Eastern cottontail rabbit

Always alert.

This past July I’ve been seeing all sorts of rabbits in the outdoor grassy spaces where I work. So far, they all appear to be Eastern cottontails, and during the daylight hours I see them on overcast days, during a gentle rain, or when things are quiet after a drenching storm. There is a wooded area nearby for a quick retreat, but I seem to be tolerated if I don’t stop and look too long. They are wary enough that I have to be content with memory and photos for later sketching.  

I’ve been seeing all sizes – from larger adults to young bunnies I could cradle in my hands. The young ones are especially jumpy and restive, so I try not to linger. Naturally I’ve now been reading up on Eastern cottontails and was surprised to find a wide range in the US up to the Canadian border, even extending south into central America. How adaptable! They are vegetarians and like to inhabit habitat edges – the fringes between woods and meadow, lawn and garden. The sources say that rabbits prefer to feed at twilight or night, even though I’m seeing plenty during the day when the sun is behind the clouds. 

Sketched from photos, because they would never pose this long!

Exploring nature as a child, I thrilled to find evidence of rabbit “nests” – magical hollowed-out circles in the tall grasses or low shrubby foliage in the woods. Sometimes a bit of fur was the only evidence inside the cozy nest of twisted and flattened grass, but I could never surprise any residents. Only if I was lucky and very quiet, I might glimpse the ball of white furry tail bounding away, then suddenly vanishing. I intended to do some quick gesture sketches in pen, but those turned into detailed studies… because, well… just because. Caught up in trying to capture the mass and weight of the larger ones, and describing the fur with the right pen strokes, I dropped into my default mode – go for the detail. Observation and making an eye-hand-subject connection is a way for me to learn about what I’m sketching, and detail does that for me. The challenge! 

Trying to capture those crazy fur textures and colors.

 A large and shiny eye, fur that varies in direction and color, unusual and unfamiliar shapes of skull and body. And the fur color – unique in that it has gray and brown fur tipped with black, and then russet and white parts. Each rabbit I saw seemed to have slightly different patterns of brindled black markings. Some almost all brown with very little black, some more gray, others heavily marked with black. The markings mimic the dappled shade of leaf litter or pine needles, even dry grasses. A good strategy if one is part of a food web.

Our influx of rabbits might be due to the expanding territory of the invasive pythons that curse the Everglades and beyond. These large constrictor snakes have become a new enemy to our small mammals. Biologists have documented the loss of rabbits, raccoons, possums, and foxes in Florida, and the statistics are sobering. Sigh. But that is a post for another day. 

Today I will just enjoy the experience of sharing a space with our rabbit families, and keep a lookout for pythons. 

A sketch from two years ago -
their coloring blends well with tree bark and leaf litter.

Media: 

Aquabee Super Deluxe Mixed Media sketchbook 

Mechanical pencil .7mm 

Rabbits: Pitt Artist Pen S, Sepia 

Fur: Micron Pigma 01, black 

Watercolor pencils – Derwent and Kimberly 

Niji waterbush, round M

Sketching in the Food Forest

My nature journal entry after my visit. 
Click on images to view larger.

The class
Tuesday I had the opportunity to be with a group of Professor Mary Voytek’s Environmental Art students as we scattered throughout the Food Forest at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers. Sketching plein air in a nature journal is one of their assignments for the course, but what I saw from their work went beyond mere obligation. I was inspired by the deep observations made as they struggled to translate a moving forest of color and light and shape onto a two-dimensional rectangle of white paper. Some captured small bits of landscape while most focused on a smaller detail or a plant portrait.

 Making art
One of the things I always find fascinating is the way different artists translate the same subject. We each see the world through a different lens, informed by our interests and experiences. The story we record on paper is our story: our relationship and reaction to our subject. For instance, several students drew in the banana tree area. Some were caught by the torn and fluttering flags of the leaves, some by the structures of the entire tree, some by the contours of a close-up leaf. Each was unique, each a different story, each wonderful in itself.

