Where Have I Been?

I moved to Tremont in August, and when I'd moved, I had lost the cord for my scanner/printer.  Now, I did not lose the easy to replace printer cord.  No, I lost the printer to the outlet cord which has the strangest ever thing to match up on the printer.  I keep hoping that I will find it, because I'm sure ordering one will be nearly as expensive as buying a new machine.  '

Slyman's

This little building on St. Clair is a food institution in Cleveland.  It's Slyman's, best known for their giant corned beef sandwiches.  There doesn't appear to be much else around them, except at lunch time, there can be quite a long line to get in.  The only thing bigger than that, is the line for corned beef on St. Patrick's Day.

Euclid Ave. Steeple

If you drive on Euclid Avenue around the Cleveland Clinic, you've probably passed this steeple.  It's just behind the parking lot of the CVS.  I always really liked this kind of thing, and I am so glad that it hasn't been torn down. 

Ohio Technical College

The builings of Ohio Technical College have become more numerous and interesting over the years.  Their campus now boasts some of the most fun sights on the near east side.  This little gem has a basketball court in the back and a balcony with picnic tables.  Well, and that's not counting the Dale Earnhart Year of the Rat sculpture in the front, facing Superior Ave. 

Zygote Press

I had originally planned to draw the northern end of this building, but the sun was just too powerful and there was too little shade.  The northern end houses a great sandwich shop, Tastebuds.  Though, Tastebuds is on their annual 2 week summer vacation.  I only seem to manage to be in the mood for them when they are on their summer break.

This end of the building houses Zygote Press which is a co-op for printmakers.  I have never done printmaking, but I have been in the building a few times when this part of town has their holiday open studios.

The Urban Sketchers Cleveland met at League Park this past Saturday.  It was a great morning to be outside sketching. 

League Park is the original baseball stadium for Cleveland.  Some pretty incredible things had happened there.  Cy Young pitched there.  Babe Ruth hit his 500th homerun there.  The outfield fence was taller than the Green Monster in Boston.  It was also home to the Cleveland Buckeyes, who won a Negro League World Series there.  This building at the wall along East 66th are the last remaining pieces of the structure.  When you look at the inside of the wall, you can see evidence of the ramp that went up to the upper level.  On Lexington, you can see where the road is wider in front of the park, where the trolley cars stopped to drop off people for the games. 

Right now there are efforts to restore the park.  The grounds are being maintained, and people are using them for different things.  The morning we were there, a man was practicing his golf swing.  I also spoke with a man who was walking his two dogs.  One wanted to be my best friend while the other seemed to walk herself home.

Historic Kirtland Village

Joined other sketchers for a great morning out in some mild weather at the Historic Kirtland Village/Urban Sketchers Cleveland sketchcrawl on Saturday morning.  The village was founded by Mormons almost 200 years ago, and more recently, they have restored the buildings and offer tours of the grounds.  I was surprised how many people were touring around.  There were probably 6 or 7 tour groups that passed by, the later in the morning, the larger the groups were.

While I was drawing the yellow how (called the "Red Store"), two groundskeepers pulled up in their golf cart and asked me to draw them into the sketch. 

The wood building with the funnels in front was to process "hot ash" which they used to fertizlier and their ceramics.  To the left of it was a mill with a wheel.  There wasn't any water flowing, so I think the wheel ran on an electric motor for effect. 

Fanciest Foot Locker Ever

Didn't realize that I hadn't posted this from early April.  I spent a lot of time at Tower City for the film festival in late March.  What amazes me about Tower City is that there are contemporary retailers in these old-school shops.  This Foot Locker has to be the most elaborate and fancy in their whole chain.  It has brass all over the storefront and doors. 

I had time the last morning of the film festival to sketch this.  I'd gone in around 8am for the volunteers' breakfast and special movie screening.  The little sign above the theater of the volunteer screening, instead of the movie title, simply said, "Volun-Tears."  Very funny :-)

Egg Shells

This is from a recent sketchcrawl at Eggshelland. This is an annual display that has gone on for over 50 years. It was a fun morning, but it was pretty cold out.

House on Clinton Avenue

I spotted this little street out of the corner of my eye one day while driving on West 28th. I had no idea that Clinton Ave. had a portion of its street over this far east. I'd only been on it near the West 60s, and it seemed to end in a dead-end over there.

Well, this portion is really amazing. Giant houses, all colorfully restored. I hate to draw attention to this little quiet strip, but it's worth a pass-through. I had intended to draw the pink house on the one corner, but I couldn't see it well from my car. I'll save it for a summer sketch when I can set up on the opposite corner on my stool. It's a nice, shady street, so it'll be great for summer sketching.

Haab's Bakery

Very sorry that this is no longer open for business. The entire building just puts you in the mood to have some great pretzels or bread. It does seem like someone is keeping the building up so that it doesn't fall into disrepair. Since it's been closed for about 10 years, it would be in far worse shape if no one was paying it any attention.

