United Methodist Curch.

Winter view on Monument Street.

Although the tragic events occured more than 100 years prior to the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. it seems appropriate to remember on this day another martyred advocate of freedom, Elijah Lovejoy. Lovejoy, a newspaper publisher and Presbyterian minister, was a champion for freedom of the press and freedom of speech. He was also an outspken abolitionist. Lovejoy was killed by a pro-slavery mob defending his printing press in 1837.  The memorial centers on a 93-foot high granite column topped by a 17-foot high winged statue of Victory. The monument was dedicated November 7, 1897, the sixtieth anniversary of Lovejoy’s death.

Elijah Lovejoy Monument, 01/15/2012, Michael Anderson, watercolor on Canson 140lb cold press, 6″ x 8″.

Clark Bridge

The Clark Bridge links Highways 367 and 67 in Missouri to Alton, Illinois. The cable-stayed bridge is a spectacular engineering achievement  that carries four lanes of traffic and two bike lanes across a span of over 4000 feet above the Mississippi River. To my eye it is a sketch-worthy work of art as well.

Vest pocket sized park in Lafayette Square neighborhood.

Last weeks record breaking mild temperatures were a bonus. In this view three friends enjoy the warm weather sitting on the benches along Park Avenue during the middle of the day. In the background brick buildings with their mansard roofs form a distant curtain. As Robert Henri describes it, “At noonday the landscape is just as fine, just as mysterious and just as significant as it is at twilight.”

Park Avenue & Vail, 01.05.2012, Michael Anderson, watercolor on Canson 140lb cold press, 6″ x 8″.

St. Michael's in the mid day sun.

The onion domes of St. Michael’s Russian Orthodox Church on Gravois  seemed to be intriguing subjects to sketch especially when cast in the high relief of mid-day winter sun. The view that caught my eye was from the alley behind the church. Fast-food drive thrus, sight proof fencing and utility poles have encroached on the diminutive church but its unique visual character remains intact.

The Tivoli.

…why not go see a movie at the Tivoli Theatre in the Delmar Loop? This sketch is of  the view from the second floor of the parking garage across the street. Christmas  decorations somewhat  blocked my view of the cinema’s marquee but for the record  now showing:  Melancholia, The Skin I Live In and Into the Abyss.  The titles sound gloomy but the theatre’s ambience and the Delmar Avenue scene is exuberant  and bright.  The home of book & record stores, chic clothes & furniture shops, art galleries & tattoo parlors as well as a bunch of cool bars & restaurants the Loop is urbanity at it’s most fun.

View of limestone bluffs in Cliff Cave Park.

Will St. Louis County have to close it parks? According to stltoday.com St. Louis County officials consider it a  possibility at some county parks because of what administrators say is a fiscal crisis requiring the Parks Department to slash $4.3 million from its budget. It would be a shame to close or even limit access to the recreational space provided by the county’s 23 parks. The 500-acre Cliff Cave Park in south county encompasses a low flood plain adjacent to the Mississippi River. The site is bisected by railroad tracks that lie directly at the base of two limestone bluffs. The trail head for a network of climbing and walking paths is next to the site where this sketch was done. There is an actual Cliff Cave, once known as Indian Cave, that has been barred to protect a colony of endangered bats.

View from the east side.

Baseball Heaven

Fans are greeted by bronze statues of legendary Cardinal players (Schoendist, Ozzie, Enos Slaughter to name a few) as they arrive at the stadium for the game with the Gateway Arch as a backdrop. On location sketch.

Baseball Heaven, 10/28/2011; watercolor on Canson 140lb cold pressed, 7″ x 10″.

Reprints of this sketch are available at http://michaelandersonartprints.imagekind.com/store/

Stadium Entrance, Third Base side.

Fans dressed in Cardinal red anticipate the game in a festive atmosphere as they wait outside Busch Stadium for the gates to open.  On location sketch.