Easter Sunday we drove up to Mt. Lemmon just for the heck of it. It is more than 8000 ft. in altitude and there was still enough snow for skiing. I brought my painting supplies with big plans to paint, but unfortunately I only painted this pine. The altitude got me--headache and feeling punk, so this is all I have to show for the trip.
I recognized the symptoms because when we were in the volcano on Maui I had the same thing happen, only worse, the altitude there was over 11,000 ft.
So I guess I will just stay away from high mountains.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Seagulls in Randfontein - Maree
“To fly as fast as thought, to anywhere that is,” he said, ”you must begin by knowing that you have already arrived…”
- From Jonathan Livingstone Seagull
Seagulls in Randfontein - a quick watercolour study in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook 8" x 5.5"
Not far from us, about 22km, lies the gold mining town of Randfontein, about 45 km west of Johannesburg. With the Witwatersrand gold rush in full swing in 1889, mining financier JB Robinson bought the farm Randfontein and floated the Randfontein Estates Gold Mining Company. The town was established in 1890 to serve the new mine and was administered by Krugersdorp until it became a municipality in 1929.
(If you click on the "Randfontein" link, you will also see the Hartebeespoort Dam area on the left of the map, my favourite sketching spot, and where it is situated from where I live in Krugersdorp.)
We visited Randfontein yesterday, and what amazes me about this town is the fact that you can find flocks of Seagulls there, 600km from the coast! I've tried to track the history of how these birds could have landed up there, but to no avail - I have now contacted the Randfontein Publicity Association to see if they might have some information.
- From Jonathan Livingstone Seagull
Seagulls in Randfontein - a quick watercolour study in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook 8" x 5.5"
Not far from us, about 22km, lies the gold mining town of Randfontein, about 45 km west of Johannesburg. With the Witwatersrand gold rush in full swing in 1889, mining financier JB Robinson bought the farm Randfontein and floated the Randfontein Estates Gold Mining Company. The town was established in 1890 to serve the new mine and was administered by Krugersdorp until it became a municipality in 1929.
(If you click on the "Randfontein" link, you will also see the Hartebeespoort Dam area on the left of the map, my favourite sketching spot, and where it is situated from where I live in Krugersdorp.)
We visited Randfontein yesterday, and what amazes me about this town is the fact that you can find flocks of Seagulls there, 600km from the coast! I've tried to track the history of how these birds could have landed up there, but to no avail - I have now contacted the Randfontein Publicity Association to see if they might have some information.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Tarlton Vlei - Maree
“Life is like a rainbow. You need both the sun and the rain to make its colours appear.”
- wolfdyke
Still on the subject of rain, all the vleis (marshes) in Tarlton and surrounding areas are full and turning the landscape into a shimmering play of colours... For the past couple of weeks we've had between 15mm and 70ml rain most days, causing trees to fall over and swollen rivers to burst their banks. It's also great seeing huge flocks of water birds enjoying this abundance so late in the season.
This area, just 3km from us, is usually quite dry, with young boys charging around on their off-road bikes.
- wolfdyke
Still on the subject of rain, all the vleis (marshes) in Tarlton and surrounding areas are full and turning the landscape into a shimmering play of colours... For the past couple of weeks we've had between 15mm and 70ml rain most days, causing trees to fall over and swollen rivers to burst their banks. It's also great seeing huge flocks of water birds enjoying this abundance so late in the season.
This area, just 3km from us, is usually quite dry, with young boys charging around on their off-road bikes.
Scene at Harties - Maree
Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountain is going home; that wildness is necessity; that mountain parks and reservations are useful not only as fountains of timber and irrigating rivers, but as fountains of life.
- John Muir
You might have noticed that Hartebeespoort Dam (also known as Harties) holds a special fascination for me. The scenery possibilities are endless, ranging from location, to the time of day and the change of light.
Most of the time, like this one, I stop for a quick sketch on our way there, other times I will work off one of my photographs. Here I did a quick sketch in my Moleskine Watercolour sketchbook, made some notes on colour and finished it off later in the afternoon.
- John Muir
You might have noticed that Hartebeespoort Dam (also known as Harties) holds a special fascination for me. The scenery possibilities are endless, ranging from location, to the time of day and the change of light.
