ART | "Seeing the City, One Drawing At a Time" 

From the dozens of eyes locked onto phone screens to the passengers fast asleep in their seats, few bus riders stare around at the other commuters. Local illustrator Mark Payton, however, has a different thought.

The story of "Seeing the City" begins with Payton's arrival in Rochester, which brought with it a bout of unemployment. Constantly on the search for jobs, Payton, a member of the international "Urban Sketchers" organization, spent much of his days on the bus, keeping himself awake by quickly drawing sketches of the faces and sights around him. These works, done as an attempt to learn how to sketch quickly, are often rough images, scrawled in about five minutes, yet still hoping to catch the spirit of Rochester and its inhabitants.

Spurred by a chance meeting with RTS CEO Bill Carpenter, this exhibition at the RTS Transit Center (71 North Clinton Avenue) will feature five years' worth of Payton's drawings, and will run through the month of August. For more information, visit rgrta.com.