Sketching Around Eureka Springs, Arkansas

With my wife and daughter planning a slumber party for Saturday evening, I asked that I be excused to head south a couple of hours to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. It's a town with a historic district unlike anything else in our region. The lay of the land, architecture, culture and character down there is flat out peculiar, but in a good way. There was so much I wanted to put to paper that I was literally paralyzed by choice and only got half of the drawing and painting in that I would have liked to have. Oh, well. I did get to hike around and look at a lot of interesting things.

Here are the sketches I did manage to get done.

The "Flatiron Flats" flatiron building at Spring and Center streets.

Grotto Spring

Eureka Springs Courthouse

St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church

I had a good time down there. Saturday night I camped at the KOA. Rain was forecast, so I just slept in the car instead of pitching a tent in their designated camping areas. From experience, rain and flat, retention-walled off campsites usually end with me sleeping in a puddle. I got a lot of attention sketching on the street, with dozens of people looking over my shoulder or commenting on my work. I even had people taking pictures with me. It was odd, but flattering.

I ran into some friends on Saturday, one took this pic of me sketching the flatiron building.