Most of the time, like this one, I stop for a quick sketch on our way there, other times I will work off one of my photographs. Here I did a quick sketch in my Moleskine Watercolour sketchbook, made some notes on colour and finished it off later in the afternoon.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
1 April found us in a Wood Frog breeding pond which Fred calls "Site F" along Forsyth Road in Limerick Forest, Grenville County, Ontario. I pushed through willow bushes and past dry spruce boughs which caught at my sweater, stepping on mossy logs in the shallow pond edge, until I paused at one of the last two remnants of melting ice. The frogs quietened as I came out into the open, but resumed their chorus gradually as I stood still and got out my paints.
Most of them are calling from the dead cattails on the north side. Individually each Wood Frog call sounds like "duck, duck, duck" but as I made my preliminary pencil sketch, all together they sounded jubilant - a clamour like children in a playground. Later I noticed chuckling, and still later it seemed to me to have changed to laughing.
I painted the patch of ice first, but when it was time to leave I noticed that it had further melted to half the size! Fred took the water temperature over near the chorus and it was 14C, the same as the air. No breeze, but very few mosquitoes. Wood Frog tadpoles eat a lot of mosquito larvae.
Most of them are calling from the dead cattails on the north side. Individually each Wood Frog call sounds like "duck, duck, duck" but as I made my preliminary pencil sketch, all together they sounded jubilant - a clamour like children in a playground. Later I noticed chuckling, and still later it seemed to me to have changed to laughing.
I painted the patch of ice first, but when it was time to leave I noticed that it had further melted to half the size! Fred took the water temperature over near the chorus and it was 14C, the same as the air. No breeze, but very few mosquitoes. Wood Frog tadpoles eat a lot of mosquito larvae.
Garden Snail Adventure
This little creature performed an 180 from being on her back to running away from me - all of this in about 2 minutes total - I added words after she ran away as I barely had time to draw next position - and I am used to drawing moving targets!
Click on the image to see details.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Hidden Coyote - Teri Casper
When we were going to church on Sunday we saw three coyotes crossing the road (on the way to church also no doubt). They stopped right off the road in the middle of the weeds and wildflowers and watched us go by. It was amazing how hidden they actually were and thats what I tried to replicate.
I did this from memory.
I did this from memory.
Bluebells, Bluets and Practice--Vickie Henderson
The tiny Bluets growing along the wooded hillside in my yard this year are gorgeous. Irresistible, in fact. So I gathered up my outdoor sketch kit this past weekend and went outside.
Practice is just what its meant to be, an experience full of mistakes, blunders and, most of all, learning. And this experience was no exception. I would love to create one of those beautiful en plein air landscapes that I often admire. But until then, I practice. It's a bit like riding a bicycle. You don't learn how to balance until you actually try it--over and over again. And nobody can tell you how. Then one day, without you knowing it, your brain has integrated all that you've learned and you find yourself doing it.
That's the fun of new discoveries. They feel like magic!
For more about my first 2010 outdoor sketching experience visit my blog post Fumbling En Plein Air at Vickie's Sketchbook. You may also enjoy seeing my Red-shouldered Hawk Sketchbook at Vickie Henderson Art.
Inspired by Azalea and Iris Medley - Lin Frye
Daily Practice
Journal
When I got to my friend's last night, she had arranged a gorgeous bouquet of spring flowers - with bright iris and azalea, I sat before the flowers and did a more controlled 'splatter and splash' so that the form of the flowers could be recogized and yet the painting kept some of its looseness. It was fun .. though not 'quite' as spontaneous as splattering and 'finding' all flowers ...
Another intense day - oral history interviews, putting plants out in the garden, meetings ... I'm afraid it's going to be like that until the end of next weekend ... so I"ll do my best to catch up with everyone as time permits.
Hope your day is great!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Journal
When I got to my friend's last night, she had arranged a gorgeous bouquet of spring flowers - with bright iris and azalea, I sat before the flowers and did a more controlled 'splatter and splash' so that the form of the flowers could be recogized and yet the painting kept some of its looseness. It was fun .. though not 'quite' as spontaneous as splattering and 'finding' all flowers ...
Another intense day - oral history interviews, putting plants out in the garden, meetings ... I'm afraid it's going to be like that until the end of next weekend ... so I"ll do my best to catch up with everyone as time permits.
Hope your day is great!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Sweet Violet
This tiny violet is flowering in my garden now. It's native to Europe and Asia but also introduced in America. It has a wonderful sweet scent and is therefore used in perfumes. It has a beautiful deep violet purple colour (which is always fun to paint). Painted on Fabriano smooth watercolour paper. 9 x 8 cm
Eno River State Park - Lin Frye
9" x 12"
Arches CP#140
Spring on the river ... sounds of gurgling, splashing water, bird song, frog croaks, turtles sunning on the rocks, fly fishermen in the stream, hikers along the trail, kayakers paddling - the kind of day that makes Spring -- spring!
