Iowa State Capitol

A gateaway to the State of Iowa turned out to be a very satisfying sketchaton. The Covered Bridges of Madison County were in my sketch to do list for a while. For this trip we drove there from home knowing we would drove by Des Moines, the capital city. What I didn't know was that probably the most magnificent building in the state was located there, the State Capitol and that inside of it there was an amazingly beautiful Law Library. So a stop at this city was a must. We took a free tour inside the capitol. When we arrived to the library I attempted to sketch it, only to realize I would never in this world finish it on location. I stayed there for an hour to place big shapes and ink lines. I decided to finish it later to put as much detail as I could, it would be worthy.  

Pen, pencil, color pencil, watercolor on Arches Paper 16 " x 8"

I went crazy on the detail, this wasn't about capturing the essence of the place. It was about having fun by getting lost in adding details. 

Two days later we returned to sketch the exterior, which I couldn't do on the same day I did the Library. The golden dome is actually covered with 6 pounds of gold, the equivalent of a baseball size ball. It is the biggest golden dome in the United States, we were told by the tour guide. It made me happy to have golden watercolor paint in my travel sketching tools.

Pencil, color pencil, watercolor pencil and watercolor on Arches CP paper 16"x 8"

Some employees working in the government's building complex stopped by out of curiosity. One of them asked me for permission to take a photo of me and offered to take another with my phone. Since my husband went for a walk I accepted. I was lucky to find a great view under a nice shade on a breezy day. I stayed there for 3 hours comfortably until I finished it.

Don't miss my next post about the Covered Bridges of Madison County.