Parque São Roque Watercolor
2023-09-23
This watercolor of Parque São Roque came out of one of my last visits there. It was before I lost myself in the paths and gardens of Parque São Roque.
I had already drawn the labyrinth near the house, but I hadn’t seen the whole park yet. That day I walked all over the place and ended up stopping at the back gate, where I stayed… Notebook, pens, watercolors, and the will to stand there for quite a while.
I stood at the entrance for a while and sketched the gate at Travessa das Antas, straight in fineliner. This side of the park is much quieter. And it makes such a beautiful contrast with the green inside.
Afterwards, I ended up heading back to Casa São Roque. It almost always has some interesting exhibition to see, or just a good garden to sit in and watch time go by. I love the fountain in the middle of the park. You can see time passing there, leaving its mark on everything.
About Gates
I admit I really love gates and entrances of old houses and buildings here in Portugal. Some feel like a passage into a time long gone, but this one was flawless. And that passion gets even stronger when there are loose wires, old signs about the place, or some bit of signage stuck somewhere it doesn’t quite belong.
This watercolor of Parque São Roque ended up capturing a bit of that, the tall iron gate, the texture of the stone, and that crooked little sign nobody notices.
Painting at Parque São Roque
I used watercolor over a sketch done with a Unipen fineliner, right there, standing at the park entrance. Later, at home, I added a bit more contrast to the colors. And I let some stains spread on their own across the leaves in the background. That’s how I like this technique, a bit driven by the urge to just capture the moment, letting the materials tell part of the story too.
Practicing Urban Sketching in places like Parque São Roque is always a good reason to go back. I still have the rest of the park to explore slowly. And I’ll probably be back soon with my notebook under my arm.