Last Saturday, C and I visited this park - after more than a 12 year absence .... we often visit the county park miles up river -- but this weekend, we though we'd do some day-long hiking and spend the time outdoors. We were rewarded with sights, sounds, scents that just made the weekend extra special.
I had some time this weekend also to paint a larger work and I thought I'd commemorate the day with a focus on a portion of the river and only a 'few' of those enormous boulders!
Today, pine pollen covers EVERYTHING! Pines are wind pollinated, and therefore, must shed enormous amounts of pollen to insure that those fine grains find their mark. Walkways, cars, ponds, the top of the greenhouse -- all bear a yellow powder - it even floats in the air so that there's a bit of a 'haze' no matter where you look. We're expecting rain at the end of this week, and hopefully, the majority of this yellow tinging will be knocked down so we can all breath a bit better! LOL
I'm off for a daylong conference -- so I'll try to catch up tonight -- but it's two weeks of racing to prepare for the plant sale -- inside the greenhouse, outside on the grounds, vendors, donations, signs, on top of teaching and normal activities ...
I'm doubling my doses of iron!
Have a great day!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Arches CP#140
Spring on the river ... sounds of gurgling, splashing water, bird song, frog croaks, turtles sunning on the rocks, fly fishermen in the stream, hikers along the trail, kayakers paddling - the kind of day that makes Spring -- spring!
Last Saturday, C and I visited this park - after more than a 12 year absence .... we often visit the county park miles up river -- but this weekend, we though we'd do some day-long hiking and spend the time outdoors. We were rewarded with sights, sounds, scents that just made the weekend extra special.
I had some time this weekend also to paint a larger work and I thought I'd commemorate the day with a focus on a portion of the river and only a 'few' of those enormous boulders!
Today, pine pollen covers EVERYTHING! Pines are wind pollinated, and therefore, must shed enormous amounts of pollen to insure that those fine grains find their mark. Walkways, cars, ponds, the top of the greenhouse -- all bear a yellow powder - it even floats in the air so that there's a bit of a 'haze' no matter where you look. We're expecting rain at the end of this week, and hopefully, the majority of this yellow tinging will be knocked down so we can all breath a bit better! LOL
I'm off for a daylong conference -- so I'll try to catch up tonight -- but it's two weeks of racing to prepare for the plant sale -- inside the greenhouse, outside on the grounds, vendors, donations, signs, on top of teaching and normal activities ...
I'm doubling my doses of iron!
Have a great day!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Monday, April 5, 2010
Easter in the Park...
Easter Sunday was beautiful; overcast but warm, and I decided to get out and sketch and take photos before the promised storm. Bloodroot was EVERYWHERE. I sat by the river to paint in my journal...
Here's how it turned out...
Isley Park Woods is a Missouri Natural Area that boasts an astounding array of wildflowers every spring. I always wish I could paint them all as they bloom, but there's never quite enough time to keep up with them. Yesterday I ran away from home and celebrated Easter in my own way...
Bloodroot is a fascinating flower--the large leaves clasp the stem and protect the flower as it emerges. It's been used as a medicinal, a dye, and a love charm, according to folklore. You can read more about it HERE.
Here's how it turned out...
Isley Park Woods is a Missouri Natural Area that boasts an astounding array of wildflowers every spring. I always wish I could paint them all as they bloom, but there's never quite enough time to keep up with them. Yesterday I ran away from home and celebrated Easter in my own way...
Bloodroot is a fascinating flower--the large leaves clasp the stem and protect the flower as it emerges. It's been used as a medicinal, a dye, and a love charm, according to folklore. You can read more about it HERE.
Quacking and Squawking - Maree
You cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building nests in your hair.
- Chinese Proverb
Duck sketches in Moleskine Watercolour sketchbook 8" x 5.5"
As I was filling the bird feeders yesterday morning, I heard a terrible raucous and as I looked up, six ducks came flying over, quacking and chatting, sounding like a busy freeway in the sky. I managed to identify some South African Shell ducks and some Mallards. Peculiar that they were all flying together, but given the Mallard's tendency to mate with anything and anyone, it's probably not that surprising. But there again, what I thought was the Shell ducks might have been female Mallards.
