May 26, 2013
This month we ramble to the Ring Mountain Open Space Preserve. This is a wonderful place for a naturalist to explore and discover. Find Native California Indian mortar pits, garnets in boulders, petroglyphs and perhaps the endangered Tiburon Mariposa Lilly! We will meet at the Paradise Drive Trailhead. Get a trail description, driving directions, and GPS coordinates here. Come ready to sketch and bring a potluck surprise to share for lunch.
The trail has a moderate grade. If you have mobility concerns you may want to go to the Reed Ranch Road entrance which will start you close to the top of the mountain. You should be able to find us around mid day between Turtle Rock and the top of the mountain (we will be coming up the loop trail). There are no bathrooms or water on the site.
I encourage you to carpool or use public transportation to get there. You can organize carpools on the club Facebook page.
June 11, 2013
Learn tricks and methods to handle watercolor in the field. With a few logistical tweaks, watercolor is a portable, compact, and easy to use field system. We will explore color theory and why mixing with red, blue, and yellow is a sure-fire way to make mud. There are some tricks that make it a lot easier to control. I will demonstrate the basic skill you need to master to get watercolor to work for you.
If you already have a watercolor kit, see my blog post Choosing Watercolors for additional pigment suggestions. If you do not have a kit, see my blog post Pimp my palette for a good starter system.
Bonus: Pick up one of Jack’s socks to wear on your wrist as a brush cleaning rag. Wear it with pride.
Learn tricks and methods to handle watercolor in the field. With a few logistical tweaks, watercolor is a portable, compact, and easy to use field system. We will explore color theory and why mixing with red, blue, and yellow is a sure-fire way to make mud. There are some tricks that make it a lot easier to control. I will demonstrate the basic skill you need to master to get watercolor to work for you.
If you already have a watercolor kit, see my blog post Choosing Watercolors for additional pigment suggestions. If you do not have a kit, see my blog post Pimp my palette for a good starter system.
Bonus: Pick up one of Jack’s socks to wear on your wrist as a brush cleaning rag. Wear it with pride.
Learn tricks and methods to handle watercolor in the field. With a few logistical tweaks, watercolor is a portable, compact, and easy to use field system. We will explore color theory and why mixing with red, blue, and yellow is a sure-fire way to make mud. There are some tricks that make it a lot easier to control. I will demonstrate the basic skill you need to master to get watercolor to work for you.
If you already have a watercolor kit, see my blog post Choosing Watercolors for additional pigment suggestions. If you do not have a kit, see my blog post Pimp my palette for a good starter system.
Bonus: Pick up one of Jack’s socks to wear on your wrist as a brush cleaning rag. Wear it with pride.
June 12, 2013
Learn tricks and methods to handle watercolor in the field. With a few logistical tweaks, watercolor is a portable, compact, and easy to use field system. We will explore color theory and why mixing with red, blue, and yellow is a sure-fire way to make mud. There are some tricks that make it a lot easier to control. I will demonstrate the basic skill you need to master to get watercolor to work for you.
If you already have a watercolor kit, see my blog post Choosing Watercolors for additional pigment suggestions. If you do not have a kit, see my blog post Pimp my palette for a good starter system.
Bonus: Pick up one of Jack’s socks to wear on your wrist as a brush cleaning rag. Wear it with pride.
Learn tricks and methods to handle watercolor in the field. With a few logistical tweaks, watercolor is a portable, compact, and easy to use field system. We will explore color theory and why mixing with red, blue, and yellow is a sure-fire way to make mud. There are some tricks that make it a lot easier to control. I will demonstrate the basic skill you need to master to get watercolor to work for you.
If you already have a watercolor kit, see my blog post Choosing Watercolors for additional pigment suggestions. If you do not have a kit, see my blog post Pimp my palette for a good starter system.
Bonus: Pick up one of Jack’s socks to wear on your wrist as a brush cleaning rag. Wear it with pride.
June 15, 2013 – June 16, 2013
One of the best nature festivals in the country. Lots to see and do and I will participate in four events. Register here.
- Saturday morning – Introduction to drawing birds from 9 – 12:30 at the Community Center.
- Saturday Naturalist panel “Artful Inquiry: Creative Vision in the Practice of Natural History” from 3:00 – 4:00 pm at the Visitor Center auditorium.
- Saturday afternoon talk: Thinking Like a Naturalist from 4:30 – 5:30 at the Visitor Center auditorium.
- Sunday morning: Field Sketching Birds from 8:00 – 11:30 meeting at the Community Center and going out in the field to draw birds in the area.
June 16, 2013 – June 21, 2013
My favorite class of the year… Join us for a week of sketching, art instruction and nature study to jump start you in keeping your own nature/travel journal or re-inspire you to pick up your sketchbook again. We will examine different ways of keeping journals and develop habits to keep you actively sketching. The week will also include mini workshops on illustrating landscapes, plants, (including wildflowers!) and using watercolor or colored pencils in the field. Jack will also give technique lecture and demonstration on drawing birds and mammals. Learn how to paint a five minute landscape and an animal on the move! You will hike and explore throughout the Sierra Buttes drawing rocks, water, and wildflowers and discover make fast field sketches of birds in Sierra Valley, the Serengeti of the Sierra. You will come away with a journal full of recorded experiences and the tools, inspiration and motivation to continue on your own. Register
June 24, 2013 – June 26, 2013
Learn how to become a keen observer of the wild places in your neighborhood and help students unlock a love for the natural world in the process.
Join naturalists and educators Emilie Lygren and John Muir "Jack" Laws as they show you how to actively observe and ask scientific questions about the natural world through sketching and creative writing exercises. This mix of art, science, and language arts as well as Emilie & Jack's unique teaching styles will give you the confidence and skills necessary to guide your students through journaling activities in your schoolyard and beyond.
While creating your own field journal, participants will also visit three different ubran wilderness locations in the East Bay and San Francisco; deepen their observational skills; learn how to accurately sketch what they see; and discuss ways to constructively critique students' work. By the end of these three days, teachers will have the skills necessary to integrate journaling and creative writing activities into their science curriculum. All resources presented at this workshop are aligned with California science and language arts standards for grades 2-6. Academic credit is available through CSU East Bay. Participants will also receive the Opening the World Through Nature Journaling teacher guide.
Learn more and register.
June 30, 2013
Enjoy a 3 mile loop through oak woodlands as we sketch our way through the oak woodlands, learning about the ecology of the oaks and Native California. Great opportunities to sketch our native oaks and explore a reconstructed Miwok village.
Directions: The park is located three miles north of Novato on U.S. 101. The entrance is accessible only to southbound traffic from Highway 101. From northbound US 101 in Marin County, pass the park, then carefully make a u-turn at San Antonio Road and drive south to the park entrance on the right side of the road. From southbound US 101 at the Marin/Sonoma County border, pass San Antonio Road, and make the next right into the park. GPS coordinates for trailhead: Latitude 38° 9’5.19″N, Longitude 122°34’16.16″W. $8 parking fee per vehicle.
