Dublin Sketchers Group: November 2017

Sunday 3rd December 2017 - Dublin Castle State Apartments

On Sunday the 3rd December 2017 Dublin Sketchers are going to the State Apartments in Dublin Castle

http://www.dublincastle.ie/how-to-find-us/

The starting point at 2pm is at the State Apartments, which is in the upper courtyard (to your right when you come into Dublin Castle via the Dame Street entrance), and the entrance is on the left in the courtyard

Special arrangements have been made so that Dublin Sketchers can get into the State Apartments for free. In order to avoid non-sketchers jumping on the bandwagon, you may be asked to show your sketchbook, or just say that you received the information via the Dublin Sketchers blog.

You may be given a wristband at the entrance, so that the staff within the State Apartments know who we are.

As there are paid guided tours in the State Apartments, bear in mind that large groups may appear all of a sudden. As always, be respectful of staff and paying guests and pick spots that do not block the general flow of the tours. There are lots of gorgeous rooms to work in, with fabulous views to the courtyards. Also, please be mindful of the interiors and the Christmas trees especially in the room with the dining table known as the Portrait Gallery. For those who use watercolours, it’s probably best to just use waterbrushes, as you will not be able to bring water containers into the rooms. If in doubt about anything, please check with Cormac, our contact on the day or another member of staff.

If it’s your first time out and you can’t spot anyone who looks like a sketcher at 2pm, just choose something to draw and get stuck in. Keep your eyes open for anyone carrying a sketchbook and say hello. New people come along almost every week so don't be shy about introducing yourself. It's a nice friendly gathering and you'll get to know us over coffee from 4pm. Don't worry if you're late, most of us usually are! You need to bring your own paper and pens/pencils etc.

Here's a website about Dublin Castle: http://www.dublincastle.ie/visit/

From 4pm, we'll gather for coffee at the Dublin Castle Terrace Café (inside the same building). A bunch of people who look like sketchers will magically appear.

Hope to see you there!

Aideen

Sketches and photos from Drimnagh Castle - Dublin Sketchers end of year and Christmas Party (26 November 2017)

Thank you Pat for organising yet another brilliant gathering at Drimnagh Castle. Thank you for the roaring fire, the soup, tea, and mulled wine. A special thanks to Amanda who made the soup and made sure everything ran smoothly. Thank you to Aodh and John on the ukulele, and to Bridget and Jane and Ruth, who joined in the singing. And to Alice for holding the torch so they could all see the lyrics. And to Des for an excellent speech. And to Jessica, Marie Helene and Des for keeping the group organised, always. And thank you to everyone who brought food, and for keeping the sketching spirit alive, despite the cold! I hope I didn't forget anyone!

DUBLIN SKETCHERS End of Year Christmas Party 2017

Date: Sunday 26^th November 2017

Time: 2pm – 4PM sketching followed by party 4PM onwards

Location: Drimnagh Castle, Longmile Road, Dublin 12

Description: A medieval castle with great hall, tower, moat, bridge and a 17^thc formal style garden

Public Transport: Buses 18, 56A and 151 stop outside the castle. Buses 27 and

77A stop at the Half Way House pub 5 minutes away. The Luas (Red Line) stops at Bluebell, 10 minutes away

Food: Please bring something, anything will do but something to share would be nice

Mulled wine provided- use public transport if you plan to partake

The castle has tables and chairs

Dress: Warmly with woollens, coat and hat. Although the fire will be lit in the great hall remember you will effectively be living in the 15^thc. A small donation will be asked for to cover the cost of the firewood.

Music: There is a minstrels gallery in the great hall with wonderful acoustics so those in the group who play a violin, guitar, ukulele or whatever please bring them along.

Hopefully see you there.

Sketches from the National Gallery of Ireland (19 November 2017)

An exhibition of the prints and drawings of Käthe Kollwitz was an excellent focus for the Dublin Sketchers outing at the National Gallery of Ireland on Sunday.

And apparently, we gave the security guards some extra work on a busy Sunday afternoon: Yours truly was told to leave her backpack and "other item" at the cloakroom - the "other item" being a small sketching chair neatly packed in a long black sleeve - mmm - in retrospect, I can see why. And one of our sketchers overheard the chatter on the security radios about a suspect looking male in biking leathers, whom she could see clearly was sketching and posing no threat to anyone! By the way, welcome to Dublin Sketchers, stranger in biking leathers - you didn't look suspicious to us, and we hope you enjoyed the afternoon - we look forward to meeting you over coffee next time!

Alice

Richard

Des

Laura R.

Marie-Hélène - yes, that was me who wasn't allowed in.

Pat

Mary O'C.

Christine

Emma

Mary S.

Mary O'S.

Mary O'S

Sunday 19th November we are going to The National Gallery

Sunday 19th November we are going to The National Gallery

Hi Sketchers!

On Sunday the 19th November. The Dublin Sketchers will sketch in National Gallery there is an excellent exhibition on kathe-kollwitz-life-death-and-war https://www.nationalgallery.ie/kathe-kollwitz-life-death-and-war Her drawings are excellent and have a lot of emotion in them, really amazing! hope you like them

If it’s your first time out and you can’t spot anyone who looks like a sketcher at 2pm, just choose something to draw and get stuck in. Keep your eyes open for anyone carrying a sketchbook and say hello. New people come along almost every week so don't be shy about introducing yourself. It's a nice friendly gathering and you'll get know us over coffee from 4pm. Don't worry if you're late, most of us usually are! You need to bring your own paper and pens/pencils etc.

We'll share our drawings over coffee/tea at 4.00 in https://www.nationalgallery.ie

Sketches from Connolly Station

Connolly Station is one of the main transportation network hubs in Dublin - trains to the North of the country, DART commuter trains serving stations from Malahide to Greystones, and even a Luas tram terminus. It's close to the Liffey and to bustling shopping streets. A perfect area for urban sketching!

The station itself is a beautiful building with an ornate façade and a tower or two - it was opened in 1844 and was called Dublin Station.
Interesting fact 1: in 1941, it took a direct hit from a German bomb
Interesting fact 2: In 1966, the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising, the station's name was changed to Connolly Station after Irish revolutionary and socialist James Connolly

It was a cold day, and, when we were done with our sketching, we were all glad of a hot coffee/tea/chocolate (and pastries) at the Parlor Café in the North Star Hotel, a lovely quiet spot on a Sunday afternoon with a nice big table for all weary sketchers to gather around and chat.