And drawing and painting en plein air is a struggle, no matter how experienced you are. In the classroom or studio, we are surrounded by an environment we control to some extent. Outside, we are subject to all of our senses, to weather, temperature, other people, insects, and animals, noises from natural and manufactured sources. Our light source changes as the sun moves. Air currents lift and drop delicate leaves and branches. All of these serve as the backdrop of the story we tell with marks on our pages.

Red mulberry tree is native to Florida; its story
is linked with humans over centuries.

That particular story has deep roots. Back to the human who interacted with plants and some form of medium – a cave wall? A piece of blackened carbon? Is this plant good to eat? Does it help with pain in the head? With healing? Our entire food and pharmaceutical chain is founded on plant life. Humans have shared information on the plants good for food, shelter, healing, and making tools. When we put pencil or brush to paper, that action connects us to all those who came before, who recorded their story of the plants around them.

Shaded paths circle and criss-cross for access to all parts.

The garden 
In the Food Forest, it is easy to imagine that scenario. It is indeed a forest, not a traditional garden with plants in regimented rows. Tropical fruit and nut trees shade paths that wind through herbs and shrubs. Most of the plants yield edible parts, while some are there to entice pollinators. Tomatoes and other vegetables grow in sunny spots, there are fruit and flowers on several mulberry trees, and the bananas have finished flowering, stalks of miniature fruit on their way to becoming edible adults. Splashes of yellow, blue, and red signal flowers of pigeon pea and papaya, blue porterweed and Cuban oregano, Turk’s cap and tropical sage.

With permission, I brought home some things to sample and sketch – a perfect way to extend my visit! And to remember the participants and their wonderful artwork, their stories told with pictures. These are the people who are changing our future. It was a student who first conceived of the Food Forest, and students who maintain and plant, harvest and educate. How exciting to think of the new and ancient paths they are making and taking! I appreciate being part of this as a guest speaker and artist, even for the short time I shared with them. Thank you, everyone.

Read more about FGCU’s Food Forest on their website (also created and maintained by students): http://fgcufoodforest.weebly.com/ 

And learn about the day-to-day plants and activities on their Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/214926875208363/ 

 Strathmore Visual Journal sketchbook, 
140 lb. watercolor cold-press, 5.5 x 8 inches .
7 mm mechanical pencil 
Mondeluz watercolor pencils 
Niji waterbrush M 

A Floridian in Montana ~ I am found and lost again

"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time."    ~  Thomas Merton

Upper Terraces at Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park

I recently traveled to Montana through the generosity of a new friend, and had the opportunity to visit the towns of Bozeman and Gardiner and then Yellowstone National Park.  My past memories of Yellowstone include black bears begging for treats along a road filled with a line of family sedans from the 50’s and 60’s.  I also vividly remember the colors of minerals in the hot springs, the many earthy tones of rock, and the unforgettable fragrance of pine and spruce needles wafting up from the warming forest floor. 

 

Sketching the page above.

Although I love to sketch, one of my complaints is the process of separating oneself temporarily from immersion to get out drawing materials and begin.  And although I love to share my experiences, it is also difficult to set oneself apart in order to think and write coherently.  If only there was a way to share without that process!  Once started, my hope is that I can regain that immersion, that feeling of connectedness that is unexplainable. 

Along the road in Yellowstone,
this is actually the Gardner River.

Quick composite sketches from
the passenger side of the car.

All I can do now is to point at something that caught my eye and to use my ungainly words and making-of-marks to communicate.  So bear with me… (ha, no pun meant here)…

 

There is something in the geography and geology of the northern west that feels like completion.  That along with the quote above are about all I can say that will make sense right now.  I came home to Florida in time to be present at the death of a good friend, and on top of that my brain is still processing the depth of beauty of the northern spaces of Yellowstone Park. 

Tatanka (Lakota word for bison), car-sketching.

Aspen, skull, rock, and wooden birdfeeder.

