five years teaching in secondary schools, then moved to the US for 4 1⁄2 years where she tutored college students and exhibited.

Jane moved to Singapore for 4 1⁄2 years, where she set up her own teaching studio, teaching watercolour and drawing to adults. She returned to Sydney and taught at a local community art centre and in her own studio.

A member of the Australian Watercolour Institute, and a multi award winning artist, She has had six solo shows (one in Singapore, four in Sydney and one in Seattle), and participated in many group shows. Jane has written and self-published three books Watercolour Mixing Charts, The Ultimate Mixing Palette: a World of Colours and Watercolour Triads.

She joined the Urban sketchers in June 2013 and continues to meet up with this amazing community of sketchers all over the world, travelling and teaching in many locations. She is currently teaching weekly classes in Sydney and giving workshops and demonstrations for numerous art societies and urban sketching groups in Australia and internationally.

https://www.instagram.com/janeblundellart

Richard Briggs

Sydney, Australia

Unfolding Visions: A Simple Approach to Drawing Narrow Streets

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

In this workshop we will look at creating a series of line based sketches of unfolding visions that describe changing views as you move through the narrow streets of Toulouse. We will focus on a particular street and learn how to use a simple approach to one point perspective. These sketches will bind together architectural elements using the continuous line technique as a basis, creating playful and focused compositions that define the urban spaces found in Toulouse’s old city.

Supply List

• 1 x A5 sketchbook minimum 110 gsm smooth paper for thumbnail sketches and observation notes

• 1 A4 sized sketchbook minimum 110 gsm smooth paper (ring bound is best so you can fold back the pages)

• Black pens such as Tombow monoline or Pigma Micron sizes 0.2 and 0.5

• Coloured pens such as artline or Pigma Micron 0.2 and 0.5. Colours should be blue, brown, green, pink and orange.

• Lightweight foldable stool that can fit in your bag

Some of the sketching will be done quickly in busy places

whilst standing up, so resilience for this type of sketching would be great!

• A4 hard board to use as a supporting surface when sketching standing up

• An eye for detail and a delight in observing!

• Bulldog clips

• The usuals such as hat, good walking shoes, sunglasses, water bottle, suitable waterproof bag for carrying sketchbooks and supplies

About the Instructor

Richard Briggs is an artist and architect based in Sydney Australia and loves drawing. Through this medium he aims to inform discussion on the built and natural environment. His simple line drawings explore the hidden gems in our cities encouraging the viewer, visitor, and the inhabitant to look at what we see in a different way. From the finer details to large expansive lines of a city skyline, his drawings evolve into patterns that form spaces and urban quirks which aim to convey a sense of place. He also aims to tell numerous stories about a particular place, it’s people and are community specific.

Briggs has been exploring and drawing streets for the past 24 years in various places around the world such as Argentina, Cambodia, India, numerous countries in Europe and in Sydney where he is based. He has taught drawing in both private practise, public forums and at universities in Sydney, helping students use drawing as a way to express ideas. He works closely with people to create drawings that connect with the viewer bringing joy and a playfulness into everyday life. It’s this approach to drawing on location that allows for a filtered response and to what he sees, capturing the visual essence with simple line drawings. Through drawing, Richard connects with people and place.

https://instagram.com/richardbriggs artist

Donald O Colley Chicago, USA

Drawing the Pulse: The Ebb and Flow of Urban Dwellers

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate / Advanced Learn More Here

Workshop Description

The lifeblood of the urban body is its citizenry. For centuries, artists have looked to capture the many activities and rhythms of the urban setting, its private and public cultural expressions manifested in sporting events, parades, rituals, dance, festivals, fashion, food, and more. The dynamic nature of drawing people in public presents many challenges for artists: instructor Don Colley will discuss strategies he uses in places as varied as coffee houses, trains, airports, sport stadiums, courthouses and the like when sketching individuals and teeming crowds. Central to his methodology is to know what you want to “say” and the Prioritization of: Key Features, Principal Contours, Efficient Techniques & Time Management, and Rich Surfaces

Supply List

A small to medium sketchbook capable of taking light washes, landscape format preferred. Toned paper sketchbooks welcomed.

• Participants are encouraged to use the medium they are comfortable with to work with a full range of values in monochrome or full color

About the Instructor

Donald O. Colley has had representation in several art galleries since 1981, including Fleisher Ollman Gallery, Philip Slein Gallery, George Adams Gallery, World Tattoo, Jean Albano Gallery and is currently affiliated with Gallery Victor in Chicago.

He has also worked on and off as an illustrator for numerous publications including Andante Records, Inc. Magazine, Playboy, and Faber-Castell.

https://instagram.com/donald.colley54

Róisín Curé Galway, Ireland

A Market In Toulouse: Gestural Sketching Of Local People and Products

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate / Advanced Learn More Here

Workshop Description

A busy market can be overwhelming and intimidating to the urban sketcher, not to mention crowded. But with a tiny set-up of minimalist art materials we can melt into the crowd, hover under an archway or lean against a wall, and sketch unnoticed and undisturbed. In this way we can focus our senses on the life around us: the scents, sounds and sights of vendors plying their trade, shoppers making their choice and the rich setting of a traditional French indoor market. I will show the participants how to use an A6 portrait format sketchbook, ink pen, water brush, white gel pen and miniature paint box (attached to the sketchbook via a magnetic clip) to make full and beautiful sketches. Through searching for and sketching local Toulouse dishes and their ingredients, the participants will learn how to capture local products and then the figures of vendors and shoppers in strong gestural lines, even when they have perhaps only a minute, using my “Sherlock Holmes / Frankenstein / Ghost” techniques (prediction of how long a person will stay still, adding body parts from other people, and adding transparent figures in layers). Just 5 colors are enough to keep choices nice and simple, allowing for speed and efficiency where it’s needed!

Supply List

A small (12 half pans and smaller) paintbox with at least 5 colors

• White gel pen isn’t vital but very useful

• Any waterproof ink pen - a fude pen is suggested.

• Brush pen

Any color waterproof ink for fountain pens is good.

• A water brush is necessary for painting standing up.

• The best size sketchbook is A6 portrait or A5 landscape.

About the Instructor

Róisín Curé is an urban sketcher, author, product designer and teacher. She has written three books on urban sketching, the second of which is The Urban Sketching Handbook: Drawing Expressive People, published by Quarto in 2020. She has taught all over Europe, including at three USk Symposia and at two Swiss national urban sketching symposia. She has worked as a professional sketcher for many government bodies. She has an active YouTube channel in which she shares stories of life as a sketcher and ran the Sketch therapist podcast from 2021-23, about the benefits of urban sketching. Róisín is the inventor of the SketchPocket, a bag that combines stylishness and functionality She co-founded Urban Sketchers Galway in 2014. Róisín has taught sketching live online since early 2020 and currently heads up a thriving worldwide community.

https://instagram.com/roisincure

WS08

Marielle Durand

Paris, France

Light & Delights In The Pink City

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate / Advanced

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Learn how to represent Toulouse with the help of light, shadows and delights in a single color. Pink ink and its different values from the lightest to the darkest, will reveal the charming and contrasted pink city with its narrow streets, wide landscapes on the Capitole place or on the Garonne river banks. The idea will be to observe very well, study and understand the big picture, an urban place between light and shadows, using first very simple shapes which will allow to go to more complex ones and then add some chosen detail to suggest these lights and delights that makes Toulouse so unique.

Supply List

Ink: Rohrer & Klingner color «magenta»

• Paper: Sketchbook or plain paper (around 20x30cm) min. 220-300g

• Sketchbooks are welcomed of course but not too small. I recommend 20x30cm portrait sketchbook for example.

Brush: Waterbrush Pentel fine brush & petit gris medium or large brush for watercolor

• Water and water pot + Cloth

• Clips & drawing pad

• Little stool

About the Instructor

Artist, teacher and active member of the Urban Sketchers community and other associations (President of Lezarts de la Bièvre, Les Crayons Solidaires...), Marielle follows a red string: drawing. She watches, analyses and shows in her sketchbooks life and people she meets for more than 25 years. She tries to capture beauty, memories and moments. In Sarajevo, on the top of the Rockefeller Center, down in the Algerian desert, in her special “Blue from Auvergne” or since 2022 at the French Parliament for which she was one of the 10 projects selected for the Reportage Grant from Urban Sketchers. Her work received rewards and is exhibited in Europe and the US.

https://instagram.com/marielledurand.artist

WS09

Ian Fennelly

Liverpool, UK

Capturing a Busy Space

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

My workshop in Toulouse will be about capturing the feel of a busy space, and how we can use the process of observing and recording, and through this find happiness in noticing the small details. We will begin by talking about the energy and atmosphere of the space, what the focal point might be, how we can edit the scene, and miss out certain things. I will demonstrate a quick line drawing to establish a simple composition and viewpoint, and then together we will do an exercise in continuous line drawing. This will help with confidence and letting go of detail and perceived accuracy. We then begin the main sketch, through composing the main simple outline in our sketchbooks. We then add tone and simple muted colours using a small select range of brush pen. Finally, we begin to observe the details and character of the location through hatching, line variation and noticing all the wonderful street furniture that make the fabric of a busy street scene.

Supply List

•

A4 Sketchbook which folds out to A3 with crease down the middle (I use Talons)

Tombow Brush pens – N15, N79 and N89 gray values.

Tombow Brush pens – Mint, Sky Blue, Light Sand and Tan –or similar.

Variety of fine liners, from 0.05 to 0.3

Roller ball fine liners

About the Instructor

Ian has participated in numerous group shows and had in excess of 20 solo exhibitions. Currently his work, and in particular his urban sketches, are on show in over 20 galleries in England and Scotland.

https://instagram.com/ianfennelly

WS10

Marina Grechanik

Israel

Cut and Paste the Neighborhood! Collage Adventure

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels Learn More Here

Workshop Description

“Collage = reality + dreams.” Joseph Cornell

Toulouse is a city of contrasts — colorful, eclectic, sometimes chaotic — and collage is the perfect medium to capture its spirit. In this workshop we will combine traditional sketching with collage, exploring how cutting, pasting, and layering can bring new energy to our drawings. Collage, from the French coller (“to glue”), describes a wide range of techniques that re-appropriate found materials into new compositions. It is both game and design: accidental and intentional. Like urban sketching itself, it thrives on spontaneity, accidents, and discovery. By mixing paper, found materials, and drawing, we can express the noise, rhythm, and contrasts of urban life in a fresh, unexpected way. Instead of trying to “reproduce” the city with accuracy, we will play with its fragments. Just as the city layers history, architecture, and cultures, our collages will layer shapes, colors, and lines. The result: urban portraits full of rhythm, surprise, and discovery.

