Helsinki Kahvila

With snow on the ground, the cafes in Helsinki are that much more inviting. It’s no wonder Finland drinks the most coffee per capita of any nation. I am on winter break now, so I took this weekend to drink coffee, stare out the window, listen to Christmas music, and draw.

Procreate, the software I used for this drawing, automatically records a time-lapse video of the entire process. It’s always fun to watch as a reminder of how far the art has come. If you have an iPad and an Apple Pencil, I highly recommend buying the app. Jessica and I have gotten our money’s worth and then some.

If you watched the time-lapse and have a sharp eye, you may have spotted that this digital drawing started with pen and paper. I’ve been doing that more lately.

I’ve found that, with the undo button on a computer, I tend to tinker around far longer than I’d like to. I find pen and paper easier to start with because every bit of ink on the page is final. It helps me get out of my head.

I also like the transition from one medium to another because it inevitably leads to new ideas. For instance, the foggy window pane around the outside of “Helsinki Kahvila” was an accident. It is an artifact from a previous version of the drawing which I hadn’t fully erased. Ultimately, it made the cut!

If you’re still reading this, maybe you’ll find some interest the original drawing below.