Review of Darsie Beck Field Easel Art Bag

On Saturday, November 29^th I tested the Darsie Beck Field Easel Art Bag during the visit of NYC Urban Sketchers to the Jefferson Market Public Library. Darsie Beck is a Washington state-based artist who designed the bag and has it manufactured by local artisans.  I am glad to report this bag is a well-designed and easy-to-assemble solution to the problems of standing and sketching.

The bag is small – measuring 11 inches x 10 inches by 3.5 inches deep, so forget about bringing all the tools in your arsenal. But it holds quite a bit.  I was able to pack two sketchbooks (one A5 Moleskine, and one Canson 7 inch x 10 inch spiral bound), a small water color set, 9 pens and water brushes, a water spritzer, a small bottle of water, a cell phone, and a protein bar with some room to spare.

The bag comes with a removable clear Plexiglas support that attaches via Velcro to the front flap. This creates a platform upon which to place a sketchbook slightly above the waist. The platform is solid and can easily withstand any firm pressure on the sketchbook. An elastic band near the top will firmly hold a small watercolor paint set. The bag also comes with an attachment that affixes by Velcro to the bag’s strap across the chest for pens and water brushes giving easy access to your tools while sketching.

I recommend the Darsie Beck Field Easel Art Bag for those sketchers who like to work while standing. It costs about $100 including taxes and shipping.  If interested, check out the Field Easel Art Bag at www.darsiebeckartist.com  The website has an excellent video showing Darsie Beck demonstrating the set-up of the easel.  One last observation: for cold weather outdoor sketching, you do not get as cold standing as you do if sitting. The temperatures on Saturday hovered around 38 degrees F. My hands in cut-off finger gloves got a little cold, but the rest of me was fine.