Supply List

A few sheets of colored paper (variety of colors — can be scraps or recycled materials)

• Scissors and glue stick

• Line tools of choice: colored pencils, pens, or markers

• Regular sketchbook (A4 or larger recommended)

About the Instructor

Marina Grechanik is an artist, freelance illustrator, and art educator based in Ra’anana, Israel. She graduated from an art academy in Belarus and regularly participates in group exhibitions and local illustration and art events. An active Urban Sketchers community member from its earliest days, Marina has taught at multiple international symposiums and initiated the USk Tel Aviv group, regularly leading sketchcrawls and curating group exhibitions. For her, urban sketching is about finding stories in everyday life and capturing them spontaneously: “A sketchbook and a simple pen – that is all you need to go on a journey every day. Drawing is seeing, so you just need to open your eyes wider and start to sketch!”

https://www.instagram.com/marinka71

Virginia Hein

Washington, USA

The Dance Of Line And ColorExpressive Storytelling in an Urban Landscape

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels. Some watercolor experience would be helpful Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Line and Color can each play expressive parts in your sketch. The magic happens when we let each one do what it does best! In this workshop, we’ll explore each element, then how to bring line and color together in fresh ways—to play exciting, complementary roles in your sketches.

What happens when an expressive line meets a color shape? Just like jazz improvisation, one instrument complements another because they have very different but complementary qualities. The characteristics of line and color are very different, and we’ll experiment with bringing them together in an expressive dance!

The Dance will begin with line, and we’ll start by exploring what a line can do, with quick-sketching approaches and tools. This is a great way to develop confident, expressive lines, and expand your personal vocabulary of marks and lines. What does color bring? Color can convey not only what you see, but also what you feel. Rather than just “filling in the lines”, color can bring energy and emotion to a sketch, and focus your story.

Supply List

Sketchbook or spiral-bound sketchpad suitable for wet media at least 90lb./200gsm paper. At least 5” x 8”. You can bring watercolor blocks as well.

• Sketching pens with permanent (water-resistant) ink (instructor will bring a variety of pens for participants to try).

• A few different pens that give you some line variation (fude, calligraphy style, brush pens, etc.). If you use a fountain pen, you will need a water-resistant ink. Waterproof Liner pens, dip pens, or any other waterproof drawing tools are also fine.

• Watercolors A travel watercolor set or other portable watercolor palette with a mixing area is fine. If you already work with a watercolor palette that you like, please bring what you have.

A good basic palette of watercolors includes a warm and cool yellow, warm and cool reds and warm and cool blues, a few “earth” colors, like Burnt Sienna or Raw Sienna, and a green if you choose.

• For tube watercolor paint, you’ll need a folding watercolor palette with spaces for pigment and a mixing area. A rubber seal is ideal.

• Watercolor brushes. Flats and rounds in a range of sizes—You don’t need many, and I recommend using the biggest brush you can: No. 12, 14 or larger Round, No. 6 or 8 Round, 1⁄2 inch and 1” Flat. (Some optional brushes: large angle or dagger brushes)

• Optional materials: Other color tools such as water-soluble colored pencils or crayons, and white gouache

About the Instructor

Virginia Hein is an artist, author, and teacher—now living in the Pacific Northwest, originally from Los Angeles, California. She has worked as an artist throughout her life, as a designer, art director, illustrator, and teacher.

She taught drawing at Otis College of Art and Design for 13 years, and now focuses on teaching sketching workshops locally and internationally. Virginia taught “Sketching on Location” workshops at Descanso Gardens from 2012-2024, and her sketchbook work was featured in an exhibition there in 2024.

She has been a member of Urban Sketchers since 2009, and has been honored to teach workshops at five Urban Sketchers Symposiums, in Barcelona, Singapore, Chicago, Amsterdam, and Auckland. She has contributed her work to a number of books and other publications about location sketching. Her book “5 Minute Sketching Landscape”, was published by RotoVision, in 2017, and she co-authored “The Urban Sketching Handbook Spotlight on Nature”, Quarry Books, 2022, with Gail L. Wong. Virginia received an MFA in Drawing and Painting from California State University, Long Beach, where she also taught Watercolor Painting

. https://www.instagram.com/virginiahein

WS12

Uma Kelkar

San Jose, USA

Rooftop Revelations: Unlocking the Skyline

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Ever sat atop a hill or tower with only 30 minutes to capture a stunning skyline? This workshop gives you the tools to confidently sketch expansive rooftop views using direct watercolor and pattern recognition. You’ll learn how to spot the color “braids” that unify a cityscape, and how to paint them in flowing, interconnected shapes. Think like a printmaker, paint like a watercolorist, and create cityscapes that read clearly and vibrantly. These techniques will not only simplify rooftops but also unlock your ability to sketch other complex subjects—landscapes, markets, and beyond.

Supply List

• Simple cartridge paper to sketch in pencil - I often use a low cost sketch book for these sketches.

Pencils (4B or softer) or Tombow markers to show the patterns in a value sketch

• Watercolor paper or watercolor study book. If using a study book, it should be 7.5” or larger.

• Watercolors - freshly squeezed - 1 or 2 colors for roofs (choose from burnt sienna, rose madder, transparent red oxide, magenta, alizarin, vermilion), 1 green for vegetations (choose from hooker, sap), 1 blue for shadows (choose from

cobalt ultramarine), a yellow ochre to tie everything

• Must have: 1 medium round, 1 small round for details

Good to have: 1 flat brush

• Do not bring: brushes with a water container on its end. This is sometimes called a ‘water brush’.

• Water container

• Water

About the Instructor

Uma Kelkar is a watercolor artist, urban sketcher, and engineer based in San Jose, California, originally from Pune, India. She sketches in ink, gouache, watercolor, and digitally on the iPad, and is the author of Drawing with the iPad: Urban Sketching. Uma has taught at five Urban Sketchers International Symposia (2017, 2018, 2019, 2024, 2025) and served as Secretary on the Urban Sketchers Executive Board from 2019–2022.

She has taught over 50 workshops worldwide, sharing her belief in cross-pollination between disciplines to elevate creative work. Trained as an electrical engineer with an MS from Stanford University, Uma brings a structured yet expressive approach to both her art and teaching. She is also the founder of Vivify, an AIpowered visual collaboration platform designed to support creative professionals.

https://www.instagram.com/umapaints

WS13 Nina Khashchina California, USA

Think Like A Printmaker: Puzzle Together Landscapes With Simple Stencils And Exciting Textures

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate Learn More Here

Workshop Description

This workshop is about three things: 1. Unique textures, 2. Sharp edges that contrast with soft edges, and 3. Thinking like a printmaker.

Students will be provided with a texture-making kit (made out of everyday objects and drawing tools, mostly familiar to everyone, but used in a new way). We will create a multi-page library of textures that we can refer to. These textures can be built over time or used in a dynamic way and have the biggest impact when used with the clear, clean edges.

In order to create clear clean edges we will learn how to make stencils and masks with the post-it notes. Other ways of making masks and stencils will be available - concentrating on simple solutions suitable for work on-location and how to apply these techniques with various materials.

With these two libraries at our disposal we will look at the landscape scene in front of us and simplify it to big puzzle pieces. By applying different textures and layering them gradually we will build a landscape that is filled with a sense of depth and has a unique atmospheric mood created by rich textures. All exercises will be done in monochrome first with optional use of color discussed in the class.

Supply List

• Pentel Pocket Brush Pen (or similar) Black pencil

• Regular pencil (hardness does not matter)

• Black pen - any type

• Post-it notes (standard 3”x3” or larger)

• Art tape / washi tape Sketchbook or paper pad

• Several loose sheets of paper (see note below - but regular

printer paper works for this as well)

A piece of cardboard - to be used as a cutting board (for example the back of a paper pad - see Note below)

NOTE: I use a paper pad with sturdy backing - spiral-bound Strathmore 400 drawing pads and create my sketches inside it and tear pages from it to make stencils and the backing is strong enough for cutting stencils. You can bring any spiralbound paper pad with sturdy cardboard backing.

• It would be useful to have a chair / pad to sit as this technique does not work well while standing. Hydration and sun protection are important too.

About the Instructor

Nina Khaschina is a California-based urban sketcher, illustrator and graphic designer and sketchbook artist who has filled over 160 sketchbooks. Her work is rooted in observation of everyday moments that she finds beautiful precisely because of their transience and mundanity.

She enjoys documenting her travel to the Maldives, Spain, Alaska, her native Ukraine and many other locations and draws from a kayak, horse back and while scuba diving under water. Known for her gouache, ink, and mixed media work, Khashchina is often drawn to the diverse colors, textures, and lighting of urban and natural environments. She has been teaching drawing and painting as an art instructor for more than 15 years and is a member of the Urban Sketchers community in the San Francisco Bay Area.

https://www.instagram.com/ninaapplepine

WS14

Owen Labbé

Montreal, Canada

Designing Stylized Architecture on Location (Line & Wash)

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate Learn More Here

Workshop Description

In this workshop, participants will learn how to transform complex architectural scenes into simplified, dynamic, and memorable sketches. Using a line-and-wash approach, they will explore how to analyze buildings through primitive geometric shapes, exaggerate proportions to create stylized design, and enhance their sketches with confident ink lines and expressive watercolor. Along the way, they will practice simple methods to observe more effectively, draw with greater assurance, and use color to create atmosphere and mood. The focus is on capturing the essence of architecture, rather than an exact replica, resulting in sketches that are both playful and personal.

Supply List

Watercolor paper: 100% cotton, acid-free 220-300gsm. Recommended between A5 and A4 (3sheets per person + extra sheets for tests)

• Pencil: colored pencil (erasable) or graphite

• Waterproof ink pen (fountain pen or alternatives such as Uniball Air, Uniball Vision, Sarasa Zebra, Micron, Bic, etc)

Watercolor box with at least primary colors

• One brush (mop type or equivalent)

• Small towel or tissues

• Water container

About the Instructor

Owen Labbé is an artist from Montréal with French roots. He likes to draw on location with fountain pen and watercolor, from the snowy streets of Montréal to his travels in different countries. His sketches tell the story of the places he visits, and he is now creating a travel journal about his trip to Japan.

https://www.instagram.com/owen.labbe

WS15

Lapin

Barcelona, Spain

All You Can See!

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Our way to represent perspective since Renaissance is conditioned to a maximum 30º viewing angle, which is very limited compared to what we are experiencing while sitting in a place, turning the head, and looking up and down. That’s how I started sketching some curvilinear perspective in a very intuitive way, exploring how to represent a scene as in a sphere or as in a cylinder.

We will build a geometric representation of a 180º panorama, to understand the proportion of the elements between each other. Then, we will sketch from the details to the whole scene starting from the foreground and contaminating the page from one element to the other, straight with fineliner.

We will include storytelling to the sketch, adding people, speech bubbles and soundtrack. Finally, we will apply color with a limited palette to achieve the sketch. Instead of looking only at the architecture, the sketchers aim will be to represent a 180º view fitting the people, the street activity and listening to what is happening : capturing the moment.

Supply List

• Waterproof fineliners (black 0.2 and 0.5, gray, sepia)

• Watercolor (at least those 3 colors: alizarin crimson, yellow ochre and cobalt blue),

• White Gelly Roll 10

• A dinA5 sketchbook or bigger

• Folding stool recommended.

