Israel Sketchbook 2ª edição

I´ts been a while since I last posted anything here regarding the Israel Sketchbook project, but here it is, the book in it´s 2th edition... I´m really happy with it. You can get it here in the portuguese version ( no english version yet).

THE DEAD SEA....

... aint that dead... judging for all the wild life in it... I know, I was one. The damn greasiest water I ever seen... but honestly, I wouldn´t mind floating all the way to Jordan ( the mountains away) on the other side.



Eilat

Crossing the desert....

...until we reach the read sea...and had dinner...

That was Eilat.

Desert 48

The world is ending, giant bugs are a go go outside, war, famine, pestilence and death...





No, not the end of the world, just the plot ( as I understod it) from a movie that cinema students from Saphir College were shotting in this old ( and rather shooted at, like...with bullets) building just out side Tel-Aviv.

Gaza

The border around Gaza is not the most "israeli sight seeing" of places. Next to a military base ( first drawing) was a watch tower, were I went to draw and, while I was there drawing, a bus full of south american journalists ( I asked them ) came, filmed, photographed and had a picnic in the most relaxed and good humored way...



... apparently oblivious to where they were. You can see the border line below, where a truck and some kind of tank are parked. The landscape ahead is the Gaza Strip. As the silhouettes of its buildings and houses melted with the dusky sky, I could only think how ordinary the place looked.


The sunset gave the place a sad mood. Behind me ( the opposite direction to the drawing above) some touring israeli soldiers came ( not so lightly has the south american jornalists, though) check the place for a while, and went. I left the place with thoughts of curiosity about daily life of people in Gaza, sadness of why we can´t all get along, and realizing I was starving and dying for a big dinner.

Zefat

Sefad, or Zefat ( it reads tzfat) was unique. With its artists quarter, and the narrow streets. I had know idea this was were the Kabbalah was writen... cool.



The Church of the Holy Sepulcre in Jerusalem

Cant say that I felt the "holiness" of the place... maybe because of all the tourists...


Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulcre




BLOOM BAR

So I found this bar not far from where I was staying, with cool music, cold beer and sometimes, bands playing... cool. Sometimes people would come up to check what I was drawing and there were even some guys that offered me a beer ... how nice is that?







MY NIGHTLY LIFE SAVIOR

A thing that suprised me was the humidity of Tel-Aviv... the days were horribly hot and humid and so were the nights... This is the place I slept in my friend house and this little fan, wich I keep on all night , literally save my life... so here are two drawings as my thanks to my nightly savior... thank you dear fan.

( the two drawings below are colored with crayons)



( the rest of the room below... you can see my foot in front of the tv, my Homer Simpson t-shirt and the sketchbook on my lap).

DINNER, COFFEE & DRINKS

The thing about Tel-Aviv is that everywhere you go you have always great places to hang out...

...like sushi places ( dont you just love sake?)

... or open air esplanades for coffee...

... or places just to have a beer...


... or another beer....

MESSY ROOM

While I was painting this drawing ( above) I somehow remove the drawing and was left with only the coulors, ( below), and it suprised me immensely to see how well they held on their own... so I put the two "versions" here.

JERUSALEM

These drawings belong to my second going to Israel.





Tropical Juices


One of the many stands in Tel-Aviv where one could buy a cold fresh fruit juice...


A nice lunch in my friend balcony, with some of her friends.


Just finished painting two more drawings ( above). They were actually donne about the same time, in the same place( Tel-Aviv) , so I put them here together.

Tel-Aviv


Ben Zion Boulevard ( above). While I was drawing this there was an alarm and the police came, close the street and exploded some bag someone left behind . So the people you see are waiting to go to there business. This was actually the only time I witness someting like this , in the whole time I was there.

The same place at night ( below).