Sketching in Yellowstone did enable me to both find and lose myself while I was there, and I am still mucking about in my right brain when I least expect it.  Those handy left brain skills have jumped ship and left me to scratch out misspellings, gape at proportion errors, and wonder why I’ve become non-verbal.  In the meantime, life moves on… and on.  There are cats to feed, laundry to tend to, phone calls to return, and life in general that requires finding myself when I so long to be lost.  Just for a bit longer…

 

Click on any image to view larger.

The two sketchbooks here:

Strathmore Toned Tan spiral sketchbook, 80 lb, 5.5 x 8.5 in
Sakura micron Pigma black 01 ink pen
Faber-Castell Albrecht Durer and General Pencil’s Kimberly watercolor pencils
Niji waterbrush M

Aquabee Super Deluxe spiral sketchbook, 93 lb, 6 x 9 in
Sakura micron Pigma black 01 ink pen
Sakura Koi coloring brush pen (sap green)
Faber-Castell Albrecht Durer and General Pencil’s Kimberly watercolor pencils
Niji waterbrush M

A fondness for ferns

 Only spread a fern-frond over a man's head and worldly cares are cast out, and freedom and beauty and peace come in.  ~ John Muir

With this quote comes a vision of resting in a grotto on mossy rocks, arching ferns casting a delicate tracery of shadows below my feet.  Why are ferns so magical?  Is it because of folklore, its fractal-like intricate leaf patterns, or do we sense the ancient echoes of prehistoric environments?

Fern folklore
An old folklore belief is that because fern “seeds” were invisible, then one could become invisible when these seeds were eaten or carried.  Several inventive and amazing rituals were created to capture these elusive seeds.  An Irish legend reveals that ferns are flower- and seed-less because St. Patrick cursed them for harboring snakes.  The cross-section of the fern stem is said to bear the name of Christ, and thus provide protection from goblins and witches.  The shapes of fern spikes and the lobes of its leaves were thought to provide healing elixirs for snakebite (the spikes resemble serpents), and ailments of the spleen (resemblance to the organ).  More legends, wild myths, and wishful thinking is found in a fascinating text “The Economic Uses and Associated Folklore of Ferns and Fern Allies,” by Lenore Wile May in Botanical Review (Oct.-Dec.1978).

Fern leaves

A fractal is a “self-similar” pattern that repeats at different scales, and fern leaves often appear to be fractal-like.  They are not true fractals as fern leaf patterns do not repeat to infinity.  Drawing fern leaves is an adventure in patience and persistence!  Perhaps that’s why I created only a representation and focused instead on the furry rhizome and the wavy leaf margins of this Serpent Fern.  Ferns don’t produce flowers and seeds like the many plants we use for food, medicine, and decoration.  They have a complex reproductive cycle and spread by spores instead of seeds.  You can look at a visual image of this reproductive process here at ScienceLearn.org. 

A smaller leaf, only about 3 inches long.

Fern evolution

Ferns first appear in the fossil record 360 million years ago, but the ancestors of the species we know today didn’t emerge until over 100 million years ago, when flowering plants began to dominate many environments.  A researcher at Duke University in North Carolina has discovered a unique protein called a neochrome in ferns.  This protein enables them to respond to both red and blue light waves (both ends of the visible light spectrum) and enables them to thrive in the shade of other plants.   You can read more about his study and about ferns and this protein here.  

The fern I sketched is the Serpent Fern (also known as polypody fern, cabbage palm fern, gold-foot fern, or hare-foot fern), Phlebodium aureum or Polypodium aureum.

The scales on this root are a reddish golden brown -
red from the sun?

The scientific names derive from the Greek for:

phlebodium = full of veins
polypodium = many footed
aureum = golden (golden “hairs” or scales on the rhizomes)

This is an epiphytic fern, often growing in the “boots” (old leaf bases) of cabbage palms.  It’s found in Florida and ranges into Central and South America.  It has been studied at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard University, and the University of Miami School of Medicine as having chemical properties that protect our skin from damaging UV rays, something Florida has in abundance.  

