Oh Mary. Oh. Did you take classes to learn how to do this? These pages remind me of Victorian ladies' journals. But I hope you don't find that insulting. The art work, the botanical knowledge. I wish you were here to teach me how to draw.
I did attend one short workshop taught by my friend Heidi Chester who is an artist in New Hampshire. (Passed through Vermont on my way to see her.)
I don't really know what I am doing, but my daughter gave me a book for my birthday called Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker I thin (I mention it at No Polar, but I am too tired tonight to remember or look it up.
I am not a terrific artist, I just try to carefully draw what I see sort of as if I were tracing it with tracing paper in my mind. I do it in black ink and then color it with water color pencils and then paint over the pencils to bring out the colors. I write my observations to make up for my lack of artistic ability.
I am honored that you think my humble work reminds you of the Victorian ladies--I also have a book somewhere given to me by my old friend Judy Called the Diary of an Edwardian Lady (?) or soemthing which does have somewhat similar pictures. (I haven't looked at it lately.)
One very cool thing about the drawing process is that I must look at things very carefully and often see things I otherwise wouldn't notice. Sometimes it's a real surprise to me, like the two pointy petals on the anemones, which I have looked at for years without noticing that!
"I am not a terrific artise...to make up for my lack of artistic ability"... Mary! you take that back right this instant!!!! if there is ever anything negative I will ever say about you it is that you do not give yourself nearly enough credit! You are 1000 times the artist I aspire to be!
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Oh Mary. Oh. Did you take classes to learn how to do this? These pages remind me of Victorian ladies' journals. But I hope you don't find that insulting. The art work, the botanical knowledge. I wish you were here to teach me how to draw.
Thanks, Andree.
I did not take any classes.
I did attend one short workshop taught by my friend Heidi Chester who is an artist in New Hampshire. (Passed through Vermont on my way to see her.)
I don't really know what I am doing, but my daughter gave me a book for my birthday called Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker I thin (I mention it at No Polar, but I am too tired tonight to remember or look it up.
I am not a terrific artist, I just try to carefully draw what I see sort of as if I were tracing it with tracing paper in my mind. I do it in black ink and then color it with water color pencils and then paint over the pencils to bring out the colors. I write my observations to make up for my lack of artistic ability.
I am honored that you think my humble work reminds you of the Victorian ladies--I also have a book somewhere given to me by my old friend Judy Called the Diary of an Edwardian Lady (?) or soemthing which does have somewhat similar pictures. (I haven't looked at it lately.)
One very cool thing about the drawing process is that I must look at things very carefully and often see things I otherwise wouldn't notice. Sometimes it's a real surprise to me, like the two pointy petals on the anemones, which I have looked at for years without noticing that!
"I am not a terrific artise...to make up for my lack of artistic ability"... Mary! you take that back right this instant!!!! if there is ever anything negative I will ever say about you it is that you do not give yourself nearly enough credit! You are 1000 times the artist I aspire to be!
Thanks so much, Fortune! What a kind thought and great vote of confidence. :-D
I really appreciate it! :-D
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