Weekend in Overton Park

The weather was almost picture perfect this weekend, after a slightly stormy start. Sunny with low humidity and a great breeze. Mr. Darcy and I took off for the forest with a sketchbook in hand one afternoon. I sketched the "Elvis urns" in the forest, playing with the varied colors they've weathered to. These huge concrete urns sat on the stage at the Shell when Elvis, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee performed at the open air band stand back in the day. They have since migrated to the forest to decay picturesquely.

The clouds were gorgeous, and I'm trying to figure out clouds in watercolor, so I took a little time to paint them as well. I loved sitting and enjoying the breeze in the shade at the edge of the Greensward.

Last night I went to the Shell to hear Rising Appalachia. It's a beautifully restored place, after being derelict for a while, and they put on about 50 free concerts a year. It's also four blocks from my house, which is lovely.

I also spent some non sketching time in the park. It was the Day of Merrymaking festival on Saturday, put on by the Overton Park Conservancy which manages the park. They had an empty slot in their entertainment, and since I'm on the board they asked if I would fill it. I was a bit nervous, since I don't usually perform on a stage with a sound system. (In fact, there's really not a "usually" at all. I usually play at home for my own pleasure.) But I had a total ball, didn't embarrass myself, and now would kind of love to sing songs in public once in a while. It helped that I had the moral support of Mr. Darcy, since I really never go to the park without him.

Joe Spake and Allison Sheppard took these shots of the two of us. I was grateful to them, since I don't do this very often, and it's fun to have the evidence of it.

Even better, Allison sketched me while I was playing! I've been drawing musicians for years now, and I was completely thrilled to have her sketch me while I was, for once, the one playing in public. It's doubly lovely because Allison was at the class I did recently with a 5th and 6th grade art class and got fired up to sketch again when I showed off the ease of the brush pen. I'm so happy to spread this everyday joy, and I'm so grateful to her for coming out to both support and sketch me.