About the Instructor

Lapin (1981) is a French artist living in Barcelona. He defines himself as a “mobile illustrator” and he registers his life in drawings: he has filled more than 230 sketchbooks during the past 20 years.

Lapin is one of the pioneers of the Urban Sketchers community and he was nominated official air and space painter for the French army in 2019. He sketches on vintage accounting books that he finds in flea markets. This old paper with red and blue lines reminds him of the first drawings and observations that brought back the scientist expedition of the XVIIIth century like Cook or Laperouse from unknown civilisations and lands. He wishes to become one of those explorers.

The economy of the medium is also what he appreciates. He travels light and doesn’t need much more than a sketchbook, a fineliner, watercolor and his folding stool. The street is his studio.

He has already published 50 books about Barcelona, Paris, Japan, Cuba (...) and for museums around the world: Arts et Métiers, Le Bourget, Deutsches Museum, Qatar Museum....

https://www.instagram.com/lapinbarcelona

WS16 Veronica Lawlor

New York City, USA

Sketching Joie De Vivre in the Pink City

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Beginners / Intermediate Learn More Here

The word reportage comes from an old French word meaning “to carry back.” In this workshop we’ll focus on how to carry back our experience and memory of the daily life of Toulouse, through sketching and visual reportage.

We’ll begin with picture selectivity: how to “walk through” a location and document what’s happening through small thumbnail sketches. We’ll draw it from different points of view and explore how to dramatize a feeling or idea through the premises of picture design

Then each participant will choose a moment to focus on– a small story happening within the location to tell in several drawings, by expanding on the ideas in our thumbnails. A woman hanging laundry, a man selling vegetables at a market, a couple having a coffee together at a café, children playing in a fountain – these types of small everyday stories in the context of the city create a narrative reportage –an experience that we can sketch and carry home to show others.

Supply List

• A sketchbook, 9 x 12 minimum size is best

• A fountain pen or marker – a thin and thick sharpie marker would be enough

• A graphite pencil 3B or softer

• 6 – 8 colored pencils (Prismacolor is a nice, soft pencil for location, other brands could work as well, including Aquarelle water soluble pencils.)

About the Instructor

Veronica Lawlor’s reportage illustrations have led her around the world, completing assignments for a diverse group of clients, including Brooks Brothers, Chase Private Client, and the Hyatt hotels. Her emotionally charged reportage drawing series of the 9/11 attack on New York City is featured in the book September 11 2001: Words and Pictures (vero press.) In 2011, she was nominated by Canson USA as their representative for the Canson Prix, and her work was presented at the Louvre in Paris. Veronica has shown in several galleries in NYC and Hudson Valley region of New York, including a 2023 solo show. She is in numerous corporate and private collections.

One of the original 100 urban sketchers correspondents, Veronica is on the illustration faculty of Parsons School of Design and Pratt Institute in NYC, and the Woodstock School of Art in the Hudson Valley, NY. She also teaches private workshops worldwide. Veronica is the author of One Drawing a Day and One Watercolor a Day, as well as the Urban Sketchers Handbook: Reportage and Documentary Drawing.

https://www.instagram.com/verolawlor

https://www.instagram.com/verolawlor illustration

Inhong

South Korea

Park

Building Space Through Intentional Emptiness

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Beginners / Intermediate Learn More Here

Workshop Description

When doing urban sketching, we often want to capture the entire scene at once and end up drawing everything with the same intensity. However, this often makes the sketch look flat and heavy.

In this workshop, you will learn how to use negative drawing with the foreground to preserve empty space and create a stronger sense of depth. In real urban sketching situations, such as drawing streets, plazas, or parks, you will practice using foreground elements like trees, lamp posts, and archways to create balance and spatial depth. By making use of the empty areas around the objects in front of you, you will experience how a scene can come alive and reveal depth without filling in every line and shape. Through short drawing exercises, participants will move away from simply “filling the page” and instead practice “building space through intentional emptiness,” resulting in sketches that feel clearer and more balanced.

Supply List

•

Pencils and erasers

• Fountain pen (pigment ink) or pigment pen (0.5)

Watercolor tool set

Sketchbook (portrait) or paper

• White gel pen

About the Instructor

I was born and raised in Korea in 1986, and I am still based here today. After majoring in fashion design at university, I worked as a fashion designer for ten years in both Korea and China. In 2019, I began urban sketching in Guangzhou, China, which became the starting point of my journey to travel the world and document my experiences through drawing. With the onset of COVID-19, I shifted to working full-time as an artist. Currently, I teach drawing both online and in person in Korea, while also working as an illustrator and collaborating with a wide range of companies.

https://www.instagram.com/renhong.p

Kek Hoon Pin

Penang, Malaysia

Urban Sketching in an Artistic Way: Lines & Expressions

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Beginners / Intermediate Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Urban sketching is more than documenting a scene — it’s about telling a story through lines and expressions. In this workshop, we will explore how to build sketches that feel alive by using dynamic line work, thoughtful composition, and expressive mark-making. Through step-by-step demonstrations, guided exercises, and personal feedback, participants will learn to loosen up, draw with confidence, and inject personality into their sketches.

You’ll experiment with color pencil, watercolor, and other simple media to create lively ketches that balance structure with spontaneity. The focus will be on finding your voice as an artist, not just replicating what you see.

Supply List

Pencil / Black color pencil and eraser

• Small sketchbook or loose watercolor paper (A4 or A3, suitable for ink/watercolor)

• Portable watercolor set + water brush or small brush

Portable water container & tissues/paper towel

• Clip or board to hold paper (optional)

About the Instructor

An artist and urban sketcher based in Penang, Malaysia. After 25+ years in the advertising industry as a creative director, Kek Hoon returned to art in 2019, focusing on watercolours, ink, and expressive line work in Urban sketching. His work celebrates the energy of cities through bold lines, negative space, and a less-ismore approach.

https://www.instagram.com/theartofhoon

WS19

Peter Rush

Sydney, Australia

Urban Drama

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

In this workshop we will put our sketchbooks aside and do our best not to be possessive about our work. The intention is to draw freely and release some inhibitions to reflect all the drama and dynamics of city life. We will be sketching urban spaces on the reverse side of found cardboard packaging. The tone and texture of these boxes enhances color pencil drawing. Also the mechanical form of the box perfectly expresses our urban world. We will let our hands go free, do our best to get away from the carefully rendered line. With pen and pencil we will quickly draw the busy urban spaces we encounter. We will observe urban space and draw everything in it. - more energy, more lines, to allow your spirit and character to show in your sketching - the intention is not to look at objects in isolation, it is to see that everything is interconnected. To capture the mood and energy of a place. I will emphasis how layering objects directly in the foreground will make the drawing immersive and establish depth and scale no matter how many mistakes! Allow yourself to get caught in the juxtaposition of busy streets, capture the moment. Draw the urban drama, the signs, traffic lights, the ornate facades, wires, people, bikes and cars in one glorious energetic whole. Supply List

Minimum 0.5mm drawing pen. Suggested brands, Uni Pin Fine Line Drawing System. Or a medium nib fountain pen.

• Graphite pencil - minimum 2B

• Color Pencils. Any good quality brand is fine: For example, Faber-Castell Polychromos, Prismacolor Premier and Caran d’Ache Luminance. I buy my pencils individually and have a good large collection, I will share them in the workshops.

• A good black and white pencil is essential, Prismacolor black PC935, Caran d’Ache Luminance Black 009, Prismacolor white PC93 and Caran d’Ache Luminance White 001 are the most effective. You do need some bright reds, oranges, pinks, yellows, for clothing,signage and urban junk.

• Paper / cardboard: loose paper, found paper on the streets, recycled packaging like biscuit,cereal and toothpaste boxes that have a smooth texture and are gray or brown (not white or corrugated cardboard!)

For sketching buildings most browns are too bright, look too yellow. Prismacolor has good earthy natural colors and Faber-Castell Polychromos have a great color range of grays and reds. Greens for vegetation are often too strong, you also need olive colors.

About the Instructor

Peter is an enthusiastic and dedicated Sydney-based artist and architect intensely interested in sketching familiar places in an insightful way. He often works with pen and colour pencils on used cereal boxes to capture the mood and complexity of city streets.

Peter’s style is energetic and expressive which gives a liveliness to the subject matter. The loose marks he draws create movement in his compositions that reflects the ever-changing nature of the cities we live in.

Urbansketching has taken Peter to many places with exhibitions of his work throughout Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. His urban sketching has been consistently recognised, winning and being a finalist in numerous art prizes in Australia and New Zealand.

His work has been featured in publications, most recently, The World of Urban Sketching by Stephanie Bower.

https://www.instagram.com/peter rush drawings

Dietmar Stiller

Hannover, Germany

Brush Pen Drawing In Urban Sketching

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Beginners / Intermediate

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

This workshop introduces participants to the expressive qualities of the brush pen in urban sketching. Beyond technique, it emphasizes a mindful approach: before starting, participants take 3–5 minutes of quiet observation to connect with the subject. The drawing is then developed slowly from top to bottom, transferring focus and energy into the brush pen. Participants will practice building perspective and composition with restraint, using white space and reduction to guide the viewer’s eye. Each sketch includes a clear visual entry and exit, leading to a focal “hero” element that brings the scene to life. Finally, subtle watercolor washes—either in grayscale or reduced color—add depth and atmosphere, complementing the simplicity of the brush pen lines.

Supply List

Brush pen (Pentel GFKP – will be provided by the instructor)

• Sketchbook (large sized) or drawing paper (will be provided by the instructor if necessary)

• Watercolor palette or small set of paints

Water container & brush or water brushes

• Tissues

• Folding stool

About the Instructor

• Born in Cologne/Germany in 1965

• Graduate designer, artist, author • Freelance designer and artist since 1994

• Daily Painting Project “A Stiller A Day” since August 2011: New pictures every day

• Member of the German Watercolor Society • Member of the BBK (Artists Corporation) Hannover • Numerous exhibitions

• Founded Chapter Urban Sketchers Hannover in 2015

• Director of the Kunstfabrik Hannover –(Professional Art Academy) since 2018

• Organizer of SKETCHCON 2022 and 2025 https://www.instagram.com/sketch.my.day

WS21

Lis Watkins

London, UK

City Greens

WORKSHOP LEVEL: Intermediate

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

I often find that sketchers are a little intimidated by the colour green. It isn’t helped by the fact that most paint sets come with very unnatural shades. In this workshop I hope to show how to treat trees and greenery with the same care as the architecture around them. We will use direct watercolour and work through a series of exercises, with the participants ending up making their own individual sketch.

Supply List

• Sketchbook

• Small set of watercolours

• Water pot

• Water

• One thick brush

• One thin brush

• Pencil

• Portable stool

About the Instructor

Lis is a London-based artist specialising in drawing on location and sketching workshops, with her work taking her across the UK and Europe.

https://www.instagram.com/lineandwash

WS22

Katie Woodward

New York City, USA

Let It Glow: Finding Sunshine in Shadows

WORKSHOP LEVEL: All levels

Learn More Here

Workshop Description

Often, artists will choose one color and value to depict all the shadows in a painting. While this can work effectively and efficiently, we can create more dynamic sketches and give the viewer more information about the quality of light and atmosphere by varying the color and value within every shadow. In this workshop, we will use a two color limited palette with a purple and a warm yellow to explore ways to add variety and create a glow effect within shadows. We will observe how light reflects off nearby surfaces to fill in shadows, and learn how to both recreate what we see and also take creative license to create a glow where one does not exist.

