Himalayan Demon drawn by Jack Tea Gregory on the Rubin Museum Sketchcrawl
I had one of those week's from hell -- work in particular had been tough, stressful, and I'd had to work very late several times -- and I hadn't done a single drawing since last weekend when Jack threw up six times.

My posts about the impending SketchCrawl had drawn a smattering of response and we were all a little pessimistic about how it would turn out. Jack even predicted that nobody would come at all.
We arrived at the Ruben Museum at about twenty minutes before seven and found Tom Kane doing a watercolor of a huge Buddha's head in the lobby. Patti had told the museum about our plan and the 'crawl was on the electronic events board as well as on the weekly doings postcards for the museum.
Soon, more and more folks came up and introduced themselves. I recognized a few faces from the last 'Crawl: Rick Beerhorst and his boy Shepherd, Summer Pierre, Cully of subway drawing fame, Crissy Liu Packard, Jason Das, Julia Judge. There were some new people too: Nancy Grimm came all the way from Pennsylvania, Shirley Levine, Susan McCreigh, Laura Frankstone... an excited and buzzing cadre, chomping to get some drawing done
The museum is a tranquil and beautiful place, floor after floor full of thousands of years worth of Himalayan art: paintings, drawings, tapestries, sculptures. It is information intensive, with cards that describe the meaning and history of each piece. There are hands-on exhibits, videos; even magnifying glasses one can borrow to further scrutinize the treasures.
It was a lovely place to draw. Some of us had folding stools, while others stood, and some found benches, stools and chairs that were strategically placed. Music filtered in from the bar/restaurant in the lobby, but the vibe was mellow and meditative. We all wandered about, sometimes drawing intently, other times chatting and sharing our journals. Soon there were more than two dozen people drawing and we made up the majority of the people in the exhibitions.
Everyone had their own way of tackling the drawings: pencil, pen, watercolors, markers, colored pencils... Rick Beerhorst worked on big sheets he had pre-prepared, collages of old music notations, and Susan McCreigh worked in a book with multicolored pages.
For me, this was the most wonderful, relaxing and productive SketchCrawl so far. Within a half hour of drawing, I felt all the tension of the week lift from my shoulders. I wasn't alone; several people came up to me to say how peaceful and happy they felt. It was an amazing experience to study these paintings and sculptures, some thousands of years old, all done by anonymous artists and craftsmen, with care and attention, and probably similar motivation to what drives so many of us –– not the pursuit of fame or fortune but the love of making things, of producing beauty, of studying the world around us and celebrating its richness.
The fact that we were there not only to draw but also to provide support to people from the region that produced this art made it even more special. To our amazement, we raised over $1,000 in just this one evening. That will provide blankets and aid for so many people in need. There are still pledges to come in, including money being raised at today's SketchCrawls in Chicago and San Francisco, so we will wait before sending in the accumulated donations.
After three hours, we assembled down in the lobby to chat and everyone left me take pictures of the drawings they had done. I have set up a gallery here of the work. (Caveat: There are some omissions, as a couple of people left early, and I may have mislabeled some of the drawings. If you were there and would like to amend or add to the gallery, please let me know and I'll gladly rebuild it).
As we walked home, Patti, Jack and I talked about the miracle of the evening. Three hours before, none of this art had even existed. Now there were hundreds of new drawings and paintings to bring us all pleasure. And, even more significantly, we had joined together as a community to support other people a half a world away, to provide them with funds that could really help.
Thanks so much to everyone who came and drew last night, and to all the friends, relatives, and colleagues who made pledges to support the artists and Mercy Corps. Drawing has done so much to change my life and it is always exciting to see the power it has to change others' too.
Enter the Himalayan Sketchcrawl Gallery