"It's all about taking a minute to feel the beat of the place you are in"

We started off by asking Nuri Galbe to introduce herself to the Gravel Union audience “My name is Nuri and I was born and raised in Collserola (Barcelona’s closest wooded hill range). I’m more an active mountain bee than a city one. I enjoy spending my free time doing all kinds of mountain adventures and if possible, sketching the world on bike, skis or boots, one sketch at a time.”

Image courtesy of Ana Zamorano

“I like to think gravel is more an attitude than a type of bike or a type of ground surface”

Next, we asked Nuri how she first get into gravel riding and bikepacking. “I like to think gravel is more an attitude than a type of bike or a type of ground surface. One that recalls old, unruled ways of riding and enjoying it.  I have been cycling since I was a kid and my backgrounds are mainly with an mtb, on any type of terrain. My first travels carrying my light bags were in the ‘90s. Today, just the bike differs from how I travelled then. And I have better waterproof material! Don’t you think the good cyclist (not me) rides well in any terrain no matter what their bike type is? In any case, I bought my first specific gravel bike in 2019, selling at the same time my road bike. “Road-cyclists don’t wear baggies” I was usually told 15 years ago. It didn’t take me long to fully embrace this back-to-the-roots gravel way of enjoying a ride and now I am doing so with a dropbar handlebar.”

Nuri told us how she first got the inspiration for creating drawings while out riding “I painted once in a while. In 2015 I felt the “need” to start “hand free-sketching” again and them came across the urbansketchers way of doing things and their motto - “the world, one sketch at a time”. Today there is a worldwide movement (each city has one) with many open gatherings for on-location sketching and I fell in love with. It just came naturally to do it along with my outdoor activities, riding, hiking, skiing…” …” She continued “While you are doing on-site drawings, it helps you have a “pause moment” – while you’re painting your mind is focused only on what you are doing. I’ve never done yoga, but they tell me that it’s more or less the same sensation. Your head is focused just on one thing. Afterwards you feel very relaxed and happy. “

Image courtesy of Rugile Kaladyte

“Sketching is doing a 4-10 minute-long photograph when the subject/landscape comes visually, aurally or emotionally to you.”

We talked to Nuri about what she looks for when thinking about a potential scene to capture in her drawings ““I don’t look for anything specific, it comes to me. Let me explain - like photographers, who see the picture’s frame instantly without the camera, your gaze also changes when you draw. Sketching is doing a 4-10 minute-long photograph when the subject/landscape comes visually, aurally or emotionally to you. Then, I let it go through my own “inner lens” and capture it in my sketchbook. You create a thread with it, it’s your way to understand it, to communicate its story. It happens to everyone who starts drawing - it changes the way you look at things.”

“What has more meaning - to take 200 pictures on an overnight bikepacking trip or drawing a handful of sketches?”

Next, we asked Nuri what inspires her to make the effort to paint and draw rather than simply taking a photograph to capture a scene “What was our first instinct - to draw or to take pictures? We all started to draw and paint when we were little kids, enjoying this way of expression. We did it way before learning to take pictures. So why do we stop doing it when we grow up? Why are there people thinking “I don’t know how to draw” if they already did it as kids? Society needs to change this - we are missing something important. While cycling, what has more meaning - to take 200 pictures on an overnight bikepacking trip or drawing a handful of sketches? What about its parallelism with bicycling? Should we stop cycling when we grow up, if we don’t become a pro?”

Nuri continued “In the past, I took many many photos from the different sports events and trips that I had participated in. I have them all saved on my computer and I love to have them, but I never look at them anymore.  But I do look back at my sketch books. Filling a sketchbook is a different feeling and it always make me glad. Making a drawing is a way to capture a moment, to help remember what we were talking about at a specific moment and afterwards you have a physical reminder. I like once a while to go back through them. I love the fact they are analogue rather than digital.”

We had read a comment in a different interview with Nuri where she was asked what methods she uses to create her illustrations and she essentially said “the minimum I can get away with”. We probed a little more deeply into this “I started to fully enjoy drawing on location when I got rid of any expectations, techniques, perspective rules or alike. If your focus is not about the output (the art piece, I hate this word), but about the moment when you captured it, you will always like your finished drawing. When you enjoy it, the output is good. This is the best advice I can give. About techniques, I do mix media and I change my tools & methods depending on the moment, if I’m in a hurry, then starting with a stain and later drawing loose lines on it is my preferred one - the ‘wild’ version of my work. But starting with a line allows me to colour it afterwards if time is short or the subject is gone. With big tools like wax (water soluble is the best) you can fill a page in second. Brushes with a built-in water containers are perfect for on-the-go – you have no need to mess with water cups. The unpredictability of watercolour paint is amazing when you have a bit more time (like when you are already on campsite, for instance).”

