Sketching on the spot

Last night, I attended the TOSCARs event with Twin Cities TOSCA and the delightful Gail Weber, who, if she ever becomes Truly Organized, will lose most of her impromptu comedic material; fortunately this seems unlikely to ever happen. Gail, you are wonderful; never, ever change.

It is my habit, at TOSCA events, to make at least one little drawing while I'm there. Last night's was a rough sketch (necessarily rough: I had no eraser!) of singer Alyssa Anderson as she performed for us -- a performance that kept giving me goosebumps despite my not considering myself an opera fan. Drawing a human being while they are moving is not an easy thing to do, so I was concentrating pretty hard and thus unaware that Nina Bliese was watching me, in turn.

The result is that I'll have a few small pieces of original art -- including this sketch, which is much prettier in person than in the scanned version here -- available at Nina Bliese Gallery's Petits Trésors sale in November.

Artists, if you're reading this: if you want to meet people, carry a sketch book and use it. People who like art will get curious and talk to you.