More: American Fern Society 

A microscopic view of the sporangia

Top and bottom sketches:
Strathmore Toned Tan spiral sketchbook, 80 lb, 5.5 x 8.5 in
Sakura micron Pigma black 01ink pen
Faber-Castell Albrecht Durer watercolor pencils (walnut brown, white)
Sakura Koi coloring brush pen (sap green)
Niji waterbrush M

Middle sketch:
Aquabee Super Deluxe spiral sketchbook, 93 lb, 6 x 9 in
Various watercolor pencils
Niji waterbrush M

Weaver's Station revisited

Mondeluz and Inktense watercolor pencil in my Aquabee sketchbook.

Our sketching group met during the first part of January to draw and paint a part of Florida that is a part of Florida history.  Across from the Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk in Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park is a little-visited area that was formerly known as Weaver's Station.  I had sketched a bit of this area back in previous years, and you can read about the history of this place in my post here.

I drew part of this same rustic structure from a different angle two years ago (below).  While it's still standing, the large door has collapsed further into the interior. 

It felt good to revisit this place and to know that some things continue on, especially a piece of Florida history along the Tamiami Trail (US 41) that many drive by every day, not realizing the significance of the road they travel.

Water-soluble pencil on watercolor paper.

Sketching with friends ~ Freedom Park

Ink and watercolor pencil sketches from the boardwalk.

Even though it's July, I wanted to catch up and share a sketching trip to Freedom Park in July with friends. The springtime blooms faded, summer flowers were filling up the nooks of bright green foliage.  This is along the wetlands side of the park, all seen from the boardwalk.

On the opposite page I made notes, and all the memories flooded back...

Butterflies fluttering: flashes of white peacock, the orange and yellow of sulphurs, a gulf fritillary with its silvery underside splotches and orange and brown topside, Florida whites shining in the sun.
Birds seen and heard: cardinals, red-winged blackbirds, a hawk (red shoulder?) patrolling low and calling to another hidden in the trees.
Blooming: creamy ivory pond apple, bright yellow and orange cannas, glowing violet pickerel weed and an unknown heathery-looking plant, dusty pink camphorweed, clear yellow hypericum and primrose willow, small pointy lavender alligator flag flowers.
More color:  the captivating red/bronze/pink blush on the pristine green of young red maple leaves, the clear deep red-brown tannin-stained flow of lazy water, the fleeting sparkle and flash of light and color from vivid red and blue dragonflies, the slower leap of bright yellow adult lubber grasshoppers.
Heard in the background: an opera of occasional bird call underscored with the drone of cicadas, with a background of road traffic murmuring through the gaps.

It was becoming a hot and drowsy day...time for lunch with friends at a nearby cafe!

The above sketch is done with:
6 x 9 inch Aquabee Super Deluxe sketch pad
Watercolor pencils: Mondeluz 12 pencil set
Micron Pigma 01 black ink pen

Catching up…

Time has been slipping by so quickly – which is what happens when you are busy!  In Florida, our busy season reflects an increase in population when our winter visitors flood the city and beaches.  So I’ve been busy on several other fronts, which leaves me little time for sketching and posting.  So…maybe I can catch up here!  Here’s an update if you’re interested.

Butterflies, gardens and nature journals

In November I was invited to speak at the 14^th Annual SW Florida Butterfly Conference held at the EdisonFord Estate in Fort Myers, Florida.  I shared some inspiring journal pages from various artists on gardening for butterflies, with observations on caterpillars and nectaring butterflies.  I also included some images of early and contemporary naturalists as well as butterflies interpreted through an artistic lens.  I left feeling that participants were inspired to start their own nature journals, perhaps documenting their own butterfly gardens or just capturing images from their travels.  I was inspired in turn by the warm response and friendly comments, and learned quite a bit about butterflies!

