Some time ago I found an old wiro notebook in a drawer. A scruffy wiro bound notebook with a photo of 2 men in a kayak with a bear on the front cover. In that notebook I found terrible sketches drawn in pencil made while travelling in 1991. One sketch leapt out at me. It was a rough pencil sketch of Mt Ararat from a backpacking trip to eastern Turkey. The sketch really surprised me – it was a very basic pencil sketch, drawn using a .5mm technical pencil on a cheap notepad. The sketch is just black and white… To my surprise the sounds and smells of the day came flooding back. Meeting some Kurdish goat herders and their flock near the base of Mt Ararat, about 10km from the Iranian border on a bright sunny but cool, alpine day. Along with memories of driving across the mountain steppe in an old Renault 19 and the smells of chai and coffee in a Doğubayazıt pasta solunu. It all came back come flooding back! Why did it evoke such vivid memories? I’m not really sure to be honest. Maybe t...
Had a bit of time in Mt Wellington yesterday so thought I'd wander up the hill and see if the view was sketch worthy. Not the nicest of days but at least it wasn't raining, and I was surprised by the number of people making the trek up on such a miserable day - it's definitely well used - and why not, it's a good workout getting up there and the view makes it all worthwhile.
The problem was which part of the huge view to sketch, especially as there is an impressive crater to look into as well. I settled on this view looking south west over the Manukau Harbour to the Manukau Heads, Waitakere Ranges and Awhitu peninsular. Mangere mountain which I drew a few weeks back looks pretty insignificant from up here too.
I'm going back again soon to draw the view to the north - including the city, the Waitemata Harbour Rangitoto Island and that enormous volcanic crater if I can fit it in.
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