Celebrities and pozole at Cenaduria La Alborada

Pen&Ink, watercolor, watercolor graphite and white gel pen on HP Lanaquarelle 10” x 7”

I found a cenaduria where pozole is the specialty, if you don’t know, pozole is a corn and pork based soup which can be eaten as a main dish. The cenaduria is located right in downtown around the block of the main parish. I loved the place because it stills has a genuine old fashion look and ambiance that reminds me of my childhood. The walls of the rooms are decorated with black and white photographs of actors and singers from the Mexican Gold Cinema Era. After dinner, I asked the waiter if I could stay longer and use the table in order to sketch, he nodded with a facial expression saying “what’s wrong with you, you are a client and you can stay all the time you wish”.
Adding people to the sketches as part of the composition is always advisable but in this case the people would be the celebrities on the wall. I drew the photos with watercolor graphite, this was an excellent media to reach easily the multiple values in the photos. I had to apply a wash of watercolor over the graphite to prevent possible graphite stains on the opposite page of my sketchbook.
For those who were raised in Mexico and Latin America, here’s the list of celebrities on the walls from top to right:
Left wall: Cantinflas, Maria Felix, Jose Alfredo Jimenez and Pedro Armendariz.
Front wall: Maria Felix, Tongolele&Tintan, Agustin Lara&Maria Felix, Pedro Armendariz, Dolores del Rio, Cantinflas, Emilio el Indio Fernandez and Sara Garcia.

A had wonderful dinner.