The book "The Art of Urban Sketching" finally arrived!

Das Buch "The Art of Urban Sketching" ist endlich da.

My copy of The Art of Urban Sketching with my Abu Dhabi drawings arrived a few days ago . You can also buy the book in Amazon here.

Meine Kopie des Buches The Art of Urban Sketching mit meinen Abu Dhabi Zeichnungen kam vor ein paar Tagen! Ihr kann auch das Buch in Amazon kaufen hier.

Khalifa Street, Al Ain

I am still late with my post. I got a lot of drawings from Al Ain and the UAE that I guess would remain in my sketchbooks foreever since I am sketching a lot here in Newfoundland. However I wanted to share this little sketch of the main street of Al Ain: Khalifa Street. It is very lively with restaurants and shops and places to seat under the shadow. I did the sketch just with pen, and I didn't like it at first. Some time later I added color and now is one of my favorites.

Road Abu Dhabi- Al Ain

This sketch is dedicated to my good friend Wasel Safwan. He is an emirati and a fellow artist. He always was extremly kind to me making me feel confortable in the UAE. When he knew that I liked to explore and sketch his country, he tried always to show me new places and most important he helped me to understand his country. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, and I will never see things like an emirati, but he helped me to appreciate so many things that I would have otherwise overlooked.

However he sometimes got surprised that I already knew some places. For esample this little snack bar in the Road Abu Dhabi - Al Ain. Usually the buses stop here for the passengers to take some tee. It is not a fancy place, on the contrary but it have the beauty to be authentic. I found the sketch the other day in a sketchbook that I mostly use for writting. So my friend here is the proof that I was there :-) (check the date)

Thank you, thank you very much.

Good Bye UAE

This my last post written in the UAE. I still have some stories to tell and some drawings from the UAE to post but I will do it from other countries. I'm going home or I'm leaving home? It seems that I carry my home in my sketchbook.

I have been 10 months in the UAE and I have learnt a lot about this wonderful place. It was not the first time that I moved to another country. From Ecuador to Germany, from Germany to Italy, from Italy to the UAE. And every time everything that is important in my life have to find space in one bag. And since space is precious I prefer in many cases to keep the most important things just in my head and in my heart. So I try to learn everything I can from the places I visit. Sketching is my way to discover things, to transform what it is at the beginning strange and different into something wonderful and special. You see, when you draw something it requires you to contemplate and examine it for a long time. When you finish the drawing you own it in your memory and you will never forget it. And little by little you start calling that place home.

I got a great experience in the UAE. In no other place my work has atracted so much attention. People gathered arround me respectfully when I was drawing. I could see in their faces that they were happy. I appeared 2 times in The National Newspaper, and one in the Gulf News. Sketching also had allowed me to meet wonderful people and make new friends. People I am going to miss. It is sad to leave when you know that there are still many places to draw in this country. My dream will be to come back some day and do a journey through the 7 Emirates and portrait them all.

So where I'm going now? I'm going to a place I have never go before. I'm going to visit my mother in Canada for 3 months. She moved there 2 years ago. I'm going to sketch new places and make beautiful books. So I guess I am going home.

PS: if you want to support my work and my travels, you can buy prints of my drawings in http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/omar-jaramillo.html

The restaurant at the end of the universe

That place from the famous radio show "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" from Douglas Adams is what came to my mind when I first saw this restaurant on the top of the Jabel Hafeet Mountain in Al Ain.
The building stands isolated on the observation platform; sun and wheather have done their work fadding the red colors of the sign that reminds you something come out from an Edward Hooper painting.
There is something absurd in finding such a building here, I got the feeling that is out of place, an architecture not related to the place but transplanted through some kind of cosmic force here. But is at the same time beautiful for the same reasons...:-)

Abu Dhabi Bookfair

I went just to visit the bookfair and I finished making new friends, meeting a lot of interesting people and with my picture in the newspaper. Here are some pictures drawings portraits from my friends in the Illustrators Corner. They are all very talented artists.
A portrait of the talented illustrator Kate Forrester.
Check her website:
http://www.kateforrester.co.uk/



a Portrait of David Habchy on the table of the illustrators corner, on the right his own drawing. check his blog http://klekeesh.blogspot.com/

Drawing Dina Khorchid:

In The National newspaper UAE

I went to the Abu Dhabi Book Fair two days ago. They have this year an illustrators corner. I have the opportunity to meet really talented people and enjoy talking about their work. I show to them also my sketches and they liked them too. I don't remember how it started but one asked me if I could do a portrait of him and then the others followed. When I was doing one portrait the press arrived and started doing some interviews to the illustrators. They also took some pictures of them. The photograph asked me my bussiness card, I though because he liked the portrait I was doing, but I was surprise to find my name and my picture (at least my hands ) in the newspaper next day.

