sketchbooks

my birthday!

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It was my birthday this week, and I spent it in San Francisco. I went to the Asian Art Museum to see the Japanese art exhibition, and admired some lovely ceramics (this is a birthday peach from a Chinese plate),and some Japanese sculptures and painted screens.I walked through the civic centre and then on to the Hayes Valley to look at some pretty boutiques......and then in the evening we went to Sons & Daughters, a lovely little restaurant in Nob Hill. The service was delightful, the food exquisite. I drew each dish in the tasting menu as it came out...and took some photos of the colours and presentation. Yum in every way.

honeymoon in Andalucia

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I've just come back from a lovely honeymoon in Spain. We did nothing much, and watched the world go by. We stayed for a week in a pretty cottage on the side of a hill full of olive groves,then another week in the village of Bubion in the Sierra Nevada mountains. We had a delightful garden overlooking the valley, and on good days, we could see the Meditarranean and even the mountains of Africa!There was one amazing day when the whole mountain was in the clouds, and everything looked a bit spooky and mysterious.I loved the greenery all around us, and started imagining my dream garden, full of fig trees, ferns, moss on the stones, and hanging roses...We also visited the Alhambra in Granada. It was wonderful to wander in the gardens, and explore the palaces. I especially liked the variety of mosaic tiles in all the rooms.Afterwards we sat in the late afternoon sun, and watched the walls of the Alhambra slowly changing colour.

Porto, Portugal

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I was in Porto last weekend, and loved its faded charm. It's run-down, but in a delightful way. We had tea at the Majestic Cafe...and I had a very tasty eggtart, with toasted almonds on the top.I love the blue azulejos tiles covering all the walls.We spent a rainy sunday in the museum and church. I like this carved lady holding a sign. I wonder what it could be for...There is good design everywhere, and I especially admired the typography in the metro system.

Sketchbook Project - London

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My cutlery proverb sketchbook for the Art House Co-op is on its world tour, and will be in London next week!  All the European and Australian sketchbooks will be available to view at The Canada Water Library on these days at these times:

Oct. 12th 4pm-8pm Oct. 13th 11am-5pm Oct. 15th - 19th 4pm-8pm

Hope you can make it along!

OuterEdit starting soon!

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I blogged about this a few months ago, and now it's finally here, the collaborative project for OuterEdit is about to start... They came to London and filmed a little video of me and here it is. I'm a little bit freaked out by how I look/sound, but there you go.

OuterEdit - FC04 - Mariko Jesse from OuterEdit on Vimeo.

Our 'collab' starts on October 9th, and my collaborators on this project will be illustrators Aude Van Ryn, David Humphries, Kahori Maki, and Bob Foundation. They're all amazing and I hope you'll check out the OuterEdit website and see what we produce together!

weekend in Paris

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A quick trip across the channel, and a weekend in Paris in August. Lovely. This is the view from our hotel, right in the centre of Saint Germain des Pres, on the left bank. Not many shops were open, it being the weekend, and also August, so we spent the time strolling in the parks, sipping chocolat in cafes, and generally just having a relaxing time...

Olympics week two

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It's the second week of the Olympics. It's still sunny, it's still fun, and I finally made it to the Olympic Park!We managed to get some last minute athletics tickets, and couldn't believe that our seats in the main stadium were right next to the gorgeous Olympic cauldron. It was designed by Thomas Heatherwick (I love his work!), and it's truly beautiful...Here's my little watercolour sketch of it...

Venice trip

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A few days in Venice is enough to make anyone happy! It was hot (so hot!) and sunny every day, and I saw beautiful paintings in churches, famous vistas, and even had time to sit on our hotel terrace and paint the view...My favourite things in Venice are the winged lions of St Mark which are everywhere. Here's a sketch of the most famous, on one of the pillars at the entrance to St Marks Square.We drank cold sodas in cafes during the heat of the day,and ate icecreams as the night drew in...

Istanbul trip

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A few weeks ago I went to Istanbul and was amazed at the changes since my last visit twenty years ago. The sun shone, the Bosphorus sparkled, everyone was super friendly, and it was magical...I loved the subtle shades and patterns of the tiles in the blue mosque, and also in the Topkapi palace.The huge cavernous space of the Hagia Sofia was incredible, and I especially admired the Byzantine mozaics that had been partially uncovered under the Ottoman painting of the interiors.

Karen's wedding sketches

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I did a few sketches while at my friend Karen's wedding. It was held in the University Chapel in Glasgow, which was rather grand and imposing, but everyone was so happy and beautiful it felt warm and cosy. I really adore Scottish weddings, with all the men wearing kilts...Karen's dress was classical and simple...The flowers at the reception was adorable, lots of anemones and simple glass jam jar holders.

trip to the South

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I've just come back from a road trip through the South of America. It was amazing. We started in cultured Savannah, Georgia, where I was super happy to see the Bird Girl sculpture, made famous by the book 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' (one of my favourites).Then onwards to Charleston, South Carolina, where we toured a few preserved historical residences,and also the Magnolia Plantation with its gorgeous swamp garden. We stayed in some lovely bed and breakfast places. Then it was on to the Great Smoky Mountains, where we saw a baby bear! In Nashville we went to a Honky Tonk in a Western bar and saw the Don Kelly Band...and watched a show at the Grand Ole Opry, and also ate the best "meat and 3s" ever at Arnolds. Mostly, this was a music and food trip, to sample all the specialities of the South. Here's an example of local cuisine, although usually there's a few fried somethings thrown in too! And of course, pies aplenty...The local "chess pie" was extra sweet, but the winner was the "lemon ice-box pie" from Corky's in Memphis. Their ribs were also the overall winner!

Brooklyn Sketchbook Project

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I've just been to visit the first stop of the Brooklyn Art Library's Sketchbook Tour 2012, in the home of the library itself: Williamsburg New York. It was a gloriously sunny day, and I wandered in, got myself a library card, and browsed some of the delightful sketchbooks on offer. There were so many! Of course I checked that my own sketchbook (you can see some pages from it on one of my previous blogs) was there safe and sound, which was a great feeling. The sketchbooks will be in Brooklyn for another few weeks, and then off around the States, and in London in November. You can check the dates on the website. Hope you'll make it!

Cotswolds afternoon tea

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We just spent the day in the Cotswolds, and had the loveliest afternoon tea ever at Juri's Tearoom in the country town of Winchcombe. The crockery was a pretty blue... ...and the view from the conservatory was delightful. But it's the cakes you need to try; honestly, the cheese cake was the best I've ever had, anywhere. So light and fluffy. The sandwiches were beautiful too. Everything is perfect, as it's traditional English, but with a slight hint of the Japanese, as Juri is from there.I absolutely recommend this place if you're anywhere near...

Vienna cake weekend

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I went to Vienna recently, and spent the weekend visiting as many cafes, and eating as many different cakes, as possible. Viennese cakes are irresistable...We went to Cafe Diglas, Hotel Sacher, Cafe Sperl, Cafe Landtmann, and some other slightly less famous places, which were just as tasty... My favourite was the Cafe Sperl, which had a beautiful quiet atmosphere, but the best cake was definately the Sacher Torte at the Hotel Sacher. The apricot jam was so smooth and light, like a dream. Tis a cake for grown-ups.