Supply List

• Water cup and traditional brush preferred: anyone using a water brush will have a harder time. Recommend a larger brush as well, but shape can be to the taste of the painter.

Paper they usually use

• Palette they usually use (pans must be large enough to accommodate brush size, or have the colors from tubes squeezed out directly onto the mixing surface)

• Two watercolor paints: Daniel Smith Aussie Red Gold (PY83, PR101, PV12) and Cobalt Blue Violet (PB28) or similar. I recommend a warm, orange-leaning yellow and a cool, blue-leaning purple. Quinacridone Gold or Deep Gold would

work for this, and Carbazole Violet or Imperial Purple. If you go with a blue instead of a purple, you want to go with something more orange for the yellow. It’s important that when the two colors are mixed together they make browns and grays, not green.

• Graphite/eraser

• Watercolor paper

• Rag/paper towel/sponge to help control amount of water on your brush

About the Instructor

Katie lives and works in New York City. She worked in theater (on and off Broadway, and regionally) for many years, painting scenery and making props. Now, she is a full time watercolor artist, painting and teaching, and her sketches and paintings can be found in personal collections around the world. Katie wrote the Urban Sketching Handbook on Understanding Light. She is the “Woodward” half of online shop Woodward and Father, making and selling sketchboards and watercolor palettes with her Dad. In her spare time, she can be found playing shuffleboard and attempting to keep her houseplants alive.

https://www.instagram.com/ramblingsketcher

ACT01

Maru Godas

Barcelona, Spain

Break the Color Rules! Fresh Hacks for Fearless Palettes

Learn More Here

Activity Description

In this activity, participants explore playful hacks to choice limited palettes through complementary contrasts, analogous harmonies, and accent colors. In quick, hands-on exercises, attendants create bold, expressive sketches that connect with emotions, break rules, and refresh their practice. Instead of reproducing reality, they will learn to design palettes with intention, using complementary contrasts, analogous harmonies, and accent colors to create mood, clarity, and impact. By the end of the session, participants will leave with practical tricks, several finished exercises, and the confidence to use color not just to describe reality, but to transform it. The session will also include proposals for future color challenges, encouraging continued practice and exploration.

Supply List

• Participants are also welcome to bring their own watercolors or any other favorite materials,markers, graphite, soft pastels, or whatever they usually enjoy working with.

• The idea is simply to have a basic range of warm and cool colors available, so participants can experiment with building their own palettes.

About the Presenter

Formed as a graphic designer at the IDEP School of Design and the “Escola Superior de Disseny Llotja de Barcelona.” She founded her own graphic design studio in Barcelona, providing graphic design services to publishers and agencies in Spain: RBA, Planeta, National Geographic, Salvat, etc.

She always had an illustration project on her hands and continued to paint with oils and gouache in her spare time. It was his true passion, and finally decided to dedicate it full time. When she met the Urban Sketchers, new paths and new languages were opened, as well as the opportunity to travel and do workshops and lectures around the world. Also, to meet amazing people.

She loves all techniques: Chinese ink, oil, watercolor, and colored pencils, although she’s known for her drawings and workshops with gouache and acrylic paint. She has collaborated on several illustrated books and magazines and is the author of “Park Güell Journey,” the interactive digital book “Suri y yo,” and “Organic Beauty,” translated into five languages.

She has done illustration commissions for CaixaForum, Racc, La Caixa, Diputación de Barcelona, Metropolitan Area of Barcelona, La Vanguardia, etc. She was the director of the illustration festival “Compostela Ilustrada” (Spain) (2019– 2022). Likewise, she has done international workshops in Chicago, Brighton, Palo Alto, Madrid, Porto, Lisbon, Tuscany, Bern, San Francisco, Málaga, New York, Santiago de Compostela, La Réunion Island, New Zealand, Tel Aviv, etc. Currently, she’s a member of the board of the ‘Centre Artistic de Sant Lluc,’ a century-old art institution in Barcelona.

Now, she manages a dynamic balance between professional illustration commissions, authorship projects for books, and teaching activities, which include urban sketching workshops and illustration classes around the world.

https://www.instagram.com/marugodas

ACT02

Natasha Maurits

Groningen, The Netherlands

Collage Sketching

Learn More Here

Activity Description

Sketching on papers that you find during your holidays, like city maps or packaging materials and glue into your sketchbook, will provide for interesting memories. You may need to experiment with materials to find the ones that work, but you will be surprised by the results! In this activity you will use a city map, packaging material or another paper that you found and that ‘speaks to you’ to sketch on in your sketchbook. We will first stick the paper to a page in your sketchbook with a glue stick and then make a sketch with a fineliner (for non-coated papers) or an acrylic marker (for coated papers). In the next step we will darken shadows and lighten highlights. Depending on the paper, a third layer of color may be added. The examples show how this could be done: on a city map, the busy background may be suppressed by adding watercolor, that may be made more opaque by adding a bit of Chinese white. On brown paper, white pencil will work nicely to indicate the lightest parts.

Let’s experiment together!

Supply List

• Bring paper to sketch on such as city maps or (thin paper) packaging materials such as brown or other colored paper bags with prints on them. You can also use suitable papers found in Toulouse.

Participants should also bring their own sketching materials that function on the paper that they bring. They can try this out beforehand on a small part of the paper.

• Depending on whether the paper is coated or not, regular fineliners and watercolor might work, or acrylic markers or NeoColor I or II crayons could work better.

About the Presenter

In her daily life Natasha works in science and teaching, as a university professor in an academic hospital.

In her spare time she sketches and paints: it’s a serious hobby and her way of relaxing after a busy day or week. She has been creative her whole life and had a couple of (solo) exhibitions and sold some of her paintings and an urban sketch (that was not in a sketchbook). She has also done several commissions and won a second prize in a painting competition. She has been hired by the Dutch National Railways to make several urban sketches for their socials and done a Demo for Drawing Attention (March 2025).

https://www.instagram.com/winter600

ACT03 Peggy Wong

London, UK

Toulouse Travelogue: Sketching the City, One Story at a Time

Learn More Here

Activity Description

This demo/activity begins with a 40–50 minute instructor demo introducing a storytelling-based approach to travel journaling, using a folded A4 mini sketchbook as a framework for recording the lived experience of Toulouse.

During the instructor demo, participants will learn how to transform a single A4 sheet into a 6-page booklet and how to use each spread intentionally to capture memory and mood — not just architectural accuracy. Through demonstration, prompts, and a short hands-on exercise, the session focuses on distilling everyday moments into small vignettes that combine sketches, words, and collected fragments.

The emphasis is on observation and storytelling: noticing details, reflecting on how impressions accumulate over time, and thinking of the sketchbook as a narrative object rather than a collection of finished drawings. Participants will complete at least one spread during the demo and receive guidance on how to continue using the remaining pages independently throughout the symposium.

On Friday and Saturday, short optional check-in sessions (10–15 minutes, details to be confirmed once registrations are finalized) will provide a light-touch opportunity for participants to share one page, exchange observations, and receive a new prompt. These informal gatherings reinforce continuity and community while keeping the focus on self-directed exploration.

By the end of the symposium, participants will have created a compact visual travelogue of Toulouse and experienced sketching as both a personal journey and a shared community story.

Supply List

• Bring any type of paper (eg. A recycled poster, gray paper, brown wrapping paper, etc.).

• Participants can use their own media if they like and already use; ie. Watercolor, acrylic marker, colored pencils, pastels, etc.

•

About the Presenter

Peggy Wong is a trained architect and project manager based in London, with over a decade of experience in architectural design, cultural projects, and community sketching. She is a co-founder of Urban Sketchers Kuching, served on the USk Executive Board (2016–2020), currently on the USk Advisory Board and continues to advocate for sketching as a tool for storytelling, memory, and cultural connection.

https://www.instagram.com/peggyzoewong

DEM01

Marina Abramova

Berlin, Germany

Architectural Sketching With a Limited Watercolor Palette

Learn More Here

Demo Description

A watercolor architectural sketch that combines loose washes and expressive lines, using a limited color palette. The sketch will also include abstract geometric elements to create a balanced and harmonious composition.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/abramarin a

DEM02

Dan Archer

Hong Kong

Mind Your (Body) Language: Interview Sketching

Demo Description

In this demo I will choose a character at the market and do an extended interview with them.

About the Presenter

https://instagram.com/archcomix

DEM03

Eduardo Bajzek Barboza

Sao Paolo, Brazil

The Architecture of the Midtone

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Demo Description

In this demo I will share my process of creating atmospheric, painterly sketches.

About the Presenter

Since 2010, he has shared his passion for drawing in courses and workshops in Brazil and abroad. A devoted urban sketcher, Bajzek has taught workshops and demos in six ‘es’: “Straight to Colors” (Santo Domingo), “Straight to Masses” (Barcelona), “The Potential of Pencil Sketching” (Chicago), “Graphite is the Matter” (Porto), “Hidden Amsterdam: Atmosphere and Character” (Amsterdam) and finally “Immersive Drawing: Slow Down, You Sketch too Fast” (Auckland).

https://www.instagram.com/bajzek

DEM04

Jane Blundell

Sydney, Australia

Working in a Triad For Urban Sketching

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Demo Description

Understanding the characteristics of watercolor pigments is very helpful when choosing to work with a limited palette. The pigments all need to work together. When you understand the different characteristics of various pigments it makes it much easier to create harmonious color schemes for a painting or sketch.

In this demo I’ll show a range of ‘earthy’ yellows, reds and blues that could be chosen for a primary triad, along with some convenient earth colors. I will show a number of primary triad wheels, and the different moods they create. I will explain how to choose the basic colors to depict a subject using a limited palette and how an earthy triad works well for urban scenes.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/janeblundellart

DEM05

Richard Briggs

Sydney, Australia

Urban Sketching With Masking Tape

Learn More Here

Demo Description

The demo will focus on an urban sketching technique that uses masking tape to create street scenes. It’s a totally inclusive demo, with each participant having the opportunity to participate in the creation of a large format tape drawing. Due to nature of the tape medium, it will encourage each participant to think of lines and shapes in a very simple way. The process will firstly involve any participant that would like to help with the creation of the tape drawing, sketch out a series of street scenes close to the activity location. This will be done by using a minimal number of lines on a postcard size piece of paper. These sketches will then form the basis for the tape drawing, with lines and shapes selected from the sketches. The tape will then be applied to either an available vertical or horizontal surface that is relatively smooth. The final scale of this type of drawing is dependent upon the selected location, and the number of participants. The application of the tape is temporary, with the final composition of the drawing responding to context and place. The tape used will reflect the colors of the city, orange, and blue are a possible combination.

