Urban Sketching: Kirkwood Amtrak Station

Kirkwood Amtrak Station
©2015 Steve Penberthy
Watercolor in Strathmore Visual Journal (140-lb CP paper)
5" x 7" (13 x 18 cm)
I met up with the St. Louis Drawing & Painting Meetup Group at this month's Urban Sketching outing.  We sketched the historic and picturesque Amtrak train station in Kirkwood, Missouri.  There were so many people out on this beautiful early fall morning; people walking dogs, shopping, and attending a nearby farmer's market across the street.  Several trains (both freight and passenger) moved through the station area while we sketched; the freight trains operated at deafening levels and seemed to take forever to pass by.  But very cool nonetheless.
I had intended to substitute out a few paints in my kit (Quin Gold & Hematite Burnt Scarlet) before heading out to the event, but forgot in my haste to get out the door on time.  Both of these pigments work well on my larger palette, but I feel that I like the weak opacity of a true raw sienna when I'm sketching on location, as I use it a lot for rendering stone, masonry, etc.  I have been experimenting with Quin Gold as a substitute for Raw Sienna, but again, seem to be preferring the Raw Sienna.  

Larimer Square

Watercolor sketch in Aquabee Super Deluxe 808 sketchbook, 6" x 9" (15.2 x 22.9 cm).

I started this sketch on location in Larimer Square in downtown Denver, but finished it based on a photo that I took. I almost missed these striking red awnings while walking down the street; I saw someone taking a photo, looked up, and saw these red awnings as the subject of her photo. So I snapped my own references and painted it later.

Writer's Square

Watercolor sketch in Aquabee Super Deluxe 808 sketchbook, 6" x 9" (15.2 x 22.9 cm). I quickly sketched this on location in Denver, along the 16th Street Mall, at Writer's Square. You can see the Starbuck's awning at the top of the sketch, and the restaurant seen through the trees is Willie G's Steaks & Seafood.