“Ideally, I try and use the “3-parts rule”, the same I do while preparing a bikepacking set”

Next, we talked in a little more detail about what kit Nuri carries and how she gets it safely from A-to-B. “I choose the tools for each ride, depending on my day’s will, time and landscape. Ideally, I try and use the “3-parts rule”, the same I do while preparing a bikepacking set - 1) present the minimum that you need. Ready? Yes? 2) Then, take one third out. Put the rest in the bags. Does it fit? Yes? 3) Then take another third out! On the bike, easy access [to your equipment] is vital to do a quick sketch. I may carry it in two ways - in a waterproof handlebar bag with magnetic lid closure, or in a toptube bag with two pouches, one at each side of the toptube. The only downside with this is that it’s not waterproof. Plastic freezer bags are always a good idea to prevent spills from tools or rain damaging your paper.”

“It’s good to know that you can learn “tricks” to make a drawing better - it’s not only about “artistic genes”.

Hopefully Nuri’s story has inspired some of you to try bikesketching for your yourself, so we asked her advice she would give someone who wanted to try it for the first time? “My advice would be to grab one or two simple tools when you start - 3 color pencils, or an ink pen (waterproof is better if you’ll color it afterwards) is enough to start. The simpler, the better. I personally don’t like to draw a pre-pencil line and then add ink latter - you lose both spontaneity and time with this method. Instead, let it go free! Think about where you’ll put the book/tools on the bike. The backpack option is always easy, but the more accessible you can make everything, the better it is for a quick 'let’s start one'.

Nuri continued with her advice "Take a small sketchbook - it’s faster to fill a page. Do not hesitate to cut one up so that it fits into your pouch. Feel free to stain the paper, anyway, anyhow – just enjoy the moment. If you are willing to try, it means you are full of potential and have a lot to say - maybe you still don’t know exactly what, but it will come. Do not think about the output, this is only for you. Let it go as you did when you were a kid. Forget about doing detailed portraits, try just drawing figures first. If you enjoy the process, you’ll find ways, people, examples, to improve your drawing in the way you want. Embrace the duds - they always come, but the beautiful pages you’ll be proud of too. And it’s good to know that you can learn “tricks” to make a drawing better - it’s not only about “artistic genes”.

Image courtesy of Ana Zamorano

We metaphorically put Nuri on a desert island and limited her to only carrying one tool (pen/crayon/piece of charcoal, etc) to create her drawings. What would she choose and why? “Oh my, don’t be mean to me! I would probably choose a brush pen with coloured ink. The brush allows for both thin and wide gesture strokes. Or a water-soluble color pencil or pen…you can always add water later to blur the line.”

“My preferred one is a fast two-minute sketch I did of my husband while riding”

We asked Nuri to cast her mind back and describe what has been her favourite location/trip for bikesketching so far? “It’s not about the place, but the moment” she told us “A relaxed one is fulfilling, but one of my preferred one is a fast two-minute sketch I did of my husband while riding. Of course, dramatic landscapes are full of “frames”, but happenings with your friends are just as good too.”

Image courtesy of Ana Zamorano

We always finish our interviews by asking about future plans. We wondered whether Nuri had anywhere specific that she would like to bikepack to in the future in order to create more drawings? “Any place I’ve never been before with my husband and/or good riding friends is perfect” was her simple answer. “ I also have a couple of personal artistic projects on the go too – one is about a hiking traverse from one valley to another in the Pyrenees to revisit an area that I spent family holidays in during my childhood. I’m going to produce a printed book of the drawings from this trip. The second project is about Collserola, which is a small range of hills near Barcelona, which until recently was unknown to the citizens and my project is about explaining the life that find there, for people who don’t know about this wonderful area”

Image courtesy of Weronika Szalas

You can see more of Nuri’s work on her Instagram channel and you can read more about her participation in the recent GranGuanche komoot Womens Rally here.  

Image courtesy of Ana Zamorano

Images courtesy of Nuri Galbe, except where credited