While I was on a sketching trip in Mallorca, I got a surprise call from a journalist at a Belgian national newspaper. The reason? A recent episode of the television program Gloria Mundi, in which presenter Gloria Monserez sketches scenes while travelling with a guest in their homeland.
The show brings the practice of drawing on location into the spotlight — something I’m genuinely thankful for. Without that renewed attention, this interview might never have happened.
Translation of the interview as published on Mai 20 in Het Belang van Limburg. Author: Karel Moors
Ivan Seymus, former contributor to Het Belang van Limburg, now lives in the south of France, where he finds inspiration for his drawings in the region’s picturesque villages and natural surroundings.
Sketching on location gives you so much more than a photo
“You experience things more fully — the story on paper becomes richer. I often add little speech bubbles or jot down notes about the weather and such. It brings a kind of anecdotal texture that a photograph can’t capture. I try to convey the atmosphere.”
“Usually, I just sit on a bench, we order a coffee, and I get my pens out. If we’re short on time, I’ll sometimes snap a photo to remember the colours or the light, and add those later to the sketch.”
Ivan’s love for sketching began back in 1986. (more on this in an earlier blog post)
“My father was working in Mexico at the time, and I visited him as a teenager — I must have been 18 or 19. I started drawing on the pyramids. But there’s a bit of history before that too: I studied at the Royal Academy of fine Arts in Ghent and have always done illustration work. When I started at Het Belang, one of my first tasks was colouring high-pressure systems on weather maps,” he laughs.
Seymus has a keen eye for the architectural details of a building.
“Charming corners, a quirky rain gutter, a window with curlicues and lace… I’ve always had a soft spot for architecture and history.
But a deux-chevaux is also a great subject. I’m not aiming for precise, architectural renderings. A wonky line here and there is fine — as long as it feels atmospheric and friendly.”
Sketch Therapy
These days, Ivan also takes on commissioned work part-time.
“Last year I was approached by the caretakers of an old olive estate linked to the Abbey of Sénanque. They wanted me to document the place in my style — a hundred-year-old oak, an old farmhouse, a system of locks and sluices… I also sketched the riverbank and animals I spotted there, like birds and a beaver. It was all brought together on a large map, which they now sell in their boutique. It’s already on its second print run.”
“Sometimes people ask me to draw their homes, or parts of them — old cypresses, a 1700s fountain… Lovely encounters, really,” says Ivan, who describes himself as “a citizen of the world, always with a notebook in hand, ready to sketch, write, and tell stories with all the senses.”
Though he enjoys looking back through his old sketchbooks, Ivan doesn’t consider his drawings to be art.
“This is more like sketch therapy. It calms you down — brings peace, a sense of zen. That’s really the aim, more than ‘making art’. It’s a form of self-care, the perfect antidote to stress.”
Verschenen in Het Belang van Limburg, 20 mei, 2025
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