Title : “Move along please, nothing to see here…”
link : “Move along please, nothing to see here…”
“Move along please, nothing to see here…”
[Guest post by Ed Harker in Bath, UK]
I was walking home through Bath and came across a car on its side, windscreen wipers still waving, another car crunched into it, green fluid leaking across the road, and emergency services arriving.
I spoke to a police officer; a teenager had just got their licence, jumped the lights, been struck by oncoming traffic, spun round and flipped. We agreed that it was amazing that such destruction had been caused by relatively slow town centre traffic speeds – and that no one was hurt.
The scene was both dramatic and visually interesting; the unfamiliar angles of a car on its side, odd lines and textures where the cars were smashed, firefighters busy, bright green gunk flowing down the street. Hmm, would it be OK to sketch this, or insensitive rubber-necking?
I’d been sketching in the town centre and had my kit on me (the best sketching kit is the one you have with you). Others were busy taking photos, but I’d be there much longer, really watching the scene.
I didn’t formally ask permission, and didn’t have to, but I made sure the police saw me getting my sketchbook out, obviously drawing the crunched vehicles, and they were fine. I leant on a nearby car and carried on.
Passers-by took photos, and as I sketched I could hear them describing the scene on their phones, explaining their delays. They all left almost immediately. I started to think about the way news was depicted before cameras; just sketches, engravings and words.
The sketching, and the time it took, made me a part of the scene, as had the brief chat with the police. The firefighters came over to see what I was up to, told me what they were doing with the car, and looked at the sketch. I felt less intrusive than the passers-by, and my self-consciousness faded.
In all I was there for about 20 minutes, the situation continually changing. Reports were radioed in, the cars were checked, doors and bonnets/hoods opened and shut, creating brief new angles and lines to catch in ink. People came and went, and I tried to include these changes in the sketches.
As I was leaving, the redirected traffic was starting to flow again and tow trucks were on their way. I read about the accident on a local news site the next day; no mention of the curious figure drawing it with a dip pen!
Ed is an infant school head teacher based in Bath, UK. He’s a member of Urban Sketchers Bristol/South West and has a blog where you can see his sketches and kit tinkering. Ed previously wrote a guest post about his impressions of the Manchester symposium, where he was a presenter.
Thus Article “Move along please, nothing to see here…”
That's an article “Move along please, nothing to see here…” This time, hopefully can give benefits to all of you. well, see you in posting other articles.
You are now reading the article “Move along please, nothing to see here…” with the link address https://capitalstories.blogspot.com/2017/04/move-along-please-nothing-to-see-here.html
0 Response to "“Move along please, nothing to see here…”"
Post a Comment