Next Sketching date: Friday 17 July

We are going to King's Place at 90 York Way, London N1 9AG and we suggest meeting at 10.30am. Come in at the front door on York Way and walk straight through to the canalside exit. Sketchers should be easy to spot. King's Place is an enormous entertainment building which backs onto the Battlebridge Basin on the Regent’s Canal.

If it's raining we can sit and sketch in the vast ground floor café area, and if it's dry we can sit on the canalside terrace and paint the barges and the glassy new apartments behind them. Part of the terrace is also under cover so usable if wet. Please bring your sketching stools so that you can go where you want on the terrace.

Here is a link to the map of the area. There are multiple buses, and Kings Cross tube station is not far away. Contact mobile: 07975 864142. See you there!

Art in the Park on Tuesday 16 June

Art in the Parkers sketched in the surprisingly sylvan Priory Common Orchard, alongside Priory Road, N8, on a day which gradually developed into full sunshine. The space is a low-maintenance edible garden, and because it was a Tuesday, some of the volunteer gardeners were present, and very kindly invited us to share their lunch garnered from the plants in the garden.  

We ate lime leaves filled with leaf and flower salad, featuring salsify, campanula, saltbush, and young horseradish leaves (and other collections from the garden) with a dressing made of pounded gleanings. It was deeply delicious, and we came away much informed about the possibilities of eating  either parts of vegetable garden plants not normally eaten, or flower garden favourites, following conversation with Gemma Harris and her colleagues.

An unexpected treat for Art in the Park, we don't usually get to eat our subject-matter. Another location to which we would like to return.

Next sketching date: 16 June

The next Art in the Park sketch date is Tuesday 16 June and we are going to Priory Common Orchard, Crouch End, N8 8NB. In the hope and expectation of a sunny day, we are going to suggest meeting at 10:30 am in the garden and paint for as long as you feel like it.

The Priory Common Orchard is a strip of land which has been turned into a community garden, and further details plus a map can be found here. There is an attractive view across the garden, with its various trees, and gardening operations, leading up to the rear of a Victorian building. There is also an interesting view across Priory Road of an Edwardian parade of shops, including a pub and Syl’s café, and either of these will have refreshments and a lavatory. The garden is unfenced on two sides, so views in and out are unhindered by fences. Tuesday morning is the day when the community gardeners will be at work, so some of us may like to sketch gardening activities.

It appears that the roads around the Priory Common Orchard are not parking controlled, but they are fairly heavily parked up. Various buses come close which you can see listed on the website. We look forward to seeing lots of Islington Art Society colleagues and friends and, as always, there is no need to book, just arrive. Sue's mobile number is: 07975 864142 should you need to get in touch.