Artist and illustrator Giulia Donati works under the moniker Pennepasta. Born in Italy and now based in London, she creates her pieces with calligraphy brush and India ink. For her Zócalo sketchbook she combines traditional ink drawing and digital colors to bring us her impressions of the urban winter.

“Walking through London parks this November I noticed how nature around me was changing every day. Different weather conditions also contributed to these different ‘moods.’ Squirrels are very funny and expressive and I chose them to represent this ever-changing flow. Meanwhile a beautiful Koi carp was looking at me through romantic London rain,” she tells us. As you look at the pieces, notice how the lightness and flow of the brush lines are enhanced further when the black ink is digitally altered, and how it changes the color to allow for a more pronounced sense of foreground and background.