Dr Sketchy's Anti-Art School is what happens when cabaret crashes with visual art, when drunkenness meets drawing and life modelling is melded with live performance. Founded by acclaimed artists Molly Crabapple, Dr Sketchy was born in 2005 of an artist fantasy of Bohemian excess. Dr Sketchy’s has grown from an unassuming infancy in the achingly cool New York district of Williamsburg to become an international phenomenon, spawning branches in over 50 cities around the world, a book, calendar, jewellery – even an Edinburgh Fringe show.
I took over the Glasgow branch of Dr Sketchy in 2007, hosted then in one of the UKs edgiest multi-purpose arts venues - The Arches. For six years I co-produced and co-hosted this remarkable art event, and it's still going strong in Glasgow, with my co-producer at the helm. We achieved some astonishing things with Dr Sketchy; our monthly sessions garnered dozens of press articles, TV coverage, and some of the most respected cabaret and burlesque performers from around the world graced our stage - including our esteemed leader and founder, Molly Crabapple. One of the things we were most proud of was that of the 50 sessions taking place across the globe, we became the largest, boasting upwards of 80 Art Monkeys in attendance each month.
In addition, our models inspired some fantastic artwork from extremely accomplished artists, which was subsequently exhibited in galleries around Scotland and as part of the Glasgow International Art Festival. Examples from some of those artists can be found in the triptych below. I had some of the most fun of my young adult life producing Dr Sketchy Glasgow and made some amazing friends. It will always be special to me. Have a look around the images and videos below to get a sense of what went on each month. Art and mischief in equal measure!
