Summer Travel 2012-Bangladesh

Did I mention how hot and humid it was in Bangladesh (BD)??! Yes, this little country is quite close to the equator...and so you can imagine the steam bath I took everyday! Labor is cheap and plenty. One day I noted a construction site, next to which the day laborers were taking a rest. The midday sun was beating down on them so they had taken the shirts off and were just resting. Parked next to them were their carts on which they carried their bricks and any other loads for construction that was taking place at that site.

Summer Travel to Bangladesh

I landed on a Friday and the streets were empty - because being a Muslim country their Friday is our Sunday (pray at the mosque). The ride home was quite calm and the day came when I was finally over my jet lag and went out. No one follows any traffic rules, everyone is everywhere all over the place... cars moving at ants pace and breaking and jerking all the time! HELP... I need my chiropractor! Since we were so long sitting in traffic, I got the chance to do some sketching-

Summer Travels 2012

Well it has been almost a week since I returned from Bangladesh. Due to not having much internet access, I was unable to blog- so now I am back in town and am ready to share my wonderful ( and sometimes not) trip all the way across the seas to Bangladesh, going through more than two days worth of hours at the airport, planes, lounges and what nots!
Here are some drawings of faces during my travel... Drawings of the city soon...

Art, artists, friends, food & hogs!

Hanging out with artist friends is a great way to spend the weekend. After visiting an art show in Bay City-we went over to Matagorda Bay, where there is a restaurant almost in the middle of nowhere, set next to the water banks. On the opposite side of the banks were collection of hogs! Many, many hogs! The food MUST be good. Inside the restaurant they had all kinds of hustle bustle, lights and wall hangings including a flying pig (or hog?) welcoming all! The food took two hours to get to us, but the wonderful company of friends made it all better!

Lost in Downtown

So I got to use my phone GPS for the first time! I had to go downtown -(Houston) to attend area art supervisors meet at the Hobby Center. What a beautiful view from the "founders room"! Things were going fine till it was time to come back home! So I turned on the GPS and stared at this blue dot that kept blinking at me as I drove... and drove and drove. I was getting quite concerned because I had been informed previously that the "dot" moves when you do!!
But the dot just blinked back at me from the same spot! I drove some more, getting quite giddy by now, almost panicking, thinking about all those one way streets...
And then... I realized I had only been going round and round - yes I was still in the parking garage!
You think it's age?!?
Well, at least I got a nice sketch done!

INSPIRATION

There is nothing more inspiring than hanging out in a studio classroom at Clements High school! The moment I walked in I can hear the rhythmic beat of music, I see students bustling about trying to finish up last moment art work, while their teacher Ms. Reedy patiently tries to fix the Matt cutter. I sit in one corner and spy a column in the middle painted by various graduating students of past. Paintings strung all around - each singing a different tune , yet all the same dreams of aspiring artists! All getting ready for year end show "Retrospective". - tomorrow.

Farmers Market Again!

So it was my turn again to have a table at the Farmers Market of Imperial Sugar. Its amazing how many people I met who love art, and want to practice art, yet don't have the time to stop, and see the world around them. Then I met this wonderful gentleman who said those beautiful magic words "I draw in my sketchbook"! Ah to meet a fellow sketcher in Sugar Land! Music to my ears! I was so excited to exchange sketching tips with him, I told that I hoped to start a sketching group and that he should join us! So there is hope in starting a sketchers group locally. In the meantime here's what I saw all around me as I hung around the market. The weather was hot but I was in shade... The flirtatious smell of fresh baked bread, seared burgers and the cool sips of many flavored slushies we're just tickling my nerves as I made these sketches... Enjoy!