17th Century Bruntenhof Gate of Utrecht

One might object and say: 'But this is an urban drawing video and not sketching in nature'. Let me convince you to think differently. I have drawn an old gate that currently stands in the middle of Utrecht, a large town in the centre of the Netherlands. However, Utrecht is an old Roman and Medieval town and because the Bruntenhof gate was built in 1620, in the 17th century version of Utrecht, this beautiful gate was positioned at the edge of the inner city, close to the city wall that divided the surrounding meadows and the well protected inner city.
Another argument that I would like to put forward is the beautiful location of this gate. If you stand in front of this gate, you are surrounded by trees, birds, and gardens. Its location, and the street it belongs to, doesn't allow cars, only pedestrians and cyclists, and thus it feels like a green oases. I have passed it several time while cycling, but when I was walking pass it, this gate made me stop and begged me to draw it, which I set out to do.

I had to return to it halfway my drawing because my reference photo didn't pick up all details. Upon closer inspection, that wasn't a photographic omission, some decorative features simply have been lost. A face of a cherub and one skull, as well as many floral decorations, are gone. I took the liberty to 'renovate' the gate with my pencils and thus give the cherub back its lovely face, adding a skull, and floral patterns. Plus, I romanized it. I placed a large flower pot in front of the gate in order to create depth and asymmetry. This flower-pot stands, in fact, in the garden of Castle Amerongen. I was seeking some balance between a serious architectural building and a 'human touch'. When I noticed the large floral vase in the gardens of Castle Amerongen during our recent visit to the castle, the two young lovers caught my eye. I knew that I had found what I was looking for.

This drawing took me ages but every time when I returned to it, I felt more happy. Or, as Kathryn Kuitenbrouwer said it so well about her newly built garden shed; 'It sang itself into existence'.

Paula Kuitenbrouwer
Utrecht, Netherlands

Finished drawing at Etsy
At Instagram
Commissions welcome.