Sketching Green-Wood Cemetery

I've been to Green-Wood Cemetery to sketch several times and have been struck by it's strange beauty.  This time I was drawn to something different.

As we waited for everyone to show up we sketched at the front gate.  It's a large area and hearses and limos queue there.  I was struck by the social aspect to funerals.

The first sketch above was quickly done trying to catch the fact that all the limo and hearse drivers know one another. They might work at different funeral homes but end up seeing each other frequently enough to say hi, and socialize.

The second sketch was a group of beautiful people who came in different cars and got out to socialize at the gate.  They were all attractive and beautifully dressed in stylish black mourning clothing.  They were either relatives or friends of the deceased.  As they got together, there was a moment's hesitation for the solemnity of the event that had drawn them together, but you could see how delighted they were to see one another.

The third sketch is more about the oddity of Green-Wood compared to other cemeteries.  They have tour busses that take sightseers on guided tours around the cemetery.  You can see a sketcher sitting  in the shade of a mausoleum recording the scene.