Sketching in the Middle East!

The Creative Caravan has been moving at a slow but steady pace.

When the road is smooth, we pick up speed, and when the road is a little bumpy we slow down to navigate the rocks and holes that may be damaging to our wheels. Such is working in the UAE for me. Exhausted from teaching, I will share the bits of sketches and the one painting I have done since getting here a month ago. Next week we will be back in smooth sailing Turkey and I am quite positive the ride will pick up speed again. I've been doing a few sketches in anticipation!

Karakoy Fish Sellers

I painted this one in my office during the three hour break I have between classes. I'm not sure if it's the outside dry desert heat, the air conditioning or the atmosphere in general but the paint seemed to dry quicker here than anywhere else I've painted. Hence the strong colour compared to some of the other paintings I have done recently. However, I do think it is successful because of the vibrancy. I can't wait to see what this one will look like in a frame. Frames seem to put them in a whole new finished light. And since this is the only piece I have ever actually painted in the UAE this one for me is a little special!

The sketch for Karakoy Fish Sellers

Sketch for 'Simit Bakers'

A painting I am excited about doing when I get back to Turkey. I've been playing with twisting perspective in these next paintings- not as easy as it looks!

A quick sketch done in the back of the car in Oman, heading to Nizwa Oasis. The Omani men wear cool little hats like these and the forts on the hills can be found everywhere in Oman. Oman was very cool.

Often in the back of the car I spots bits of mosques and sketch the parts I like as we whizz by. I finish the sketches often waiting for lunch and things like that.

This sketch is a two parter- The building landscape in the back was sketched on the way to Nizwa in Oman. There seemed to be whole little communities out in the middle of the desert, all clumped together. Years ago I painted pots in markets with similar landscapes so it was really surreal to see the same landscapes here in reality.

The mosque was sketched waiting for the public bus to take us to Dubai. Here, we sit on the bus until all the seats are full, then we go. You are lucky if you are last on the bus, unlucky if you are the first. This day we were somewhere in the middle so I had time to draw the mosque across the street from the bus station.