House with character

Murray Dewhurst, from Auckland, has a pretty good streak going on the old New Zealand villas lately. (In particular, this post.) This week's subject was one of the Taranaki examples of these type of houses. While most villas aren't this large, this specimen is certainly a worthy challenge. This one took about three hours on location and maybe another hour and a bit to clean up my lines at home. These types of houses have lots of detail.

Small bridge in Pukekura Park

Just a quick one of the small bridge in Pukekura Park near the Boat Shed. (By quick, I still mean about an hour!)

Citroën cars at Adlams European

I'm not really a car person. I also pass by this building quite regularly but have rarely really looked at it. The other day though... I guess I just looked up while passing it. In the window among much newer models is this old-timey car. It always faces forward like it hates being in there and wants to escape to the road again. After sketching the building, I asked permission to draw this classy roadster. The owner and staff were very welcoming as I sketched. I actually learned a lot about Citroëns while I was there! In particular, the car that I was drawing is a 'Big Six' (6-cylinder) variant of a Traction Avant (which is French for 'front-wheel drive'). I guessed that the car was a 1940's model. I was wrong; it turns out that it was made in 1954! Being no expert, I am used to 1950's cars being big American cruisers. It occurred to me that France didn't come out of World War 2 as affluent as America did. One of the effects of this is that France just kept making the same cars and didn't have extra money for new fancy designs. (The first Citroën Traction Avant was built in 1934!)

As I sketched and chatted, I discussed the 2CV and the legendary Citroën DS. Just before finishing, I noticed that the discussion was less about the specifications of each car and was more about anecdotes and driving stories involving each car. Maybe this is what being a car person is... less about the facts of owning, driving and tinkering these vehicles and more about how they change and become part of your life.

Regent Buildings

These are the Regent Buildings on the corner of Devon and Queen Streets in New Plymouth. As I was sketching this one I noticed that it said Regent Buildings (as in more than one) across the top and wondered why, since it just seems to be the one structure. I later found out that the building behind it (to the right in the sketch) used to be called the Regent Theatre. I think I accidentally drew both of the Regent Buildings!
Today, the Regent Theatre is now the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery which specializes in modern art from New Zealand and Pacific Rim countries. This other building (showing prominently in the sketch) is due to be demolished later this year. The Art Gallery starts construction on a large additional wing mostly dedicated to kinetic artist Len Lye. It is a modern design with a wavy stainless steel surface.
In a way, it won't be another case of tearing down an old building to put up something new. Since it's going to be physically connected to the previous Regent Theatre, it can be thought of as a severe renovation of the Regent Buildings and that they will continue to live on.

This is another sketch that I did just over a year ago from further down Devon Street. The Building that says Red Cross on the top is part of the planned gallery expansion but I don't believe it to be one of the Regent Buildings.

Fitzroy Beach Holiday Park

I went into the Fitzroy Beach Holiday Park. It was a great weekend to be at the beach. A camping spot here on a weekend like this would be uncommon, just metres from the beach.
I'm finding the weather lately a little too hot to function normally. I sketched this trailer (caravan) while sitting in the shade. Even then I almost found it too hot to concentrate. To make matters worse, I forgot to bring my swimming trunks too. On my way home I picked up some ice cream and promised myself to go back to beach the next day - properly. So today was just as hot but I was ready this time and brought my bodyboard too. I stayed in there riding wave after wave until I was sick of it. I purposely left my watch at home.

Devon Street - on the hill

Under the shady trees on Devon Street - Lunchtime sketching on hot summer days. 

Festival of Lights

Every year, the city of New Plymouth lights up Pukekura Park with coloured lights and displays. It's called the Festival of Lights and happens every year. Each night for 6 weeks there are different entertainment acts such as musicians and outdoor movies projected onto a large screen. Admission is free to all shows so this central park is quite popular every night that it isn't raining. 

To the left is my original ballpoint pen sketch and last one for 2012.

Coastal Walkway - The start of summer

Original drawing before colouring

This is from November on one of the first summer-like days of this season. I didn't post this one at the time since the original seemed to be missing something without the colouring.
For those people that haven't been to New Plymouth, I'm sitting on some steps leading to a pedestrian bridge (over railway tracks) that connects the central commercial area to the coastal walkway. This walkway runs for several kilometres in both directions.

Gill Street, New Plymouth

Sitting under a palm tree in Puke Ariki landing. Behind that partial wall is a stream that runs through the CBD. The trees on the other side barely hide a shopping mall parking building. Other buildings in the back include the BNZ/Quest building and the Liardet St Apartments that, for whatever reason, seem to show up often in my sketchbook lately. Other than that, there were lots of Christmas shoppers about. I must admit that I started this one last year! I ran out of time and was going to come back the next day (in December) and finish it. I got too busy at work and then it became way too hot. The heatwave was followed by some tropical rain. Before I knew it, it was next year!

(Apologies to the Canadian tourist who I had a chat with who may have wanted to see the finished drawing. Finally finished!)

Fitzroy Shops

This week the sketching was in the Fitzroy area of New Plymouth. I have to admit that I don't go here very often and when I do it's to go to the beach, which is really great. Although the beach is nice, I always felt that Fitzroy might not always be everyone's destination. It doesn't seem like a place that people go to but a place that people move through.
On one of the last Christmas shopping weekends... at lunch time... and near an intersection, I watched time-poor and desperate drivers become careless and precarious. Are these Christmas shoppers or is it always like this?

Bruce's Dairy

Bruce's Dairy - A corner store that is on a corner and beside a roundabout. This seems like a pretty good location to me. It had a steady flow of traffic but I didn't draw any cars today since there weren't any that stayed long enough.
While I drew this building, I witnessed the death of a car. It looked like it had overheated. I could hear the mobile serviceman informing the owners that it would take more to fix the car than they had originally paid for it. I watched them all leave soon after. The owners came back with a rental car and loaded all of their belongings into it. After they drove away, a tilt-bed truck later came for the body. It reminded me of the time that my car died. It was in the middle of nowhere and that was reasonably difficult to sort out. Now this car, coming to a stop here (or just to the left of my sketch actually) is in town and right across the street from a place that sells pretty much everything.

Devon Street in New Plymouth

Here is some more downtown sketching in New Plymouth done about two weeks apart. Devon Street would be the main retail shopping street and this intersection at Currie Street is, in a way, the centre of town. This divides Devon Street East and Devon Street West and the address numbering increases in both directions, starting from this corner. The centre of town!

This next one took about a week of lunches to finish. A nice shady spot on Devon Street West about three or four buildings down the street from the other drawing's point of view. You might be able to figure out which building this is in the other drawing too. (Hint: The tallest one.)