Met up with Martine K. this Sunday to try something new - sketching a baseball game in action. There is a diamond next to the Pershing stadium in the
Bois de Vincennes. Built by the YMCA in 1919, it was offered to the American Expeditionary Forces of WWI who then gave it to France. It is the ballpark for the
Paris Patriots, and games are held here every weekend throughout the season.
Drawing players on the field proved to be quite a challenge, but Martine and I had a good laugh comparing our scribbles of what appeared to be Cro-Magnons with clubs. I realized how much I depend on the back-and-forth eye movement of always looking at my subject (which was constantly moving). When I commented on this, Martine told me of an artist friend of hers that looks intently at his subject, then draws it - without ever looking back. That made me go "hmmmm".
Well, it was a great experience, and a nice day out to this park which I don't visit often enough. Sunday it is full of joggers, horseback riders, and teams of all sorts practicing and competing. Not to mention the nurseries and the nature - a real treat!
