Scooters

There’s a very welcoming café facing the east side of the central market in Hoi An. You can sit there for hours, undisturbed, drawing and enjoying a Vietnamese coffee or fresh coconut water. It was one of my favourite spots in the city. From there I watched the vendors selling yellow flowers and the ladies shredding fresh coconuts.

I realized quite quickly that there was a constant stream of shoppers parking their scooters in front of me. Instead of ignoring them, I added the scooters in as foreground shapes. In a scene like this where the middle section is full of colour and detail, I decided that it would be best to leave the scooters as near-silhouetted shapes. They are not the focus here. I drew them quickly, knowing that they would be gone very soon, and added a few simple washes of shadow colour on them. Like the yellow walls and the silk lanterns, they are everywhere in Hoi An and a street scene would not be complete without them.

I also did a quick sketch of the coconut ladies on another visit.