Getting Back in the Groove

Had a great walking tour with the students this morning. We began near the bell tower in this sketch, at the Forum Boarium, and finished at the Ponte Fabricio, which is on the other side of Tiber Island from where I stood to draw this, from the Ponte Cestio. The subject here is the Ponte Emilio - far better known as the Ponte Rotto, or "Broken Bridge," which has been sitting there in the middle of the Tiber, broken, for over 400 years (part of it remained until the 1880s, but the last time it was completely functional was around 1598). I've done a few sketches in the past week, but this was the first one where I really felt like I had hit the old groove of drawing. There are some mistakes here and there, as there are with every drawing I do, but the process of creating this one was generally smooth, fast, and entirely enjoyable. I think one reason is that I used charcoal, which easily allows for the range of value that I strive for in most of my sketches. Makes me want to get back out there and draw some more tomorrow.