Best Places To Get Creative

Carrboro is a Euro-American hybrid town designed for convening outdoors for lengthy periods of time, around every corner, inspiration and motivation. The following is a list of the best places in and around town to wander, loiter, sketch, write or photograph.

Weaver Street Market
This is the obvious choice for those that crave movement and work most productively with noise in the background. Any open seat on the lawn is ideal, but for a more off the cuff approach, plop down just inside the doorway near the florals and produce. That corner of the market is abundant with organic shapes, but more importantly, it is overcrowded. Customers come and go quickly, opportune for gestural drawings.
716 Market St, Carrboro

Cafe Driade
This space is much cozier than Open Eye or Padgett Station, and beckons a crowd of artists, locals and unleashed pooches. Sit inside, if you can find a seat, and sketch the hustling baristas or the geometric decor. Relax outside on the heated porch and you’ll be looking into the tops of trees that run down the side of a hill, children hiking down stone stairs and the intimate lighting on the lower level patio. Jot down the eccentricities you notice here, they make for great character development.

Stop over at Branching Out or White Horse Antiques for great, funky furniture studies.
1215 E Franklin St # A, Chapel Hill
Johnny’s
Another coffee shop but a stark contrast to Cafe Driade. This tucked away market offers plenty of natural light, open space, peace and quiet, and a selection of sandwiches from Neal’s Deli. The outdoor setting is great for drawing abstract objects nestled between foliage. The staff’s downtime work includes metal working in the courtyard, sparks flying willy nilly.
901 W Main St, Carrboro

Farmers Market
Now year round, the market is prime lifestyle photography material: parents, children, farmers, trucks, produce and tons of energy. The natural, morning light, enchanting, idiosyncratic personas and rich colors make for very salable photographs under a stock agency.
301 W. Main St., Carrboro

University Lake
Matt and I can be found here more often than not. We work well together, absorb each other’s creativity and draw inspiration from similar elements: growth, maturity and natural details. For other jewelry makers, this may be a huge leap out of the box, and actual construction is not feasible at this often blustery location, but I collect and sketch organic matter, reconfiguring it into wearable pieces later that night. Illustrators should play up the importance of a single line drawing at this location. Advantages include; solidarity, fall colors, fishing, boating and of course, napping.
130 University Lake Rd., Chapel Hill

The Cave
So often, and especially in this town, it’s the music streaming out of city basement hideaways that is some of the best. This underground bar usually has free tables on weeknights to spread out. The music is fast and slow, which will aide in better gesture drawings and the musicians are not rocking out because of the smallish stage, so they remain static enough to draw with some detail. 
452 1/2 W, Franklin St., Chapel Hill

Post by laura on 10/23
Around Town • Artwork • (0) Comments •