Fieldwork Week Six: Drawing

    Thanks again, Ryan, for the great photo!   I’m re-reading Edmund White’s marvelous book, The Flâneur, in which he writes:   “And no wonder Paris, land of novelty and distraction, is the great city of the flâneur — that aimless stroller who loses himself in the crowd, who has no destination and goes wherever caprice and curiosity directs his or her steps.”    I’ve been thinking a lot about these fieldwork sessions and how they’re different from my actual fieldwork. I think it has something to do with aimlessness and the limitations of destination. I’m happiest when there’s the possibility of unanticipated encounter, and I feel listless when I set out for a place.        Last week, we set out for a place and I made a few drawings. It felt like a plein air class, rather than an exercise in curiosity. I want to see things in a new way.   In any case, I made some drawings on Hamblen Island. Not sure they’re leading me anywhere.   This coming Saturday, I want to walk and look and discover!   …   Fieldwork Saturdays in Wellfleet: Organized by Pete Hocking & AMZehnder Gallery   This summer, we’re inviting creative people — including visual artists, photographers, writers, and others — to join us for community fieldwork sessions in Wellfleet on Saturday afternoons from 2:30 – 5 PM. This is not a workshop and there will be no instructor. Spending time in a place, looking deeply, taking notes, and allowing the place to soak into memory allows one to bring meaningful experience into the studio — and to ultimately work more intuitively.  The sessions are also designed to strike up conversation and relationships among Outer Cape artists. You’re invited to look, to draw, to paint, to photograph, to take notes, to write — and especially to connect with other creative people in our incredible community. These sessions are free and you’re welcome to join us as your schedule permits. Come for one session or all sessions!    We’ll meet at AMZehnder Gallery at 25 Bank Street at 2:30 PM on Saturday and we’ll conclude the start of Gallery Night at 5 PM.    Questions? Contact phocking@gmail.com