These are the last of my sketches from Brazil, from my very short stay in São Paulo. I wish I had had more time to explore this huge city, but I only had one evening and the following morning. Spent the time drawing together with Kumi from Japan, Andrea from the US and Cinthia, local sketcher from SP. We were sitting opposite the MASP (Museu de Arte de São Paulo), outside a park packed full of actual jungle (the parks in Stockholm are a little less… overwhelming). The museum was closed – fortunately, because otherwise we would probably have gone inside, looking at art instead of being out there drawing.
The bus ride from Paraty to São Paulo was an incredible feast for the eyes. We passed through fantastic sea landscapes, the dense mata atlantica forest, rolling grass-filled hills and then São Paulo, which through my Stockholm-sized eyes is such a huge monster of a city that I couldn´t really grasp that I was actually there. Anyway, I tried to draw during the busride, which was an interesting experience – the road was not bad at all, but veeeery curvy! The guy sitting in front of me was suffering so badly from motion sickness, I felt so sorry for him – and so lucky that I´m not bothered by it.
I also made an attempt at the view from my hotel window in a backstreet of Avenida Paulista. I would have loved to go on sketching the view above these old houses – they had huge skyscrapers looming above them – but got too tired and needed to go to sleep.
And, the very last sketch, from Guarulhos airport in São Paulo, waiting for my flight home. There I was, in an airconditioned aiport, cafe latte in my hand, looking out at an expensive aeroplane being pampered by technicians for hours – facing a huge favela. Makes you think.
All drawings approx. 21 x 14,5 cm, various ink pens and watercolours on Stillman & Birn alpha series sketchbook paper.