About the Presenter

https://instagram.com/richardbriggs artist

DEM06

Donald

Chicago, USA

O

Colley

The Concept Of Prioritization

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Demo Description

In the demo I’ll break down the concept of prioritization, primary or key features, secondary and supporting features and then how to move the drawing along by determining the elements before you that are superfluous. I’ll make use of various nib sizes so that I can block large shapes and add essential details. I’ll discuss how to manage one’s time. The demo will be monochrome on both white watercolor paper and toned drawing paper. I will encourage participants to ask questions as I work.

About the Presenter

He has also worked on and off as an illustrator for numerous publications including Andante Records, Inc. Magazine, Playboy, and Faber-Castell.

https://instagram.com/donald.colley54

DEM07

Róisín Curé

Galway, Ireland

Fast People Sketching

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Demo Description

I will demonstrate using a minimalist kit in a busy location.

About the Presenter

https://instagram.com/roisincure

DEM08

Marielle Durand

Paris, France

How To Structure a Landscape Using Nature, Architecture and Ink

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Demo Description

In this demo, I will show you how to structure a landscape using nature (trees, leaves, grass...) as well as architecture (buildings, street, ground, bridges) using only a single color: pink ink.

The foreground made of nature will be helpful to frame the architecture in the background and vice versa. The different shades and intensity of the pink color will create depth and reveal light.

The result will show how to achieve a personal and urban composition which tells the story of a moment on the Garonne’s banks.

About the Presenter

https://instagram.com/marielledurand.artist

DEM09

Ian Fennelly

Liverpool, UK

Layers of Looking

Demo Description

This is a journey of looking: starting from big outlines to small details, patterns and textures. It’s a record of looking at something for a long time; and the more you look, the more you see and the more you understand.

About the Presenter

https://instagram.com/ianfennelly

DEM10

Marina Grechanik Israel

Capturing Time and Space with Mixed Media

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Demo Description

In this demo, I will show how to capture the energy of a scene, the movement of people, and the passage of time using mixed media. I’ll start by presenting my favorite tools — from watercolors, gouache, and inks to Caran d’Ache Neocolor II pastels and various line tools — and explain how they help me capture gestures, shapes, and atmosphere quickly on location. My process always begins with careful observation: finding a story or moment that sparks my attention. I often start with broad shapes to map space and posture, then layer lines and details to characterize people and environments. This layering, combined with overlays and “mistakes,” allows sketches to feel alive, dynamic, and expressive, creating a kind of static animation that documents multiple moments in one image. I emphasize spontaneity, experimentation, and embracing the unexpected. By mixing tools and working intuitively, I turn the challenges of sketching people in motion into opportunities for expressive storytelling. The goal of the demo is to inspire participants to explore their own mixed-media approaches, develop expressive sketches on location, and embrace the process of observation, experimentation, and discovery — rather than striving for polished results.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/marinka71

DEM11

Virginia Hein

Washington, USA

The Dance of Line and Color

Demo Description

How do you start dancing? Find a rhythm! Beginning with a line drawing, we’ll create a path with color-letting color shapes begin to dance with the line. We’ll consider color strategies: what’s the mood of the location--does it suggest harmony or contrast? We’ll talk about how to let line and color play complementary parts in your sketch.

About the Presenter

. https://www.instagram.com/virginiahein

DEM12

Uma Kelkar

San Jose, USA

Thumbnailing is a Power Tool

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Demo Description

Thumbnailing is often demoted to being a beginner’s tool. This demo will showcase how Uma uses it for classically accepted problems for thumbnailing, like composition and value work but add on a new twist of figuring out details, texture and color ratios in thumbnails too. The demo will be interactive - bring your problems and in the last 30 minutes, we will problem-solve together.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/umapaints

DEM13

Nina Khashchina

California, USA

Think Like A Printmaker: Tools, Technique And Thinking Behind Building Landscape Sketches With

Simple Stencils And Exciting Textures

Learn More Here

Demo Description

Watch me walk you through my mixed media printmaking toolkit and see how I use these tools to create a landscape rich in textures, mood and varied edges. I will be using mixed media - including ink, gouache, colored pencils and crayons, acrylic markers and pens - many with the printmaking tools and techniques.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/ninaapplepine

DEM14

Owen Labbé

Montreal, Canada

Essential Watercolor Painting Techniques

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Demo Description

In this demo, I will create a watercolor sketch while introducing essential painting techniques such as wet-on-wet, glazing, and dry brush. I will also take a few minutes to explain the fundamentals of color theory, using a limited color palette to show how simple choices can lead to expressive and harmonious results.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/owen.labbe

DEM15 Lapin

Barcelona, Spain

Big Head Portraits Demo / The

Art of Capturing People in Your Sketchbook

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Demo Description

During my trips, the people I meet are my most precious memories. To be sure to keep these encounters in mind, I am used to making portrait of these new friends in a very personal style that I call “big head portrait”. During my demo, I will explain my process, starting by the line, describing the face, then the body language fitting a small body in the page.

About the Presenter

The economy of the medium is also what he appreciates. He travels light and doesn’t need much more than a sketchbook, a fineliner, watercolor and his folding stool. The street is his studio.

He has already published 50 books about Barcelona, Paris, Japan, Cuba (...) and for museums around the world: Arts et Métiers, Le Bourget, Deutsches Museum, Qatar Museum....

https://www.instagram.com/lapinbarcelona

DEM16

Veronica Lawlor

New York City, USA

Capturing the Crowd with Pen & Ink

Learn More Here

Demo Description

“Stop!” “Freeze!” How do you draw a crowd of people when they are all moving at the same time? In this demo, reportage illustrator Veronica Lawlor will show you how to embrace the movement instead of fighting it, capturing the shape of a crowd as well as identifying gestures and details of people along the way. It is a fast-paced skill and one that requires practice, but the techniques you’ll learn in this demo will help you on your way to grabbing the action and pulsing excitement of a crowd of people in your urban sketches!

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/verolawlor

https://www.instagram.com/verolawlor illustration/

DEM17

Inhong Park

South Korea

Beyond Green

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Demo Description

In this demo, you will see how different color-mixing methods can create a wide variety of greens. Participants will learn how to express and harmonize the different greens found in leaves, grass, and trees within the same scene. This session offers practical and concrete techniques for color expression that can be applied directly to landscape sketching.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/renhong.p

DEM18

Kek Hoon Pin

Penang, Malaysia

Strong Perspectives and Iconic Architecture

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Demo Description

This demo focuses on capturing iconic buildings through strong perspectives. With simple, confident lines, we show how architecture shapes space and gives character to the city. Perspective helps tell the story of place, turning everyday urban scenes into lively, expressive sketches.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/theartofhoon

DEM19

Peter Rush

Sydney, Australia

It’s Not Beautiful Why Did You Draw That?

Learn More Here

Demo Description

I am known for drawing poles and wires and placing them directly in the foreground. They can have an emotive force and give a sense of intangible space. The focus will be sketching ordinary street objects that come to life.

About the Presenter

His work has been featured in publications, most recently, The World of Urban Sketching by Stephanie Bower.

https://www.instagram.com/peter rush drawings

DEM20

Dietmar Stiller

Hannover, Germany

Brush Pen Techniques

Demo Description

This demo introduces participants to the expressive qualities of the brush pen in urban sketching.

About the Presenter

• Born in Cologne/Germany in 1965

• Graduate designer, artist, author • Freelance designer and artist since 1994

• Daily Painting Project “A Stiller A Day” since August 2011: New pictures every day

• Member of the German Watercolor Society • Member of the BBK (Artists Corporation) Hannover • Numerous exhibitions

• Founded Chapter Urban Sketchers Hannover in 2015

• Director of the Kunstfabrik Hannover –(Professional Art Academy) since 2018

• Organizer of SKETCHCON 2022 and 2025 https://www.instagram.com/sketch.my.day

DEM21

Lis Watkins

London, UK

City Greens

Learn More Here

Demo Description

I find that often sketchers are a little intimidated by the colour green. I will show how I use watercolours to draw trees and greenery in an urban environment. I will talk about the colours I use but also how to mix similar shades from what you already have in your palette. I will show how I divide the scene into light, medium and dark areas and how I use patterns and texture to suggest different leaf shapes.

About the Presenter

Lis is a London-based artist specialising in drawing on location and sketching workshops, with her work taking her across the UK and Europe.

https://www.instagram.com/lineandwash

DEM22

Katie Woodward

New York City, USA

Sketching a Panorama

Demo Description

In this demonstration I show how to tackle a complex view in a short amount of time, and work on a view I have to turn my head to see.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/ramblingsketcher

DEM23 Stephanie Bower

Seattle, USA

Soaring Spaces Of Saint-Sernin

Learn More Here

Demo Description

When it’s roasting hot out, I often dive into the cool quiet of a church or cathedral to sketch. I love the challenge of sketching these tall, complex spaces. Toulouse’s jewel, the Basilique Saint-Sernin’s soaring spaces are inspiring and date back to the 11th century. I’ll show how I capture these heights in my sketch and use perspective to convey a sense of being IN the space, looking up.

When sketching these dark, complex interiors, I use basic perspective concepts and big shapes, starting with an arch. I’ll break down the anatomy of an arch and show how it’s used to draw the space, building my sketch in layers as each arch is added. I’ll add a light wash of watercolor to complete the view.

About the Presenter

Seattle-based Stephanie Bower worked as a licensed Architect in New York City before gravitating to professional architectural illustration and concept design. She has taught for over thirty years, in New York City at Parsons School of Design and in Seattle at the University of Washington and Cornish College of the Arts.

Stephanie is thrilled to be living her life-long dream as a globe-trotting urban sketcher and instructor, connecting with sketching friends around the world! She has taught at many USk Symposiums and regional sketching events, has three online sketching classes, and teaches perspective and watercolor workshops online and around the world. Her awards include the prestigious Gabriel Prize fellowship in architecture to Paris, the Civita Institute’s fellowship to Italy, and she was twice honored with “Best Travel Sketch” in the KRob international architectural delineation competition.

Stephanie’s work has been featured in Watercolor Artist and Artist magazines, and she is the best-selling author of several books on sketching including THE URBAN SKETCHING HANDBOOK: UNDERSTANDING PERSPECTIVE, THE URBAN SKETCHING HANDBOOK: 101 SKETCHING TIPS, as well as the giant sketching tour around the globe, THE WORLD OF URBAN SKETCHING. Stephanie is working on her fourth book, PERSPECTIVE EXPLAINED FOR ARTISTS.

https://instagram.com/stephanieabower

DEM24

Renata Brito San Diego, USA

Your Personalized Lay-Flat Sketchbook Made From Scratch

Learn More Here

Demo Description

I will demonstrate how to make a lay-flat sketchbook from scratch using a book-cloth/cover also made from scratch, and a book block (interior sketchbook pages) with customized paper in terms of type and size.