Favorite Places Vol. 6

I know that it's brand new, opened less than a month, but I have to say that the Aquarium is one of my new Favorite Places. It was very crowded, since everyone is going for their first visit, but it's worth a little patience in order to see all of the wonderful fish and exhibits.

The aquarium isn't perfect yet; anyone who has ever started a fish tank at home knows some of the problems that you can encounter. Just, their problems are obviously on a much larger scale. I bought a membership, because I do imagine going and sketching the actual fish tanks one day. You know, when the traffic slows down, which I don't imagine it will until some time in the fall.

Tokar Florist

I was probably pushing the limits of outdoor drawing on Sunday. It was one of those days where the sun was totally misleading on how cold it could be in the shade. Yet, if you sat in the sun, you couldn't really see.

This is an interesting building. At first look, you may think that nothing is going on inside. But, if you pass it often enough, you will notice that someone is changing the windows. It took me a little bit to find out what exactly it was. I eventually just googled the address and Tokar Florist came up. Now, that makes total sense, because there are always great displays in the window showcasing table settings, party decorations, and flowers.

Favorite Places Vol. 5

Another of my favorite places. This is their new location, but I've been shopping with them for years. They are the only ones in the area who seem to really know about aquariums. Their fish always live. The people there know their stuff and are more than willing to help out.

Favorite Places Vol. 4

I guess would constitute a favorite place. It's my living room. I have had that stereo since about 1989, and it still works perfectly. I haven't gotten rid of it, because if I ever decide to get a turntable again, it would cost a fortune. Right now, I have one that works perfectly well. You can also see my Wii and Wii balance board, my guitar and amp, my boomerang from my trip to Australia, and the picture above the stereo is a drawing of Noah's Ark at Kennywood.

It's not much like the Noah's Ark from my childhood. You used to walk into a whale's mouth to get into the funhouse-style ark. They still have the ark, but no more whale. When I was very little, I would never go in with my Dad and older sister. I would run out, get my ticket back, and go back and sit with my Mom and little sister. :D

Kirby Ave Warehouse

I you also draw on location, you'll know what I'm talking about. But, sometimes you see something as you're driving, and you just know that there's something about it that is interesting enough to draw. I might not have given the full effect of this, but I just liked how this looked, and I wanted to draw it.

I've been passing it on my way to route 90 for the 6 years that I've lived in East Cleveland. And, I finally decided to draw it.

Hard Rock Cafe Cleveland

This was one of those days where it took a lot to get me started on a drawing. I sat in the food court for a while, trying to draw a ship out on the river, but I just couldn't get it right. I erased the whole thing several times before I decided to move. I moved up two levels to draw the Hard Rock Cafe sign outside on Huron Rd. This clicked a little more.

I had dropped my Little Sister (from BigBro/BigSis) at the offices of the Cleveland International Film Festival, and even though I had more than enough time to go home and come back, I thought this was a good opportunity to draw in Tower City. I also took a break for lunch and to browse 2 shops on East 4th.

Favorite Places Vol. 3

This was the second attempt at drawing Sur La Table at Eton in Woodmere. My first attempt was very far out of scale. But, here it is. These cars look nothing like the cars that were actually parked there, but I like how they turned out all wonky and caddywompus. :D

This is one of my favorite places to shop. And, those of you who know me, also know why I love this spot. ;-)

Wonder Bar

Stairs are hard, but you know what is harder? Fire escapes. This definitely got me some practice at stairs and perspective.

I do love Cleveland's East 4th area a lot. I really want to move there this summer. But, I heard from one of the downtown organizations that there are waiting lists to get into some of these buildings. I really will only have about 2 months to find a new place, and I might miss out on moving there. So, keep your fingers crossed for me.

Penzey's Spices

I had time before work this mroning, and I was at a loss for something to draw. So, I decided to draw something in my kitchen. This is my spice ledge, it's triple-deep. As you can see, I love going to Penzey's Spices.

Favorite Places Vol. 2

It took a while to get here, but yes, there is snow on the ground.

Here's the second in my "Favorite Places" series for the year. It's the art supply store at the Greens of Lyndhurst. It kind of looks very cute and quaint, but it is in just a shopping center anchored by an Applebees'. But, it is a good art supply store.

Mall Christmas Decorations

More from our Beachwood Mall sketchcrawl last Sunday. I saved this one for today, because today is Russian Christmas (Merry Christmas!!). Last night, many women used a mirror and candles to make the image of their future husband appear.

Favorite Places Vol. 1

New year, new focus. Sometimes, I have a hard time thinking of somewhere to go and draw. Not this year! This year, when I'm at a loss of what to draw around the city, I'm just going to go to one of my favorite places and draw it.

This morning, I thought of Koko Bakery on Payne Ave. It's a great spot for an inexpensive snack or lunch, and the people there are always so friendly.

Beachwood Mall Clock

Met up with Noreen, Karen, and Mina to draw at Beachwood Mall on Sunday afternoon. We sat in the center court and all drew what intersted us. I took over an hour to render this clock, and then Mina rendered it more accurately in about 10 minutes. Oh, well, it's all fun! :D