Urban Sketching in Vienna, Austria
Urban Sketching in Vienna, Austria art

I love sketching on location in Europe. Little details abound everywhere you turn. This year has been a whirlwind of inspiration and impressions. Although I haven’t had much time to paint since I’ve been on the road continuously (for just about a year now), I’ve been sketching and doing lots of creative writing along the way. Best of all, I was recently granted another opportunity to travel back to Europe (3rd time in one year)! Here’s a sketch from Vienna, Austria.

Urban Sketching in Vienna, Austria art
(detailed view.)

Doodling in Stockholm
Doodling in Stockholm art
Doodling in Stockholm art

Stockholm is perfect for wandering and sketching. These were done in Gamla Stan, Stockholm’s old town district.

Urban Sketching in Bratislava, Slovakia
Urban Sketching in Bratislava, Slovakia art

Stará radnica, the old town hall, Bratislava, Slovakia.

Bergen City Sketch
Bergen City Sketch art

Happy New Year!
Here’s a page from my sketchbook, from Bergen, Norway.

Sketching in Helsinki!
Sketching in Helsinki! art

These sketches come from lovely Helsinki, Finland!

I’ve been wanting to visit Helsinki for a while, and took the long route through Scandinavia to arrive here (traveling all throughout Norway, then into Sweden, before boarding a boat from Stockholm to Tallinn, Estonia, and finally taking a ferry over to Helsinki, where I got an apartment and stayed for a bit. I love the vibe of Helsinki—it’s very artistic and designy, and completely inspirational.

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Sketches from the Puppet Museum in Tallinn, Estonia
Sketches from the Puppet Museum in Tallinn, Estonia art
Sketches from the Puppet Museum in Tallinn, Estonia art

Happy December!! I’ve finally had a minute on this wild tour of Europe to scan in a couple pages from my sketchbook! I was very inspired by the elaborate puppets at the Estonian Museum of Puppet Arts, which had not just puppets, but a puppet making workshop, artisan studios, and a puppet theater with really cool live performances.

You can also see photos from the puppet museum here, and read all about Tallinn here.

Denver City Sketch
Denver City Sketch art

Specs: Pen & Ink, 50 minutes.
Location: Denver, Colorado.

Florentine Glove Shop
Florentine Glove Shop art

This cool little glove shop was tucked into the corner of an old stone building on Via de’ Lamberti in the heart of Florence, facing Orsanmichele church. Loved the look of these leather gloves displayed on wooden faux hands!

Specs: Pen & Marker, 90 minutes.
Location: Florence, Italy.

Finestra, Lucca
Finestra, Lucca art

I had heard great things about Lucca, a Tuscan fortress city surrounded by medieval walls near Pisa, Italy. The city was as charming as I was expecting to be, and had a great small town flavor.

One small detail I noticed right away were the windows. In Florence they are all rectangular for the most part. But here in Lucca, they were all rounded at the tops. I love Italian windows, almost always comprised of green shutters on yellow unwashed walls. (This one was no exception.)

Specs: Pen & Ink on Moleskine sketchbook, 10 minutes.

Book Cover Art

Book Cover Art art
My latest commissioned illustration project is a book cover for the novel Night Terrors, coming out later this year. Set in south Louisiana, it’s a literary gothic story filled with intrigue and romance. My rough sketch features the novel’s beautiful main character, set in a dilapidated plantation home. The whole thing is framed by a giant oak tree, giving the drawing a surreal, dreamy mood.

From this rough sketch I’ll be painting a full-blown painting next for the cover art. Loving this project so far!

Gayle Wheatley | colored pencil and graphite on paper

Lunch and Light Drawing @ Bodega

Lunch and Light Drawing @ Bodega art
I love eating! And I love drawing my food. I am kind of a freak about it. Must run in the family because my sis is the same way! She runs the food blog, eat | food | yum, by the way. Together we are food-documenting fiends. These sketches resulted from my portion of our lunch together.
Lunch and Light Drawing @ Bodega art
For lunch?

Nachos
served with corn and black bean salsa, jalapenos, cheese and a side of salsa

Smoked Salmon
capers, red onions, and goat cheese

Brownie (really a rich, fudgy cake)
with berry sauce, whipped cream and fresh berries

and….the best beer I’ve ever had—it was a pumpkin beer!!! Yum.

Fun New Illustration in the Works!

Fun New Illustration in the Works! art

I’m currently working on an illustration for Whole Life Times Magazine illustrating an article about healing sessions taking place around Los Angeles that begin with cocktails! It’s been such a fun assignment, getting to draw sophisticated socialites that can float cocktails in the air, have third eyes, and will have glowing auras once I add color! —G

Fun New Illustration in the Works! art