About the Presenter

Renata has been an urban sketcher since 2013 and has contributed to the community as a co-administrator for Urban Sketchers San Diego since 2019. Her professional role as an operations manager, primarily computerbased, is complemented by her dedication to manual art forms, providing a vital connection to the analog world. Renata’s expertise in sketchbook making is something she is enthusiastic about sharing.

https://www.instagram.com/renata sketch

DEM25 Elena Klimova

Hong Kong

Urban Shades

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Demo Description

Urban Shades is a black and white pencil drawing class that focuses on capturing tonal values and creating a visually appealing composition using dark and light shapes. The process involves starting with rough thumbnail sketches to explore different angles and compositions, then progressing to the main drawing by sketching simplified shapes. Dark values are added in layers, gradually working on medium-sized shapes and smaller details. Students will learn to simplify complex scenes, use the eraser as a drawing tool, and be introduced to the erasing shield. Materials required include paper, graphite pencils, a mechanical pencil, eraser, erasing shield, blending stump, and cutter.

About the Presenter

Elena Klimova is a Russian artist based in Hong Kong. She studied Fine Art at Abramtsevo Art College in Russia, graduating in 2010. Working with different materials and techniques, Elena strives to find and depict the beauty of everyday life. Her move to Hong Kong in 2011 had a significant impact on her art. Since relocating to the city, she has been studying local culture and traditions through drawing and painting subjects connected with Hong Kong.

Elena enjoys drawing and painting en plein air, taking advantage of opportunities to do so while traveling to new places. Her subject matter encompasses historical monuments, bustling streets, local shops, temples, and the expansive countryside.

Elena is an active member of the Urban Sketchers Hong Kong community. In addition to participating in various exhibitions in Hong Kong and abroad, she has been teaching drawing and painting for the past 15 years, both privately and in art studios.

https://www.instagram.com/elena

DEM26

Hyoju Ban ( Lewis)

South

Korea

The Light Sketch : Light Tools, Lighter Thoughts

Learn More Here

Demo Description

I’ll show how just a few watercolor hues can create endless colors, light, and shadow. This classic but powerful approach reveals beauty in simplicity, and urban sketchers will find inspiration in my palette techniques and efficient color mixing. First, I’ll share my palette and some of my own urban sketches, explaining how they were created using just a few basic colors. Then, through a live demonstration, I’ll show how to use the palette and mix colors in practice. Together, we’ll explore how to observe light and shade more accurately, and I’ll share my personal tips on expressing them beautifully in sketches.

About the Presenter

2023 Official instructor of AsiaLink Suwon

2018~ Official instructor of Gyeongju Urban Sketch Festa

Administrator of USk Ulsan (South Korea)

Concept artist / Matte painter of film and animation

https://www.instagram.com/banhj lewis01

DEM27

Natalia Li

The Netherlands

Maximum Impact with Minimal Markers

Learn More Here

Demo Description

Maximum impact with minimal colors: create compelling scenes without overloading your sketch kit or your shoulders. Create that boom on a sketchbook page with only as much as 2-4 marker shades. Learn which colors to buy, what works best, which markers for which paper, and other tips for explosive results. I will be using acrylic markers on toned paper: brown and black, and will show how to create a compelling, impactful urban sketch with a limited palette of acrylic markers.

I will show my marker swatches to demonstrate how different markers of different brands, sizes show up on paper & how it affects what, how, and why I pick for the sketch. The participants will see the differences and be able to learn which markers best suit their needs, i.e save money, not having to blind buy them. I’ll also share my tips on which markers are best for toned vs black paper, why & how to pick the right markers quickly. I will show a few sketches from my previous sketchbooks to demonstrate what I achieved with a limited markers palette: warm/cold, after rain effect, depth, etc.

In my sketches I will also touch on lettering and poster-like effects. I will pick the limited set of markers for the scene and make a sketch of it, most likely twice: on black and toned paper but it depends on the amount of questions. Throughout the demo the participants are welcome to ask questions, take photos of my swatches, sketches, and try out some of my markers on their sketchbooks. Participants don’t have to have markers with them but if they wish to sketch along, I recommend: brown or black toned paper, 2 markers of each group: light, mid, and dark tones. Colors don’t matter as much as values and saturation (the more saturated the better).

About the Presenter

Natalia is a Ukrainian sketcher in the Netherlands. She is the founder and admin of Urban Sketchers Ukraine, and a lifetime sketcher. She has been to more countries than the years she has lived, and has sketched in most of them. She has organized sketch walks, USk exhibitions, conducted sketch exercises and critique, and conducted many single and multiple day sketch trips around Ukraine for fellow urban sketchers.

Her favorite subjects are what people and nature created - urban scenes and landscapes, and she loves to add her own soul into each sketch. She creates a warm & light world you want to step into, that brings joy, & she is keen on sharing that warmth further and reaching the hearts of people.

Natalia experiments with as many materials & techniques as possible. The more she pushes herself to try a new tool or technique, the more she learns about herself, her vision, her style, and how she interprets reality. She has worked with ink, watercolor, color pencils, markers, gouache, acrylics, oils, etc.

Her university major is not art but teaching languages, she is proudly a self taught urban sketcher. She has taught languages for years then switched to IT and is now a Product Manager. She has even incorporated art into her day job: artistic linguistic flipcharts, creative lesson plans, and even design mockups for the products!

Natalia is a keen believer in perpetual learning: to always keep learning and improving her own art and she loves sharing my knowledge further on, hence the desire to teach inside and outside of USk.

https://instagram.com/natalia li art

DEM28 Barbara Luel

Brussels, Belgium

Granulation, Splashes & Colored Pencil: Layered Architectural

Sketching

Learn More Here

Demo Description

Watch a celebration of watercolor’s fun side - encouraging granulation, embracing splashes, and placing strong shadows and watercolor pencil that make Toulouse’s pink architecture pop. See how bold watercolor effects followed by strategic colored pencil work creates sketches full of life and character in beautiful shades of pink.

This demo showcases a signature “controlled chaos” approach to architectural sketching, showing how to work with watercolor’s natural tendencies rather than fighting them. You’ll see granulation effects encouraged by choosing the right pigments and paper conditions, then watch how strategic water placement creates those beautiful organic textures that make buildings feel weathered and authentic. See how bold, confident shadow placement and watercolor pencil becomes the secret weapon - not just for depth, but to create light and focus that makes architectural details sing off the page. These shadows aren’t timid suggestions but strong, decisive marks that give structure and punch to even the loosest watercolor base, especially effective when working with Toulouse’s gorgeous shades of pink architecture. Some magic happens when colored pencil details and layers are added, using varied pressure and direction to enhance the watercolor’s natural textures and adding bright color touches. Watch the building up of surface interest - suggesting brick texture, worn stone, weathered woodwithout overworking or losing the spontaneous energy of the initial washes. This demo celebrates the beauty of imperfection and shows how embracing watercolor’s unpredictable nature, combined with confident mark-making, creates sketches with far more personality than any carefully controlled study.

About the Presenter

Barbara is that person who owns +50 shades of pink watercolor pigment because she lives in that part of Brussels famous for its Japanese cherry trees... But she also collects autumn colors and is obsessed with art supplies (like all sketchers)...

Besides that she is an architect, still working as an architect restoring monuments as a living. She founded her architecture & Engineering office in 2001 together with two senior partners specialized in restoration of monuments and now they are 38 architects and engineers restoring monuments in Belgium and Netherlands. Barbara also studied conservation of Wall Paintings and restored several historical wall paintings herself. She teaches drawing classes for 1st and 2nd year architecture students at the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

A lot of her time goes into her urban sketching activities: She is preparing her 5th sketching book with Editions Akinome, about urban sketching in Norway. The previous books were about Japan (2) one about Brussels and in May 2025 one about Portugal.

https://www.instagram.com/barbaraluel

DEM29

David Morales H.

Barcelona, Spain

Depth in Ink

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Demo Description

The demo will show how to achieve volume and depth in a natural setting using the crosshatching technique with fineliners. By observing light and shadow, layers of intersecting lines are built to control tonal values, create contrast, and give three-dimensionality to the drawn objects.

Drawing anywhere doesn’t always require going out with the intention of drawing, but it does require being prepared. The fewer tools we need, the more likely we are to actually make a drawing. With just two fineliners and a notebook, it’s possible to create anything from simple sketches to images with strong contrast and depth. Contour drawings are not necessarily a problem, but when we want to achieve volume, shadows, and contrast, we need to rely on techniques like crosshatching. The idea of this demo is to show how much can be achieved with very little—without water or color, we can reach high contrast working only in black and white.With this simple approach, we demonstrate that crosshatching allows us to achieve a wide range of contrasts and a sense of volume, using only black ink and observation of light in a natural setting.

About the Presenter

David is a Colombian architect, currently based between Barcelona and his hometown of Ibagué. His work is driven by a deep appreciation for the beauty found in everyday objects and moments. These simple yet profound elements of the world around us serve as the primary inspiration for his sketches, which he captures meticulously in his sketchbooks.

David’s practice with sketching began in the early 1990s while studying architecture, as he sought to understand the proportions and materiality of the buildings that captivated him. Over time, what started as an academic exercise evolved into a central part of both his architectural work and personal travels. His sketchbooks have become inseparable from his creative process, offering a space to document, explore, and reflect on the world through the lens of pen and ink.

In 2018, he initiated the artistic project “One Day One Drawing,” where he produces a daily drawing that represents his environment, family, and personal reflections. This project has since expanded into multiple work series and has allowed him to collaborate with various artistic collectives. It also led to the publication of his first book, Pen and Ink, Drawing Techniques (Search Press), in which he shares the methods and insights he has developed over years of sketching. Additionally, he has created and led workshops and drawing courses, helping others develop their own skills in capturing the essence of the everyday through drawing.

https://www.instagram.com/dava22

DEM30

Daniel Pagans

Barcelona, Spain

Too Loose

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Demo Description

In this demonstration called “Too Loose”, I want to show some watercolor techniques I have developed to loosen up my sketches, to facilitate spontaneity. I’ve realized during many years of practice and observation, that many sketchers dominate more drawing and line, than utilizing paint and color. I would like to demonstrate how to take more advantage of the watercolor, using these techniques in a looser way: spontaneous color mixing, how to use a reduced palette for enhanced harmony, how to give depth and contrast, and highlighting a point of interest, among other things.

About the Presenter

When working as a graphic designer for several years in different countries, Daniel began sketching to document the places he went.

Some of his favorite experiences have been walking and painting “El Camino de Santiago”. Those summers put him on the path to dedicate more and more time to drawing. Now he is working full time as an Urban Sketcher, drawing, traveling and teaching workshops, and is always surprised to find new places to paint in Barcelona, the city where he was born.

https://instagram.com/danielpagans

DEM31

Peter Richards

Brisbane, Australia

Ways of Seeing While Moving Through Place (the Hardest Part of Doing a Sketch Is Choosing the View)

Learn More Here

Demo Description

This demonstration focuses on the way that I see and observe urban places as a practising urban designer and architect. I’m often requested to define the characteristics of qualities of place in my work. We experience the urban environment while moving, and urban quality is often the joy of how streets, buildings, places and people unfold as you move and progress from one place to another. This workshop celebrates this enjoyment of moving through urban environments.

