Category Archives: drawing at the beach

Cape Cod Art and Nature Outdoor Classes: Summer Summary

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Sure, the summer was hot, humid, and still incredibly dry here on Cape Cod. Twice I cancelled class because of predicted rain that never materialized. Mostly, however? This summer was amazing. We went to locations all over the Cape on Thursday mornings and sketched and watercolored enough memories to help get us through the cold months ahead.

We begain in early June at one of my favorite outdoor places to paint, the Shirley Cross Wildflower Garden and grounds of the Green Briar Nature Center in East Sandwich. We were serenaded by birds, watched by painted turtles and rabbits, and surrounded by beauty everywhere we turned.

The Stony Brook Herring Run and Grist Mill in Brewster is always a wonderful location. The birds were amazing–herons and egrets in feeding frenzies down in the creek with ospreys calling overhead as the baby herring headed back toward the sea. There are so many lovely vistas and subjects to draw and paint that we could return there again and again.

The next class was held at Frances Crane Wildlife Refuge off Rt. 151 in Falmouth (Hatchville). Always a wonderful place for colorful wildflowers and butterflies and on this day, model airplanes being flown by the local club.

Work by Michelle Law

A private garden tucked away in historic Sandwich Village is always one of our favorite spots and it didn’t disappoint this summer. In fact, the gardens seemed even more beautiful this year.

Popponesset Marketplace in Mashpee seemed like a fun spot to try out. There were lots of architectural elements and some fun people watching and sketching, too.

Bismore Park at Hyannis Harbor is another picturesque spot that is easily accessible and fun to visit.

The green in YarmouthPort where the Gorey House is located was a new one for us this year and although rain was predicted it waited– just until we had finished.

Our plan to visit Bourne Farm was quashed when we got there and found it closed for a special event but the lovely director there pointed us to a nearby cranberry bog which turned out to be a lovely location.

The grounds of the Aptucxet Museum and Trading Post in Bourne have turned out to be among our regular places to go since it offers multiple subjects and views. This summer most students chose to paint by the Cape Cod Canal where there was a breeze.

Last week we went to Wellfleet Harbor where we stayed for lunch and an ice cream from Mac’s on the Pier and a visit to the Frying Pan Gallery. It’s another great location with many options to paint.

This week is our last and we will meet at Spohr Gardens in Falmouth to close out the season.

After that we will have 3 all day trips–to Provincetown, Nantucket, and Martha’s Vineyard.

Thanks to all who attended my outdoor classes. We had crowds of 14 and intimate groups of 2 and 3. These classes have been my favorites every year ever since I began them back in the 80s.

If you are interested in learning more, please email me at capecodartandnature at gmail.com to be added to my email list.

Get out your sketchbooks!

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Do you like to draw, sketch or doodle but somehow you never find the time? Join me and some of my students in a Spring and Summer Sketchbook Challenge, just for fun!

002All you have to do is get yourself a sketchbook and your favorite drawing tool–pencil, pen, colored pencils, whatever.

044And then, get outside or sit inside or go to a coffee shop or wherever–but draw! Daily, weekly, it doesn’t matter. Just do it!

Add notes, snippets of prose, lists of birds, bugs or plants….anything you want.

Send me a message to join the loose group we’ve formed so you can get email prompts each week or just go it on your own.

Have fun!

Sketching at the beach….

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So what’s the best thing to do when the sun finally comes out and you have an hour or so off for lunch? Take your lunch and sketchbook to the beach and hang out for a while with your bare feet in the warm sand. I chose a place where I knew I would be out of the beaten path–in fact I never saw another person on the beach though there were many on the beaches around me. There were terns flirting, ospreys calling and clear water changing tides. The air smelled clean, warm and salty, a true sign of spring on the Cape.

This was my walk down to a little quiet cove….

the first of the rosa rugosas, also called beach roses, are just now in bloom….

and as I sat quietly in the sand making notes of the birds and plants around me the fiddler crabs came out to play.

Fiddler crabs often retreat to their holes when they hear footsteps or see you coming but if you stand or sit quietly on the sand they will slowly emerge and begin to go about their business. In this case their business was waving their big claws in the air, which is both a challenge to other males in the area and a come on down gesture for any lady crabs in the area.

If you click on the pictures you will see them a little better and should be able to read my notes as well…

Tough way to spend a lunch break but someone had to do it….