Kathakbox

I went to see the Sonia Sabri dance Company in Abu Dhabi. The company is from Birmingham and was making a tour in the UAE. the show name was Kathakbox and was a mix between traditional indian Kathak dancing , hip hop and contemporary dance. It was very interesting to see the similarities between the different dance styles, and how at the end they are able to express the same things, the show was like a Rosetta stone giving you the keys to understand each dance style. For me that I have never seen Kathak before it was a great way to get to know it, appretiate it and get curious to see and learn more about it.

I try to make some sketches. It was very difficult but I guess I learnt some things....
1.- First I concentrate on drawing hands heads and feet. Not the body, in many cases I didn't even look at the paper. Later I added some light color arround the "ghost" of the body and I was surprise to see how clear the figure was. I had lost my waterbrush so I use a brush pen instead. It allows me to work fast but I still think with the watercolours the result could have been more interesting.
2.-Other new thing I learnt is that if I draw the negative space (between arms and body) that also gives you a very clear image of the figure.

National Day UAE

Ok, I know: it is a bit late. But I just happend to find an scanner...You know that I don't have one and it is quite a problem to scan my drawings. Anyway the UAE National day was the 3rd of December and all Emiratis went crazy. They decorated their cars with the UAE Flag and their colors and put stickers with the pictures of the presidents.and they star driving in the main streets celebrating like a carnaval.This picture was done in Abu Dhabi. The owner of the car had a teddy Bear on the top of the car dressed with the UAE flag colors.

Praying

As you know muslims pray five times a day. There are mosques everywhere in Al Ain. And all public buildings have praying space. Here people were doing the last pray of the day. The door was open, and the room full of light. People left their shoes in the steps of the stair before going inside.

Urban Sketchers: Al Ain Aerobatic show

Urban Sketchers: Al Ain Aerobatic show: "As every Year the international aerobatic show took place in Al Ain. It was the first time I watch one. And I have to confess I found it e..."

Another Jahli Fort Sketch

I guess you had already noticed that this is my favorite place in Al Ain. Yesterday I started doing some postcards with some of my watercolors that I would like to send some friends and family..

German National Day in Abu Dhabi

On the 23rd of November the German Embassy organized a party at Beach Rotana Dhabi to celebrate the german national day. Of course the german national day is not on the 23th of November but we had a lot of fun. There was a band playing, great music, and a very contagious energy! I did some sketches...

Apollo Saj Cafeteria

I came again to this great place in Hilli industrial area in Al Ain. The Apollo Saj Cafeteria. The owner allways insists that I try a new different lebanese dish, so it is a great gastronomic experience for me. At the same time the team is extreamly friendly and I can practice my arabic. If you happened to be arround (I guess I still don't have any Al Ain blog reader) take a look at him and tell me if there is a resemblace in the portrait!

Sketching in Al Jahli

More Jahli Fort

Al Jahli Fort, Al Ain

My favorite place to sketch is the Al Jahli Fort,
It is a big fort, but at the same time it have many interesting corners to sketch.
There is the Jahli tower, and there is a small building inside the courtyard. I also like the galeries with the guest room where u get some arabic coffee and dates.
I went last friday with two friends. I needed some Photos to use in my sketcher profile. Me sketching and the building in the background. We arrive a little late (the fort closes at 17:00) and although we got still an hour my friends got fascinated exploring the tower and didn't came back till it was almost time to close. We just got time to do a few pictures. I did two new sketches. I have not scanned yet. But I post here some old sketches I have done before.

Forts in Al Ain

There are many Forts in Al Ain. They are built with a mud architecture system. They have been restaurated in the last years. A friend of mine, a german architect, is now working in the restauration of the Muwaijii Fort. I wrote about it in the Urbansketchers blog.

First sketch Al Ain

I have not post many sketches from Al Ain here. Most of the time I have done in the urbansketchers blog.
My first sketch of Al Ain. When I arrived in the UAE I got a sketcher block. I could not sketch. Maybe was the heat in June or the stress related to getting use to this country with a short budget. Any way I was taking the bus to Abu Dhabi in the afternoon. I was early and had to wait till the bus left. The people I draw are the pakistani taxi drivers that offer rides to Abu Dhabi or Dubai.

Overheard at Al Ain Zoo 1st october 2010

I went to the Al Ain Zoo and happend to overhear this...I decided to make a cartoon with it.

I post the sketches from the Al Ain Zoo at www.urbansketchers.com you can check here