Watercolor Pencil Workshop: Botany Through Art

Through November and December I had the opportunity to teach a workshop on watercolor pencils via nature journaling at the fabulous NaplesBotanical Garden.  We had a wonderful group of participants, each one adding a unique viewpoint to experience.  I love the mix of perspectives: a college science teacher, a pulmonary physician, artists whose specialties are acrylic and watercolors, a professional writer, and more.  Each of us sees the world in a slightly different way, and our journal pages are shaped by our personalities as well as our life experiences.  Each week was a joy.

Something different! 

I was invited to paint a ceramic piece for the annual Empty Bowls Silent Auction held in January.  For every dollar that they raise, the Harry Chapin Food Bank turns it into $6 worth of food for the local food banks in Collier County.  Painting on clay is a very different and challenging experience!  This is the third year I’ve done this, and each time I’m delighted with the variety and creativity of the ceramic pieces offered.

A twisted bald cypress tree at the edge of a cypress dome.

Back to the Fakahatchee

Our sketch group met for one more time in the Fakahatchee in January, choosing the same location as last November.  Last fall Ipainted a view of the Lake Gloria extension, edged by a cypress dome on one side.  This time I chose a lone cypress tree that caught my eye.  All the trees around were straight and tall, but this particular tree had such an interesting twist to it.  The morning sun caught each ridge of the delineated trunk.  What made this tree grow so differently?  Why the twist?  It seemed a striking testament to the will to survive and thrive, each curve and twist reflecting some event in its growth cycle.  Sort of like the scars, gray hairs and wrinkles we accumulate as we move through the events of our lives.  I could relate to this tree!

Environmental Art and the Food Forest

Later in January I was invited I was invited to share my sketch journals and give an introduction to watercolor pencils at a class at Florida Gulf Coast University.  After a slide show and short discussion we adjourned to the Food Forest to sketch.  This is an amazing place, and I cannot possibly tell you all about it here.  Look for more details in a future post.  I was so impressed by the groups of students in the class as well as the students who created and maintain the garden.  Let me say that if you are interested in gardening and what young people are doing with it, you need to read more or better yet, arrange a visit.  You can visit their webpage here, see the listing on the FGCU site here, and finally, check out their Facebook page for the latest news.  I appreciate Professor Mary Voytek for arranging this wonderful opportunity, and for encouraging and inspiring her class of artists and environmental studies students to explore their natural surroundings through art. 

Also in January…

I had an opportunity to share my sketchbooks and talk about nature journaling at the Family 4-H Day event, Lehigh Acres.

I presented a Nature Journal Workshop for the FNPS Coccoloba Chapter at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve.  I met a group of friendly and native-plant knowledgeable folks who did a great job with just a few hours of introduction to a new media. I can only visualize how far they’ve taken their new skills and where they will take them!

A gopher tortoise emerging from his burrow.

And in February…

A group of us went to TheNaples Preserve to sketch.  I had a chance to meet and sketch with an online friend, and we ended up taking part in a promotional film clip for the Preserve.  The Preserve is an amazing place, a little patch of scrub and pines right smack in the middle of the city.  If you live in or visit Naples, you should visit this rapidly disappearing habitat. 

And now for March…

I started another Watercolor Pencil Workshop at The Naples Botanical Garden in March, which is ongoing through April.  We have another great group of artists of all ranges and backgrounds, and I’m enjoying this class as well!  There are old friends and new, and the Garden is at it’s flowering peak.  One of our challenges is that there are too many subjects to sketch!

Leaf demonstration in watercolor pencils at the Enabling Garden..

At some point I hope to get back to sketching more regularly.  I get so much joy from teaching and sharing what I’ve learned, though.  I just need a few more hours in each day…

Thanks for stopping in to catch up!

The above sketches are done with:
6 x 9 inch Aquabee Super Deluxe sketch pad
Various watercolor pencils: Faber Castell Aquarelle and Albrecht Durer, Derwent Inktense
Mechanical pencil
Micron Pigma 01 black ink pen

Click on any image to view larger.