There are a number of techniques that I use to see and observe the urban environment, and I record these observations with small A7 sketches usually drawn in coloured pencil with one or two colours. A sketch takes no more than 5 to 10 minutes, while more elaborate sketches are still only around 15 minutes. We will explore a great urban place in Toulouse. I will discuss my thinking when I look for urban qualities, show how I do these sketches and invite participants to prepare their own with me. We will all prepare between around 5 sketches during the demo.

About the Presenter

Peter Richards is an architect and urban designer, who has used freehand drawing to drive his professional practice. His work is characterized by detailed linework, with careful observation of the qualities of urban places, the richness of city building over time and the way that people occupy the urban environment. He has been an active urban sketcher for eight years and enjoys sketching in many different locations with a wide variety of subjects and media.

https://Instagram.com/pr_designthinkingdrawings

DEM32

Alrun Schmidtke

Berlin, Germany

Leave Your Mark: DIY Stamp-Making for Sketchers

Learn More Here

Demo Description

Many sketchers enjoy stamps—collecting them in their sketchbooks or Urban Sketchers Passports. Creating your own is a fun, easy way to document your journey, add charm, and share with others. In this demo, I’ll introduce three types: a classic carved letter stamp, tiny landmark stamps carved live (with a finished ‘USk Toulouse 2026’ example), and versatile kneaded-eraser flex stamps for on-the-go creativity. Along the way, I’ll share practical tips on materials, tools, and design, plus provide a handout with step-by- step instructions.

About the Presenter

Alrun is a book historian and museum educator who joined the admin team of @berlinusk in 2023. She delights in binding books of all kinds—small or large, classic or quirky—and has created museum programs to share her passion for urban sketching. An enthusiastic printmaker, she specializes in tiny formats, particularly stamps carved from rubber that fit on every page. These days, she teaches beginner bookbinding, organizes sketching events, and works to bring urban sketching into diverse communities while supporting fellow sketchers in embracing the USk manifesto.

https://www.instagram.com/mitgemalt

DEM33

Inma Serrano

Sevilla, Spain

Fluid Strokes

Learn More Here

Demo Description

This demo explores urban sketching through colored pencils and expressive line work, focusing on visual storytelling over technical accuracy. I will explain how I capture architecture, people, and action using alternative methods to perspective. I will draw the place where we are, translating what happens there, using the line as the main graphic element. I will tell some tips to place elements in a scene such as narrative paths or connections of levels of depth.

This exercise is about translating experience, not just copying reality. Use line and color to express what the place means to you. Focus on: • Emotion • Narrative • Personal expression

At the end, we will do a throw down and compare notes

About the Presenter

Since she couldn’t stop drawing, she supposed she should do something with this. Inma has a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Seville and combines teaching Arts and Drawing with different works as an illustrator.

She collaborates regularly in the written press with her graphic reports and has occasionally illustrated books: novels, short stories, poetry and everything that comes her way. Her illustrations have been published in books and magazines.

She is the author of the book Sevilla, from top to bottom, an illustrated travelogue sketchbook of the city where she lives.

She currently works as a teacher, teaching Visual Arts and Drawing to high school students. She also serves as a correspondent in Urban Sketchers Spain and belongs to the Sevilla s Chapter.

She has been an instructor in sketching workshops for International Urban Sketchers Symposiums in Santo Domingo (2011) Barcelona (2012) Singapore (2013) Porto (2018), Buenos Aires (2024) and Poznan (2025). She also has led many sketching and illustration workshops in other European cities.

Sketching in the streets is essential in her life because it allows her to zoom, in an ingenuous and almost childish way, to the people and the things around. She says she needs sketching and drawing to understand her life and to be happy.

https://Instagram.com/inmaserranito

DEM34

Suhita Shirodkar

San Jose, USA

Dramatic Angles | Dynamic People

Learn More Here

Demo Description

This demo, “Dramatic Angles | Dynamic People” combines gestural people sketching with low-angle iewpoints to create a sketch full of energy. I will demonstrate how I sit at a place, people-watch and warm up by filling pages of my sketchbook with gestural people sketching.

I will diagram and explain how sitting close to the ground lets you sketch a people-filled scene with dynamism instead of the more commonly used “all heads at the horizon” viewpoint. I will also explain how I compose using angles instead of horizontal and vertical lines. Finally I will sketch a people-filled scene similar to the examples in this piece.

About the Presenter

Suhita Shirodkar is a visual storyteller and an educator who has been an active member of Urban Sketchers for over 13 years, and has taught at numerous Symposiums. She teaches on-location and reportage sketching workshops all year round and specializes in conveying energy and movement in her sketches.

Suhita has received grants for her reportage projects including a Knight Foundation Grant and a Belle Foundation Grant and is a Creative Ambassador to the City of San Jose, California where she currently lives.

https://www.instagram.com/suhitasketch

DEM35

Irena Spector

Tel-Aviv, Israel

Toulouse

In Four Moves: Wash, Shape, Line, Life— Building A CitySketch

Step By Step

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Demo Description

In this demo, I’ll walk you through a step-by-step approach to building an urban watercolor sketch — from setting the atmosphere with loose washes and Toulouse’s rose-toned palette to connecting elements with line, and finishing with vibrant details that add rhythm, structure, and life to the scene.

A key part of the process will be managing color as a unifying theme, working with the warm rose and terracotta tones that give Toulouse its name la ville en rose. I’ll demonstrate how to establish a strong color atmosphere early and keep it consistent as the sketch develops. Another focus will be on using line and small figural washes to connect different elements, creating a visual rhythm that unifies the composition. Finally, we’ll explore how colorful accents and small details bring energy and life to the finished piece.

About the Presenter

Irena’s love for urban sketching began in her childhood in Odessa, Ukraine, where she often preferred sketching lively city streets outdoors to staying in the classroom. After moving to Israel and training as a psychiatrist, she continued to develop her artistic skills through ongoing practice, courses, and masterclasses.

About ten years ago, she joined the Urban Sketchers community and became an active member of the Tel Aviv group. Since then, she has participated in sketchcrawls, group exhibitions, and has been teaching both inperson and online workshops.

Watercolor is her main medium, often combined with pencils and crayons. She focuses on exploring the textures, contrasts, and rhythms of the urban environment and showing how color, line, and detail can work together to create lively, cohesive sketches.

https://www.instagram.com/irena spector

DEM36

Liz Steel

Sydney, Australia

Mixed Media Architecture

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Demo Description

In this demo, we’ll explore how to create a lively sketch of a complex building using mixed media. We’ll discover how to sketch it in a fun and loose way while still preserving a degree of accuracy. We’ll create a richer story about the building as we interpret the important parts of its design, and as we experiment with colour and texture. In recent years, I’ve been doing a lot of experimentation with mixed media, exploring ways of combining watercolour with ink, pencils, crayons, tempera sticks and markers. This has not only made urban sketching more fun, but it has increased my options for storytelling and personal interpretation. I love making decisions about colour and texture while sketching - and this is particularly the case when capturing a complex building.

In this demo, we’ll explore ways of combining playful use of materials with a structured approach to sketching architecture. We will start by analysing the building in terms of volumes, major divisions, and details. We’ll then switch to testing our materials - exploring ways in which we can combine or layer different media - and then discuss if some media would work better for some aspects of the building. We’ll also experiment with colour and see if there are different colours that complement the actual hues of the building.

Finally, we’ll consider what part of the building we are most interested in (our story), and this will help us decide on how to start our main sketch. This demo will incorporate lots of interaction from the group. Together we’ll decide on story, materials and colours and we’ll work spontaneously allowing the sketch to evolve as we work.

About the Presenter

Liz Steel worked for 18 years an architect in Sydney and is now a full-time artist, teacher and blogger focusing on quick sketching with ink, watercolor and mixed media. She captures moments from her daily life and traveling adventures in her sketchbooks and publishes regular updates at lizsteel.com.

Liz teaches on-location urban sketching workshops throughout the world and has her own online school –SketchingNow – where she offers in-depth courses to participants from over 40 countries.

Liz is the author of “Five Minute Sketching: Architecture” and loves to incorporate her architectural training with core drawing concepts, creating a fun yet accurate approach to location sketching.

https://www.instagram.com/lizsteelart

DEM37

Zainab Tambawalla

Mumbai,

India

Thinking In Black And White

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Demo Description

For the demo “Thinking In Black And White”, we will strip the sketch off distractions like color and rendering that compete for attention, and instead focus on understanding what makes the skeleton of an impactful sketch. (I will be working with a Pentel Brush pen). There will be an additional 3 min bonus on tips to use a Brush pen and how to refill an otherwise disposable Pentel brush pen.

Largely based on the idea of a notan, but more catered to urban sketching, this delicate balance of solid shape and line will allow the sketcher to evaluate how the picture works and communicates at every step.

We will focus on creating an impactful sketch based on the understanding and exploration of...

1. Light and shadow

2. Positive and negative space

3. A good combination of shapes that make for a dynamic silhouette.

The practice of working in black and white through the juxtaposition of dark and light elements helps to strengthen the above and evaluate if one has been able to bring attention to the focal point or the story they want to tell. The learning from this exercise can be applied to any subject.

About the Presenter

Zainab Tambawalla is an illustrator, urban sketcher and educator. She has trained in art from Pune, India and Animation Film Design from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, India.

In the early years of her career, she worked at a Mumbai based Animation studio on two of their award winning short films.

Her body of work consists of illustrations for children’s books, Urban sketching and documenting the fast changing landscape of cities while telling the stories of its people and their resilience.

Her Mumbai-focused reportage titled ‘The spirit of Mumbai’ that documents stories of craftsmen in Mumbai during covid was part of the Urban sketchers grant-winning project for visual reportage.

She has been teaching for the past 15 years at The Ecole Intuit Lab, Mumbai (school of Design) She currently lives and works In Mumbai, India

https://www.instagram.com/zainabtambawalla

DEM38 Paul Wang

Inspired by Unconventional Tools

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Demo Description

Staying inspired and maintaining a creative practice over an extended time can be challenging. We can become bored, uninspired, robotic and regress when creative process become too familiar and too repetitive. I will demonstrate how I harness the power of play to help me disassociate from our familiar art tools, break away from monotony and see new possibilities in drawing and painting. I will hack everyday objects and celebrate hidden potentials of these unfamiliar objects. I hope this workshop will show you how I use these newly imagined tools to create bold and lyrical marks on paper.

About the Presenter

Paul is a passionate art and design educator from Singapore. For the last 24 years, he has been teaching students and teachers to think out of the box and pursue personal growth in their own creative journeys.

His art is highly inspired by his training in interior architecture and stage design. His convoluted lines and colorful splashes may look spontaneous but are highly choreographed, much like a stage performance.

He conducts many play-based art workshops in Singapore and abroad to inspire more people to play, experiment and follow their curiosity. Besides being a Daniel Smith brand ambassador, he is also an active Urban sketcher and currently serves as an Advisory Board member.

https://www.instagram.com/paulwang sg

LT01 Stephanie Bower

Seattle, USA

Ten Tips Every Sketcher Should Know About Perspective

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Lecture Description

Are you afraid of the “P” word? Lots of sketchers fear or fake Perspective or avoid sketching buildings altogether, but it’s actually easy if you know a few concepts. Here are my top tips for understanding how perspective works so that you’ll never again have to be afraid!

