Nature Journal Update:Summer Wildflowers

Recently, I spent some happy hours at the Raccoon Creek State Park Wildflower Reserve, where the summer wildflowers are in bloom.

I love the simplicity of a handful of colored pencils and my nature journal to record what I see in nature.

The wildflower garden buzzed with honeybees and bumblebees.  When an insect moves so quickly, the only way I know to sketch them is to make super quick gesture drawings, my pencil scribbling loosely and swiftly.  

Sometimes the bee moved before I was done with the drawing, so I just started again with a new sketch.

I find quick drawings like this exciting and freeing.  There's no time to question whether you're getting the lines in the right place.  You just have to trust that you're doing it well enough.  

When I step back from my drawings later, I notice that, though incomplete, they are full of life and real details that make me feel closer to the little critter.  It's no secret; bumblebees charm me!

The most stunning aspect of the wildflower garden to me was the collection of so many blooms, so many colors and textures in the sunlight.

After sketching in the wildflower garden, I hiked the Jennings Trail, stopping on a comfy bench to sketch the woods.

Notes of the hike bring back memories long afterwards, and deepen the experience in the moment.  I love the intersection of art, writing and nature. No better anti-anxiety treatment for me!

I hope you find your own special bit of nature to relax in and make sketches in your nature journal.

Happy Creating! 

Watercolor Nature Journal: Black-Eyed Susans

Preparing for a class like Nature Journaling means visiting the park to see what's going on there -- what flowers are blooming, which birds dwell there, and what new nature developments have arisen since I last visited.

The wildflower garden at the Raccoon Creek State Park Wildflower Reserve is lush with native blooms this summer.  Volunteers tend this colorful garden.

The day I visited, sun splashed down through the nearby trees, and filled the garden with light.

I delighted in the way this Rudbeckia bloom contrasts with the dark forest behind it, and decided to add this scene to my concertina sketchbook.  A simple pencil sketch, then layers of Azo yellow and Yellow Ochre in the Black-Eyed-Susan petals, followed by layers of lighter and darker greens in the background brought this sketch together. It's more of an impression than a finished painting, and I like the looseness that approach creates.

I hope you'll paint your version of this scene from the photo above.  Or better yet, take your nature journal outside and see what's happening in nature near you!

Happy Creating!

Nature Journal: An Afternoon Walk

A recent walk on a lakeside trail reacquainted me with what's in bloom right now.  The parking lot at the state park office featured a garden bursting with native wildflowers -- from Queen of the Prairie to bergamot, blazing star and goatsbeard.  Along the trail, American Bellflower stood out in its beauty.

It's a tall, leggy plant, but if you look closely, its individual flowers are elegant...

...even fairy-like.  I found this individual blossom irresistable to draw!

The evening was lovely, and I took a two mile stroll with my nature journal, sat on a bench by the lake, and drank in the peace of the scene.

I find that sketching & writing descriptions of nature connects me in a deeper way than simply sitting.  It relaxes me like meditation. Back home, drawing from photos I took along my walk reminds me of the beauty of the experience and cements it in my memory.

I hope you get the time to relax in a favorite place with your nature journal or sketchbook. I'll be teaching a Nature Journaling class at the Raccoon Creek State Park on Saturday, August 1st from 10am to 1 pm.  You can register by visiting the park's website here:

https://eventsreg.dcnr.pa.gov/register/create/52622653639305

 

Happy Creating!

Nature Journal Update

One of the most important aspects of nature journaling for me is sitting quietly in nature and noticing what's going on around me.  Slowly, the details filter into my awareness.  Then I sketch them on the journal page.

This page is from a quiet Friday afternoon when I sat in an empty camp and watched the animals while I sketched the scene in front of me.

I sat on a picnic table under a porch roof and noticed the flycatcher hunting from its perch on a fallen branch. Then I noticed so many darned houseflies swarming the area and heard a groundhog digging under the building behind me.

The breeze stirred in the trees, a Wood Thrush sang from the woods, other birds like the Ovenbird joined in.  I sketched scenes from the hike I had just taken -- the fawn that had burst from the woods and crossed the trail in front of me; the green inchworm dangling over the trail from a gossamer thread.

While at the park, I spoke with Ranger Karter, who said that in an earlier job he had led a nature journaling program for kids.  He would ask them to write lists of 

1) what they heard, 

2) what they smelled, 

3) what they saw, and 

4) what they felt.  

That's a great way to immerse yourself in nature and slow down!

Nature journaling is a wonderful form of self care.  It helps us to slow down and disconnect from the frenzied world of everyday life.  It gives us time to reflect and be still in the moment.  Sketching in nature, no matter how simple your sketch is, connects you with whatever you're sketching -- a peaceful tree, a curious bird, a beautiful flower.  It brings these aspects deep into our minds and spirits -- luxurious gifts to ourselves.

Here are some of the things I saw on my hike.  I hope you make a sketch or two from them, or better yet, go outside and make sketches from what you see there!

Happy Creating!

Welcome, Summer!

Yesterday was the Summer Solstice, and I celebrated with a painting of a Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Pterourus glaucus) on Blue Spire Larkspur from my garden.

I started with a pencil sketch, then began adding in the black markings on the butterfly with an India ink brush pen.

I sketched in the Larkspur in waterproof ink.

Then I began painting the scene, starting with the butterfly first, and moving on to the Larkspur.

I found that I would have been better off painting the yellow of the butterfly first, then adding the black markings in India ink.  The yellows I used: Winsor Lemon and Azo yellow showed on the black ink, so I had to dab those areas with a paper towel while they were wet.

