Dr. Sketchy VIII: Voyage to the Fringe!

Okay, art monkeys, it's official: Thanks to the brilliantly thoughtful Christopher of Causing A Scene, Dr. Sketchy is going to be a part of the upcoming Fringe Festival at the Music Hall in Detroit, Friday, April 13 (ooo...) from 7-10pm!

The Fringe Festival is a balls-out, no-holds-barred, 30-straight-hours arts event, featuring a crazy array of music, dance, performance, film, mixed media and visual art (read all about it at the Fringe Festival web site), so this'll be a DS session like nothing you've experienced. Right now the plan is to have three fantastic dancer/models from CAS posing simultaneously in different locations, so you can migrate around and draw your hearts out. Contests will be extra challenging, and prizes will be extra awesome, I promise. DS participants will not just be spectators, you're considered to be part of the show ("Don't be part of a scene," they say,"cause one!"), and as such anyone who comes to draw gets a discount on admission to the entire event - only $15 to get in, $20 off the original ticket price! The Fringe Festival starts at 7pm Friday and runs 'til 1:30am Sunday. Presumably coffee and Red Bull will be available on site...

BUT - in order to get the discount you need to know the super-secret code word to tell the guy at the door! So I'm asking anyone who's interested in comig to CONTACT ME FIRST and make a reservation. Once I have a head count, I'll fill everyone in on the logistics. I'm meeting next week to finalize plans with the organizers, so I'll keep y'all posted.

Your figure drawing fingers are itching already, aren't they? Stay Tuned!

Faerie wings and other things

Two more works of art from our latest session. These beautiful sketchbook collages come from DS newbie Doug Blanchard. Thanks Doug, see you at the next session!



Here's another great color image from DS regular Jim Anderson, too. Whew, we're not worthy...

Cheers and jeers!

Cheers for Hatch founder Chris Schneider, for shooting this swell photo of Xaina, as seen from outside the cafe thru their big front window. No wonder trucks were slowing down as they passed!

BUT- jeers from Dr. Sketchy:MCD's first official detractor!! Shortly after the Hatched event was written up in the local paper, the Citizen, with a prominent photo of Xaina included, the café received a letter from one Mary O. of Hamtramck, neatly handwritten on an index card:

"I was very ashamed and hurt to see the burlesque woman posing in such an indecent, shameful pose. I thought your place was an old fashioned coffee place. Let's keep Hamtramck a decent place."

She also called the café a couple days later to complain. She got profuse apologies from the owners and turned out to be a sweet old lady, apparently, and she promised to stop in for a drink some time (yep, she's never even been to the café...) so it's all good.

Still - complaint letter! I'm just childish enough to be a little giddy about it!

"Professor Scratchy" strikes again!

(I overheard a woman at the Café 1923 trying to remember the name of Dr. Sketchy who called it that. I almost want to change the name but Molly C. would disown me...)

Sorry so late with this update, but: a belated "thanks so much" to the throngs who turned out for the DS session we held last weekend at the Hatched! opening. It was not only a blast (or, as they say, a blowout) for those who attended, it was a big hit with local media too (model Xaina ended up featured in full color on the back page of the local paper along with a few sketchers) and a great draw for passers-by and point of interest for the folks who came to see the art. It was so packed in the café during DS that the fastest way from the front of the place to the back room where the DJ, classical guitarist and free munchies were, was going outside, out the front door and back in through the side door! We even had a little girl, maybe 4 years old, sketching, giving special attention to the big fairy wings sprouting from Xaina's back! The whole event did what it was supposed to do - put the arts collective Hatch on the mental maps of our fellow Hamtramckans and Detroiters.



More interesting news for DS coming up next month - yet another new venue, and yet another art event going on around us while we sketch, this time even bigger than Hatched! It's all pretty hush-hush, y'unnerstand, until the details are worked out, but... stay tuned!

Art above by John Nagridge (John's drawing is silver pen on black paper, I think!) and Matt Feazell. Send more art, y'all!