Sketches from a way-too-short trip to Southern California.
Somewhere just north of Los Angeles, looking out onto I-5. You know you’re in Southern California when the light turns really yellow and tall palm trees break the horizon everywhere you look.
My favorite piece at LACMA is a piece called ‘Metropolis II’: it is the size of a room and is a mad maze of ramps and freeways and railway tracks, all with little cars and trains. At 3:30pm everyday, the museum turns this piece ‘on’: and you really, really feel like you’re part of the madness of LA rushhour traffic. Except it’s fascinating. I didn’t finish this piece. As always, I was told to put away my watercolors:) I really should carry some dry media for museums. But I LOVE my watercolors.
My only other LACMA sketch was when the kids painted in the Children’s Room, in the Korean section. Here is the room with a great big dragon mural on the wall.
Legoland is probably THE HARDEST place I’ve tried to draw: it’s hard to sketch structures made of Lego. So here, instead, is a sketch of one of those stalls where you try to win a Spongebob toy by throwing a ball into a basket. It was a mad mess of Spongebobs and Patrick Stars.
Next stop: San Diego Wild Animal Safari Park. I LOVE this place. I did a bunch of very quick sketches as we walked strolled around. Yes, I’m partial to the flamingoes. They’re great fun to sketch. Only the Lesser Flamingoes, though: they’re really pink. The Greater Flamingo pales in comparison.
A quick sketch while we wait for our breakfast. The good thing about drawing your family is that you get to ‘know’ how to draw them well enough to be able to finish a piece even if they get up and walk away. Which they did. About halfway thorough this piece.
And one last stop, on our drive back North. The madness of Santa Monica Pier.
You can see all my sketches ( including the failed Legoland ones) on my flickr stream.
Sketch Away: Travels with my sketchbook 
Wow you sketched all these?! This is cool. I’m glad to have found your blog! Hope you enjoyed socal. I know I miss it.
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Very cool!
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This is a great series Suhita. My favorite is the first one with the yellow light and the palms but the animals are fantastic too.
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Great job man
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These are wonderful! And instantly recognizable (I live in Los Angeles), especially the Santa Monica pier. They made you put away your watercolors at the museum? Shame on them!
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🙂 Melissa, i’t s rule across every museum, i think: no water media. My bad: I use them, everytime, until I’m asked to put them away:) I can see why they have a rule like that, still, I love my watercolrs
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Where can I purchase your sketches? They are just fabulous and I am going to the San Diego safari park in 20 days! Leslie
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Leslie,
I sell prints of my pieces at my etsy store: sketchaway.etsy.com
But if you don’t see what you want, just send me links to the pieces you are interested in from my flick stream, and I will make those available as prints! (my flickr stream is : flickr.com/sketchaway ) and my email is : suhita(at)gmail(dot)com
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Hi, I just love all your sketches, we are going to the very same places in July this year, staying in Santa Monica, spending time in LA and then going to San Diego for a couple of days to visit the zoo and safari park.
I’ll be thinking of your paintings through our entire holiday, haha.
There very good bye the way.
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