One of the real pleasures of life, in my humble opinion, is painting outside. Sure it may get a bit breezy or buggy and some days it may be really hot or almost raining but painting outside is almost a meditation.
One’s attention becomes totally absorbed into the landscape, in this case the wildflower garden at the Green Briar Nature Center in East Sandwich. Before long any minor annoyances fade away and all that remains is the beauty and the joy.
Finding the color patterns amidst all that green can be daunting but is always rewarding…even if the color patterns don’t always make it all the way onto the paper. They are there in our minds, imprinted on our memories. Painting outdoors isn’t just about the painting….a lot of it is about the observing, the appreciating, the being there in the moment and taking it all in.
Whether one is a beginner or more experienced, taking the time to commune with the world around you with a pencil or paintbrush in your hand may be one of the more sublime things we can do.
Every time one of these people opens their sketchbooks or looks at the paintings they did on this bright sunny day they will remember the sweet smell of the garden, the gentle buzzing of bees and the flights of dragonflies and butterflies as well as the general laughter and good time had by all.
It’s a little piece of magic, I think.
I’ll be taking people all over the Cape to paint this summer so if you’d like to join us please check out the schedule on the Cape Cod Art and Nature website.
I made big puppets for my Animals of Halloween presentations and you can see two of them in these pictures. The top one is my anatomically correct spider. Using puppets helps little kids past the fear factor but also allows me to use something large enough to point out certain aspects of the animal. I also use pictures and in my classroom activities have lots of hands on elements.
Here I am with the owl I made. You’ll have to excuse my goofy faces…..