Sketchers fear perspective because of the way it is explained. Studio perspective is presented as complicated, abstract “boxes on a table” while sketching on location which can be overwhelming if you don’t understand how to start to capture the vast scene in front of you. This quick lecture will “crack the code” by connecting the two -- important studio concepts of perspective bridged with how perspective works in the real world. I’ll explain the basic concepts of Good Bones and show how they apply to sketching, including parallel/ converging lines, the Vanishing Point, what is the Horizon Line and why I don’t use it, the importance of finding your Eye Level Line and how to find it, starting a sketch with simple big shapes, what’s the difference between a one or two point perspective, and more... This lecture is targeted to beginning sketchers and those who want a clearer understanding of how perspective works.

About the Presenter

https://instagram.com/stephanieabower

LT02

Len Grant

Manchester, UK

Publishing a Neighbourhood Sketchbook in 154 Easy Steps

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Lecture Description

As a sketcher and, before that a photographer, I have lots of experience of making books. I self publish my own sketchbooks and, through crowdfunding campaigns, raise the funds for printing. I can share my experiences of selling and marketing too.

Why make a book? Is this just a vanity project (which is fine) or will it make money? Be realistic about your goals. Have you considered other, less expensive forms of publishing: zines, newspapers, booklets.

Who is the audience? Who is likely to buy this book? What’s difference about your book to others already out there?

Self publish or try to get a publisher? Or a hybrid model. The physicality of the book: what format, how many pages? Now is a good time to think of the finished product but you can change this along the way.

Book design: do-it-yourself or professional input. Printing differences: Litho or digital printing. Section-sewn or perfect bound. Hardback or softback. How to find a book printer and ask for a quote. Other models: print on demand etc.

Raising funds for the printing. The benefits of a crowdfunder campaign. Seeking sponsorship.

What’s an ISBN, and do you need one?

How to market the book. Accompanying exhibition. Promotional materials: postcards, posters.

Writing a press release. How to organise a book launch. Sales and distribution. Spin off sales of prints etc.

About the Presenter

For more than 30 years Len Grant worked as freelance documentary photographer in Manchester, making books and exhibitions. He discovered urban sketching in 2013 and it has gradually become his preferred way of telling stories. Now the camera has been replaced by the sketchbook and pen and he makes his living from writing and sketching. He has so far produced four neighbourhood sketchbooks.

https://instagram.com/len grant

LF01

NAN (Nadine Ramond, AnneJC, Nata Shilo)

Orléans, France

Three Hands: Collaborative Drawing On Giant Recycled Wallpaper Roll

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Lecture Description

An experimental approach to collaborative urban sketching using recycled wallpaper rolls. Three artists with different styles work together in the streets, using urban furniture, transforming limitations into creative opportunities while promoting an eco-friendly sketching practice.

About the Presenters

Three sketching friends based in Orléans, who have been drawing together since 2020 after meeting through their local chapter. They come from different cities, countries, and professions (from jurist to art teacher, architect to photographer, teacher to physiotherapist), yet they all arrive at the same color palette.

https://www.instagram.com/natashilo

https://www.instagram.com/aannejc

https://www.instagram.com/nadine ramond

LF02

Rita Sabler

Oregon, USA

Practical Guide to Reportage

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Lecture Description

This lecture offers a practical guide to reportage — drawing with the purpose to capture real-world events, environments, and people. We will start off by talking about how to find the subject for your story and what kinds of subjects make for compelling stories in documentary drawing. We’ll explore techniques for working quickly and effectively on location, choosing what to document, and developing a personal visual language. I’ll share practical insights from my work as a visual journalist, covering stories from court trials,political protests, border communities, as well as stories of common people going about their everyday lives.

Points covered will include how to, gain access, build a story plan, and draw respectfully in sensitive situations and ways to share your work with the public.

About the Presenter

Rita Sabler is an award winning artist, visual journalist, author, and educator based in Portland, Oregon, USA. She teaches Drawing, Urban Sketching and Visual Storytelling courses as well as works part time as a freelance visual journalist. In the span of her decade-long career as an educator and visual storyteller Sabler has inspired diverse audiences to cultivate a lifelong passion for urban sketching and reportage illustration.

Sabler’s approach to teaching is rooted in individual attention to a particular student’s needs and goals. Her students routinely praise her for clear, supportive and non-judgemental way of distilling complex drawing techniques, giving them confidence and inspiration to nurture their individual styles. From 2019-2023 Rita Sabler served as the Education Director on the board of the global Urban Sketchers organization.

https://instagram.com/ritasabler

Suhita Shirodkar

San Jose, USA

Bit-by-Bit Reportage: How to Build Reportage Projects into Your Everyday Life

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Lecture Description

Some reportage projects are grand adventures involving traveling to far-away places. Mine, by contrast, are built into my everyday life. Created in small bits, they allow for research without the commitment of a single large block of time or money, making them the kind of project accessible to everyone.

This lecture touches on three projects I have worked on in this “built-in-bits” fashion over the last 12 years. They include:

1. Vintage Signs of San Jose, where I sketched the quickly disappearing vintage signs of Silicon Valley that told stories of its agricultural past.

2. Faces of Recovery, a collection of portraits and stories of people in recovery from addiction and homelessness.

3. Food, Farm-to-Table stories touching on food production, food access and food justice (my current project)

All these projects are designed to fit around my everyday life and are collected as sketch-by-sketch stories over time. In telling these three stories I cover: • How and where I find subjects, • Getting started • Striking a balance: Lists and schedules versus following my nose • Researching back stories, interviews, and follow up questions

I will end with reportage projects that have inspired me over the years including:

• Nina Khashchina’s sketches of “found treasures’ from her daily walks that records the seasons.

• Fred Lynch’s reportage project tracing his ancestry.

About the Presenter

https://www.instagram.com/suhitasketch

Delphine Zigoni

France

In the Wake of Scientists

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Lecture Description

We all have the cliché of illustrators who follow European expeditions during previous centuries to draw all the “new” discoveries. Today, sketchers still have an important role to play in scientific missions, in a very different way. I’d like to share my experience during expeditions in France and French Guiana.

I would like to present all aspects and all implications of a sketcher’s work during a scientific mission. The USk Reportage Grant 2024 also helps me to keep on my work in the wake of scientists.

Approaches and techniques. How to sketch from a canoe, in the rain, sitting in the mud, in the middle of a rain forest, etc.?

1. Assist scientists in their research work. Drawings are much more suitable than photos for describing specific subjects or situations.

2. Build relationships. Sketching takes time and it’s also perceived as a much less intrusive approach than photography. For all these reasons, people often come up to us when we are drawing and we can start a talk.

3. Mediation. During missions, scientists often ask me to conduct workshops in nearby schools. These workshops help raise awareness of scientific missions among local residents.

4. Nagoya protocol. Sketchers can contribute to ensuring that the mission complies with the Nagoya protocol by participating in cultural exchanges and mission restitutions.

5. Spread and communication. After expeditions, sketchers will certainly carry out many projects based on their drawings (exhibitions, books, etc.).

For all these reasons, working with sketchers help scientists to succeed their expeditions and raise awareness among the general public.

About the Presenter

As a scientific artist, Delphine has been working in the wake of scientists for almost 20 years. She collaborates with many french research institutes like the french national Museum of natural History, the CNRS, the amazonian national park, etc. She has thus had the privilege of exploring behind the scenes of research, like the reserves of museums and laboratories, of squatting in the workshops of preparers and taxidermists and following scientific missions. As sketcher, she draws all these secret places in her sketchbook to share with general public.

When she takes part in an expedition, she draws in her sketchbook the daily life of researchers in the field and she also draws the subjects scientists are studying (plants, animals, people, etc.). In 2022, Delphine had the opportunity to design an exhibition at the French national Museum of natural History in Paris which welcomed 27,000 visitors. Entitled Automne Tropical, carnet de voyage en Guyane, it focused on her travel diaries from French Guyana where she accompanied anthropologists in the field.

As a committed artist, she also works for many foundations like the WWF, the LPO (french bird protection league), the L214 (french animal rights organization), etc. She has been part of the USk Paris collective since 2022.

https://www.instagram.com/delphinezigoni

USk Symposium 101

Joining the International Urban Sketchers Symposium for the first time ?

Welcome ! Here are some brief notes on what to expect and what to bring to make the most of this wonderful event.

Registration

As detailed on page 2 , registration for the event opens 28 February, 12nn CET and takes place online via Eventbrite. Tickets sell very fast so it is a good idea to have all details to hand on the type of pass and workshops you wish to select. Also have payment details ready. There is a 20 minute time limit on registration so if this is exceeded you will need to start over.

Attendance

Pre-registering for a Symposium pass is not essential to attend the USk Symposium. Sketchers from all over the world can still participate in the event and join both free sketchwalks and the evening Drink & Draw events.

What to Bring

Many people attending the Symposium will be traveling and will bring a minimal amount of materials for sketching on location.

Individual workshops and activities include a list of suggested materials that you are advised to bring. In addition, almost all sketchers will need

• something to sit on - ie a small portable folding stool

• Water pot & water for painting / drinking

• Something to sketch on - ie sketchbook or loose sheets of paper

• Something to sketch with - ie pencils, pens, paints, markers

• If using water, tissues or a small piece of rag

Do keep an eye on the local weather forecast and bring appropriate clothing, headgear and footwear. An Art Market will be open daily if you need to purchase additional sketching supplies.

At the Event

Registration opens on Wednesday. If you have purchased a pass, at the point of registration you will receive your official badge, a goody bag and an official program of events. From Thursday the Information Desk will be open daily - this is a valuable resource for both Symposium and local tourist information.

On-site Information

Everyone registered to attend the event (instructors, staff, volunteers, pass holders) will be wearing an official badge permitting access to certain locations. This pass can help you to identify staff, volunteers and other first time participants at the event!

Daily Activities

A short briefing is held every morning where the USk President will share updates for the day ahead - this is also an opportunity to ask questions. When attending events please allow plenty of time to walk between locations or meeting points to ensure that you arrive in good time for the start time.

Stay Connected

Follow the official USk Symposium Instagram account and check out the USk Symposium Hub on Facebook for community chats and further information.

USk Shop

To make your symposium experience even more special, we invite you to visit the USk Shop, where you’ll find exclusive, limited-edition symposium merchandise. We encourage you to browse early and treat yourself (or a fellow sketcher!) to something special to remember the event.

How to Order

All items in the Urban Sketchers Shop are made to order through Printful’s print-on-demand service. Simply select your product, choose your size or variant, and complete your purchase securely.

Delivery

Orders are processed and fulfilled by Printful and typically ship within 2–7 business days. Shipping times vary based on your location and are estimates, not guarantees. You’ll receive a tracking number once your order is on its way.

Refunds & Returns

Please review our Shipping & Returns Policy before placing your order. Thank you.