An afternoon in the gardens

On Saturday I was in the gardens from 1pm...only 2 weeks till I will be there as part of the sketchabout - I can't wait. Anyway, I had a productive afternoon - here are the sketches I did in my sketchbook.

First stop was my favourite tree. There are lots of Moreton Bay figs (or similar) in the Royal Botanic Gardens but this one is the best!!! Love all those aerial roots.

I was feeling a little exhausted (as I had been walking around town and sketching in the morning as well!) so I went to lie down on the grass in the shade for a bit. It was such a beautiful afternoon and there were lots of groups of people sun baking or resting in the shade so I was in good company. My rest didn't last long as I felt the urge to sketch. This Greek monument I have sketched before and was recently label a coffee plunger here by a Dutch flickr friend. I have always drawn this looking towards the Harbour Bridge but today sitting under the shade of a frangipani tree on a very warm summers day I was facing the opposite direction. No disrespect intended to the monument... I do really love it as a fine piece of Corinthian Greek architecture!

After the coffee plunger analogy surely it was time for a coffee - so I drew a grouping of palm trees while sipping a takeaway skinny latte. It is quite fun to be drawing more trees and landscaping...something that as an architect I used to really be unsure about doing...

And finally - I caught up with Alissa at 4.30 and we did a sketch in the herb garden.

A Greek Monument

To introduce myself.... my name is Liz Steel and I am an architect. I have been drawing in some way or other all my life, but when I discovered watercolours in 2007, I started sketching regularly... and haven’t stopped since then. I fill sketchbook after sketchbook with a visual record of my life which I share on my blog Liz and Borromini. One of the things that I love about sketching is the fact that it slows you down, making you stop to look and appreciate the world around you.

I have lived in Sydney all my life and love it so much. Since becoming the Sydney Correspondent for the international group of Urban Sketchers, I have made a determined effort to get out on a regular basis to sketch my wonderful hometown in order to share it online with people all around the world. The Royal Botanic Gardens has such a pivotal role in our city – it is essential to the classic view that the world sees as ‘Sydney’ and also is involved in many of the big social events during the year. It has held a special place in my life as well – when I wander its grounds I am always reminded of events in the past such as visits with overseas friends, weddings, concerts, picnics and school excursions.


I am very excited to be a part of the Great Garden Sketchabout and look forward to sharing my sketches and adventures with you all on this blog – there is so much to explore, not just the plants, but also the buildings, the views, the sculptures, the animals... The list goes on.

Here is a sketch I did a few weeks ago when I was in the garden for a few hours -it is a sketch of the Choragic monument of Lysicrates replica (copy of something in Athens... don't worry I had to take a photo of the plaque and google it myself!)
Notice the Harbour Bridge in the background.