We love New York City....

We are 1 month into our adventure here in New York City and so much has happened.

Our first few days felt like weeks. We were so curious about the different neighbourhoods that we spent hours walking the streets, bridges and subways. The city's energy seemed to infect us and before we knew it the days seem to have endless hours for exploration. We took a 35 mile (3 hour) ferry ride around the whole island and it was a wonderful perspective of the city. In preparation for my drawing and painting marathon we visited a range of art shops and they are more like supermarkets here – first floor pastels, second floor-charcoal, third floor- paper.

At the New York studio school, I began the intense 2 week program of observational drawing. During the marathon, we drew most days for 12 hours , some days finished at 11pm. I adapted to eating dinner late and walking home covered in charcoal dust. Our first drawing was 45 cm square and our last drawing at the end of the 2 weeks was 1.8 meters square. The dean of the school Graham Nickson gave intriguing critiques and as a result I was able to experience many breakthroughs and developments with my drawings.

Oli had a great 3 weeks at Doyle Partners where he helped out with the shark enclosure at the New York Aquarium. He worked on a signage project for Battery Park and the old Yankees Stadium site, not to forget some identity concepts for Columbia School of Journalism. The highlight was a paper animation of typography he made with Stephen Doyle. He could not have asked for a more welcoming and fun environment as his first impression of the American design industry. Ol is finishing up his time today with Carin Goldberg in Brooklyn, an amazing and inspiring designer who also welcomed him into her studio and inspired him by her work practices.

Last Friday i finished the painting marathon and it is was amazing. We took a bus daily, drove an hour to long island – Westbury Gardens, which is a historical mansion surrounded by manicured gardens. (It is here that they filmed Eyes wide shut!) It's quite the set up really being a landscape painter, most people have a trolley stacked high with an easel, huge palette, paint, at least 20 brushes , drop sheet, paper towel, rags and clean up, stool, umbrella, hat, and a canvas. We would roam the gardens and find a spot and paint. The 2 weeks was a lesson in colour, space and form. I took the opportunity to experiment. The hours were very long but the strange thing is I have had enough energy, dreamt at night about negative spaces and colour temperatures and felt restless on the weekends when I was not painting! I have met some characters as expected at the studio school, but the crowd is very down to earth and hardworking.

One of the greatest things about this city is that if I need to understand a Bonnard painting for example, I jump on the subway and there I am at the MET in front of the original. Or at MOMA, Oli spend time enjoying a Henri Cartier Bresson exhibition. We have our local Spanish deli/café where we watch the world cup on the street with all the regulars. We saw Australia loose and we were amongst a very dramatic American crowd battle it out against an effective Ghana lineup. Not to mention Germany's wins! GO HOLLAND!

Having finished our working phase here, we are looking forward to exploring more of the city, its free summer events, exhibitions, world cup final and shopping!!

Check out our photographs of my work and passing moments from our days and quotes Bresson 'The street is a theater, admission free'.