Hundreds of artists will gather in scenic Edmonds July 19-21 for the second edition of Sketcher Fest, the first event of its kind outside of Europe.
Organizers say Sketcher Fest blends the learning spirit of the Urban Sketchers conventions with the festival atmosphere of the popular Carnet de Voyage events in France.
An “urban sketch” is a drawing created on location, indoors or out, capturing what the sketcher sees from direct observation (not from a photo, memory or imagination). The intent is to tell the story of the artist’s surroundings, the places they live, and where they travel.
Urban Sketchers is a community of sketchers dedicated to the practice of on-location drawing. There are chapters in more than 70 countries and 450 cities. The group was founded by Spanish-born journalist, illustrator, and author Gabriel ‘Gabi’ Campanario, who is best known for his storytelling sketches that appeared weekly in The Seattle Times between 2009 and 2021.
“My original aim with Urban Sketchers was to create an online showcase of drawings made on location, featuring cities across the world,” said Campanario. “I’ve always liked not just drawing but looking at other people’s drawings and reading the stories behind them, and I’ve always liked geography and the world, learning about other cultures, so launching this community was something that appealed to me on many levels.”
“Formalizing this idea by incorporating Urban Sketchers as an educational nonprofit set the foundation for what has become a fantastic all-volunteer organization and phenomenon across the world,” he said.
Artists descending on Edmonds
Guest artists are coming to Edmonds from as far as Europe and South America, and participants are coming from all over the U.S.
One of those participants is Marcia Schrotenboer, who will make the journey from her home in Holland, Michigan.
Schrotenboer has been sketching since 2017.
“I began sketching out in my community by myself dreaming one day of having others sketching along with me,” she said.
In 2019, she traveled to Seattle and joined the Urban Sketchers Seattle group, along with her young granddaughter, at the Bluegrass Festival.
“This was the first time I had ever sketched with anyone else!” she said. “We were warmly welcomed and I left encouraged to one day have my own local chapter.”
Fast forward to 2022, when the first official meetup of Urban Sketchers West Michigan was held in downtown Holland.
“To date, we have hosted 105 meetups and our group has 625 members,” said Schrotenboer.
Schrotenboer said one of the first things she noticed when sketching on location was that she saw the world in a new way.
“A way which is uniquely mine,” she said. “When sketching alone, I find that the act of sketching is a meditative practice, bringing me peace, calm and grounding. When out in public sketching, I love being approached by passersby. They ask many interesting questions, make comments and offer encouragement and kind words about what I’m doing. I love having my sketchbooks as a journal of my life.”
No experience? No problem!
Anyone can get involved in the Urban Sketchers movement.
“An easy way to start is to post your drawings with the hashtag #urbansketchers and make connections on social media,” said Campanario.
Check out urbansketchers.org to find where other sketchers are meeting. There are more than 300 chapters worldwide.
Urban Sketchers also provides educational opportunities, both in-person and virtually. Whether you’re an experienced artist or are just getting started, you’ll find opportunities to learn from both local and international artists.
The three-day Sketcher Fest will include sketching and painting workshops and meet-ups, and the signature event is Sunday’s Sketchbook Fair and Art Market, dubbed the “Comic-Con of travel sketchbook artists.” You can meet and greet featured artists and view their work, plus purchase books, prints, and art supplies.
Tickets for the event at the Edmonds Waterfront Center are $15 online and $20 at the door.
Also on Sunday is a free community sketch walk. The group will meet at the Edmonds Waterfront Center at 11:30 a.m. Participants are invited to sketch the scenic waterfront, local architecture or whatever catches their eye. At 2 p.m., there will be a “throwdown,” where artists share their work. It’s a fantastic way to meet other sketchers and talk all things art.
Learn more here:
Susan Wyatt is a freelance writer for Seattle Refined and a dabbling sketcher herself, specializing in pets, gardening and all-around swell stuff in the PNW.
