Cambridge November 1984

I did a lot of "urban sketching" when I lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts, as I have said in many previous posts. This was a corner of a large Harvard property near my own house, which was itself Harvard property in those days. They stashed maintenance supplies and vehicles there. You can see some red-brick architecture in the center, which I think was the biology department. Nowadays all this is gone, the space cleared and rebuilt with a massive new science center. This drawing is unusual because despite its November date I was still able to sit outside and draw. I also liked the last golden fall leaves against the maintenance office trailer, and the old white clapboard buildings, so typical of New England.

Reddish-brown technical pen ink on sketchbook page, about 7 1/2" x 10", November 10, 1984. Some color added in the sky with Photoshop. In those days I would indicate colors on-site with watercolor pencils and then add the rest of the color back in the studio. Click for larger view.