Forget the Eiffel Tower

From all the places I wanted to visit in Paris, the number one was Cafe Le Select. Rick Tulka has been drawing scenes from that Cafe for many years. His drawings are fantastic character studies. Through  his drawing this place had to me  a mythical aura. I have to go there to see it by myself.. and wow I even recognized some of the people!

I had not time to contact Rick, so I didn't found him there. Well the guy doesn't live there, although the amount of drawings gave the wrong impression.  He wrote me later that he usually is in the afternoon there. I hope next time in Paris I will be able to meet him. So here is my drawing.


Here is a Sketch of the Paris Metro.

I also met some Paris sketchers. We had lunch together and later we went to the Pont de Neuf to sketch.

Second on my list was the art supply store Sennelier.  The Store founded in 1887 was the place where Cezanne and Picasso used to buy their materials. Of course I had to be something..just a Pentel brush pen.. .but I hope next time I had more money to buy some of their famous watercolors..

I spent only a day in Paris, not much time to see anything, I have to come back again.

From Clermont-Ferrand to Paris

The Festival in Clermont Ferrand was exhausting, we spent most of the time in the exhibition and later we would have dinner

..and sketch each other of course!

On Monday I woke up early to at least see something of the city,  so I walked up the hill in direction of the cathedral. I did some fast sketches and I will try next year to come with more time to draw the city. I was fascinated by the views from narrow alleys.

Later I took the train to Paris, and what it seemed to be a pleasant  ride, became a nightmare.

The train got damaged and we got stuck for 3 hours in the middle of nowhere.


We got off the train and waited, so I met some other people who were also in the Festival in Clermont Ferrand, like the writer Frederic Debomy. Here he was looking at a nun walking in the foggy landscape. 

No person is illlegal

For a few months refugees have camped at the Oranienplatz in Berlin. They have been protesting for improvements with their legal status in Germany.

I was looking for faces that can tell something about their lives.

A small girl. Her jacket was still too big. she carries her toy everywhere, as she would be afraid to loose it.

Rendez vous de Carnet de Voyage

My Stand

I spent a fantastic time in Clermont Ferrand meeting old and new friends. I am so looking forward for the next Urban Sketching Symposium in Barcelona to meet them all again.

I went to Clermont-Ferrand, for the pure curiosity of knowing what it is about. Their website was a little confusing even if it is (partially) translated to English. And although I had asked some people who where there before, many things  were still not clear to me. For esample the festival used to be every two years, that is why you find in some places still the word Bienale, but due to its success now is every year.

my books

Like Graphic Novels, illustrated Carnet the Voyages are very popular in France. French publishers houses are more open to ideas and projects that the ones from other countries. That is one of the reasons to go, but also to get the opportunity to meet many great artists and get inspiration and ideas.

I arrived on Tuesday to Clermont Ferrand. I got a place to stay with a wonderful local family thanks to Coach Surfing (that is also a great way to travel and meet people: people host you for free in their houses, we got a USk group there too)

After eating something I went back to the station to draw with David Magli "Emde". I decided to draw something big, since I didn't have much to decorated my stand.

Here is the train station in Clermont Ferrand. Grey and black edding markers and white tipex over a brown supermarket paper bag. ca 80 x 35cm

My highlights of the Festival:

Portable Scanner from Lapin

Materials: Portable scanner from Lapin and a China Sign Pentel Pen from Adolfo Arranz (I bought one in Paris but it is not the same quality)

Buttons: brought by the Belgian Sketchers

Zines: Zines where everywhere. Zines are small little self-publications. They were very popular  as part of the punk-anarchist culture. Just a a Photocopy Machine and you can share your thoughts and drawings. With self publications services online, they are experimenting a comeback. (I see them in Berlin everywhere) Every sketcher should do one. It is also a great way to show your work to potential publishers and  to even to make some money. The Festival got a self publishing shop for the visitors, that was very popular . We should do that in Barcelona, too.

Books I bought:
All zines from Andrea Joseph. Her work is fantastic! I found a lot of inspiration in her zines. Fantastic quality for such a small price. I am sure they will be collectors items in the future.

Luis Ruiz Padron during  dinner

Palestine dans quel etat? by Emmanuel Prost and Maximilien Le Roy. I don't understand French, but Emmanuel drawings and portraits are so intimate.

Zines from Nicolas Jolivot, he got a  series of litle books concentrated in food in diferent countries, I bough one about Guyana and Marroco.

We really didn't have much time to see the city and draw. We did  portraits of each other during the dinners. And on the morning of the 19 before taking my train to Paris, I did walked in the city and made a few fast sketches that I will post soon.