I began adding in greens and shadows made from the purple I was using -- Permanent Blue Violet mixed with Phthalo blue -- and cool Hooker's Green.  I love the dark, shadowy colors that result.

If you mix violet with a yellowy green like Sap Green, you get a muddier shadow color.  But cool greens and cool violets create a luscious, dark, purple-indigo shadow color.

I love the bits on the top left where the cool greens, violet and dark indigo interact.

Butterflies are fiddly little things to paint and draw.  They have so many details, and those details are mirrored in their symmetrical wings.  I remind myself that my goal is to celebrate what I see in nature with my art.  It's okay not to get everything perfectly accurate.  That's what field guides and photographs are for!

If you love butterflies, I hope you'll use these reference photos of the Tiger Swallowtail to make art!

Happy Creating!

Gouache Sketches in My Nature Journal

One of the beautiful possibilities in using a brown craft paper nature journal is that you can paint with gouache, and light tones, like this moth, pop off the page visually. 

I found this tiny moth on a nature walk in the park one quiet afternoon.  You can see from the grass blades in the photo, that it was quite small.  I enjoyed making the tiny large in my nature journal.

 

The moth is called a Confused Euscara (Euscara confusaria), and its wingspan measures about 1.25 inches.  I'm guessing the "confused" part of its name comes from the fact that it looks like a dead leaf.  When I hovered my phone right over top of the little moth to take its portrait, it didn't move a muscle, acting just like a dead leaf!

Wingstem bloomed along the trail, and I snapped a photo, then painted the flowers later in my studio.

Each medium has its own magic.  I hope you find an art supply you enjoy and make some sketches.  See where it leads you!

Happy Creating!

A New Nature Journal

A few months ago, I started a watercolor nature journal, and I'm having fun painting nature scenes in it. Still, I missed my brown craft paper and the possibilities it brings for working with colored pencils & gouache.

I cracked open a craft paper journal that I had bought online to create a new nature journal.  I can work in both journals, using whichever works best for my ideas.

Right away, I delighted in making simple pen and ink sketches, adding colored pencil to some.

The brown paper automatically creates the midtone, making highlights and shadows more dramatic.

I try to listen to my intuition, that tiny voice within that offers suggestions.  It often feels like a little nudge rather than a loud, obvious instruction.  Each scene calls out for a certain medium -- some feel very watercolor-y and others invite sketching with a colored pencil.  Maybe it's just my own moods that I'm responding to.  

I find that when I listen to these little nudges, I'm happier and create more freely. It doesn't mean I'm always going to create impressive work, just that it will feel right and that I will be more at peace with the finished artwork than if I had forced myself to follow an expected path.

Listening to your intuition and trying out its ideas is a valuable habit to get into.  Your intuition is full of exciting possibilities and will help you to make wonderful discoveries.

Happy Creating!

Nature Journaling in the August Heat

A hot summer's afternoon was the perfect time to take a short walk and sit on a park bench to sketch.  The very act of sitting in a quiet, shady woods is relaxing and excellent self care. 

I'm practicing simplifying the landscape in my artwork and creating pleasing compositions. 

Sitting for a few minutes on a park bench and mindfully looking is helpful in truly seeing the scene around you.  You can pick out the parts of the landscape you want to focus on.  It helped me to unwind and to compose these two vignettes.

The first scene was right before me -- a broken sapling in a grove of maples.

The second vignette had more contrasts -- late afternoon sunlight streaming through the canopy and deep shadows.

I recommend this technique of sitting still, seemingly doing nothing -- no phone scrolling, no drawing even.  Just noticing nature around you.  Soon, you will begin to see parts of the scene that you want to sketch and paint.  After a little stillness, you might use a viewfinder, a small rectangular frame cut out of cereal box cardboard, to scope through the landscape.  It will help your eye catch on an appealing composition.

Happy Creating!

Summer Morning Painting

In an earlier post, I mentioned the trick of taking a walk and finding views to paint. The scene above is one of those spots found on a morning walk.

Planning ahead saves time, and you know just what to carry with you. I brought my pochade box, my Strathmore Visual Journal nature journal, paints, water and brushes. The pochade box allows me to work flat, an important trait for watercolor painting.

I took the photo above to use as a reference in case I didn't finish outdoors.

I also used the photo to help me to see the shadows in the scene more clearly.  Shadows can have nuanced lighter and darker areas.  They can vary from light shadows with dappled spots of light to deep, dark holes. Our eyes are naturally drawn to areas of high contrast, so these are good to incorporate into your paintings to draw the viewer's eye in.

It always amazes me how much I can see in a photo that I didn't see in person.  I encourage you to use a photo to help you see the values in your scene, but paint in person so you get the freshness of the landscape.

Happy Creating!

Summer Nature Journal: Nature Treasures

On walks around my farm, I notice the goings on in nature, and find myself picking up treasures.

Fallen acorns, feathers, & leaves tell the story of what's happening in nature right now, and a sketch of your collected finds makes a lovely & descriptive page.

What's happening right now in your area?

Wouldn't a handful of nature treasures be fun to sketch?

Happy Creating! 

Nature Journaling: A Morning Hike

Recently, I took a morning walk in the park before the heat of the summer day.  

After about a mile, I found this fascinating tree,

with fungi growing inside several cracks in the trunk.

I perched on a nearby mossy log and started sketching.

I have a special nature journal I keep in my electric car, Bluebird. I've always dreamed of traveling around in my electric car and having art explorations:  I plug in my car, and while she's charging up, I go make art.

You can read about my art & electric car connection in this post: https://betsyblissart.blogspot.com/2024/11/turning-my-art-into-stickers.html

What are your art dreams?  I hope they come true for you!

Happy Creating!