Jan Wallen

Studio #22

All my life I’ve travelled, from Colorado to California and then lived overseas in Germany, London UK, Okinawa Japan and Rotterdam The Netherlands and Washington DC before I moved to New York – a lifetime dream.

I’ve always captured scenes and moments in urban sketching, drawing and watercolors. After doing urban sketching on location in New York (City) and the Hudson Valley, I was looking for something new and different. As the saying goes, “When the student is ready, the teacher appears”. An online course came to my attention, and it was exactly what I was looking for – Photorealism.

Photorealism is very precise, detailed work – almost the opposite of quick sketching.  I absolutely love it, and the precision fits me like a glove. This detailed artwork is done with colored pencil and ink. I’ll also use watercolor.

For example, luscious cherries with shadows and highlights that look so real you want to touch them (or eat them). And butterflies with shadows, ice cream, yummy pastries, a beautiful crystal bowl of fresh strawberries.

When you come to my studio this year, you’ll see examples of both Urban Sketching and Photorealism. And I’ll show you how to get started if you’re interested and answer any questions you may have. You can even try it out yourself if you want to.

Photorealism, Urban Sketching and Drawing