Duck sketches in Moleskine Watercolour sketchbook 8" x 5.5"
This is done in my Moleskine Watercolour Sketchbook, which, when opened, is too long for the scanner to cover both pages, therefore the two pictures.
- Chinese Proverb
Duck sketches in Moleskine Watercolour sketchbook 8" x 5.5"
As I was filling the bird feeders yesterday morning, I heard a terrible raucous and as I looked up, six ducks came flying over, quacking and chatting, sounding like a busy freeway in the sky. I managed to identify some South African Shell ducks and some Mallards. Peculiar that they were all flying together, but given the Mallard's tendency to mate with anything and anyone, it's probably not that surprising. But there again, what I thought was the Shell ducks might have been female Mallards.
Duck sketches in Moleskine Watercolour sketchbook 8" x 5.5"
This is done in my Moleskine Watercolour Sketchbook, which, when opened, is too long for the scanner to cover both pages, therefore the two pictures.
Inspired by Dandelions - Lin Frye
Daily Practice
Journal
Along with the multitude of flowers, flowering and budding trees and all manners of spring displays, come the inevitable 'uninvited' guests -- like these dandelions. They polka-dot roadsides and lawns and are such a bright, and I have to admit, pretty, contrast against the greening ground.
Yes, I do know their virtues - their leaves have more vitamins than most tablets created for that purpose, their roots make coffee, leaves are a bitter edible and a diuretic, and their flowers can be battered and deep fried for an 'artichoke' tasting treat. Bees and early spring insects love them, too ... but mercy, between their billions of seeds scattered by folklore and blown by children to 'tell the time,' and their roots, often called 'Earth Nails' in China since they seem to grow as long, these incredibly adapted plants (brought by colonists to the US and grown for their greens as a pot-herb), are so dang difficult to remove ....
Yep, it's spring alright!
Have a great week!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Journal
Along with the multitude of flowers, flowering and budding trees and all manners of spring displays, come the inevitable 'uninvited' guests -- like these dandelions. They polka-dot roadsides and lawns and are such a bright, and I have to admit, pretty, contrast against the greening ground.
Yes, I do know their virtues - their leaves have more vitamins than most tablets created for that purpose, their roots make coffee, leaves are a bitter edible and a diuretic, and their flowers can be battered and deep fried for an 'artichoke' tasting treat. Bees and early spring insects love them, too ... but mercy, between their billions of seeds scattered by folklore and blown by children to 'tell the time,' and their roots, often called 'Earth Nails' in China since they seem to grow as long, these incredibly adapted plants (brought by colonists to the US and grown for their greens as a pot-herb), are so dang difficult to remove ....
Yep, it's spring alright!
Have a great week!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Sunday, April 4, 2010
The Proud little Black Wattle - Maree
The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see Nature all ridicule and deformity, and some scarcely see Nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, Nature is Imagination itself.
- William Blake, 1799, The Letters
This beautiful little Black Wattle tree at the bottom of our smallholding (he stands proud, perfectly formed!) is earmarked for eradication, together with a couple of others that have sprung up again since the last clean-up. It's a constant and on-going battle against this alien, Australian species which spreads like wild fire if left unattended, threatening our indigenous trees and grasses. Although it still have a couple of leaves on one branch, I decided we'll leave the dead one as it's a favourite look-out point for the Fiscal Shrike.
Read more about the Black Wattle struggle HERE.
- William Blake, 1799, The Letters
This beautiful little Black Wattle tree at the bottom of our smallholding (he stands proud, perfectly formed!) is earmarked for eradication, together with a couple of others that have sprung up again since the last clean-up. It's a constant and on-going battle against this alien, Australian species which spreads like wild fire if left unattended, threatening our indigenous trees and grasses. Although it still have a couple of leaves on one branch, I decided we'll leave the dead one as it's a favourite look-out point for the Fiscal Shrike.
Read more about the Black Wattle struggle HERE.
Sea Pines Forest Preserve Field Trip
Past workshop students and I enjoyed a field trip at Sea Pines Forest Preserve on Hilton Head Island. The top image is my watercolor pencil/waterbrush demo at our first location. Then my attempt at sketching participants at our 2nd location. They all took their 'new look' very well :)
A Spring Art Parade--Vickie Henderson
Not exactly your Easter Parade, but these young Wild Turkeys are like works of art parading through my yard. Each one of them uniquely decorated with expression and those curious skin enhancements.
The last flock of turkeys that visited was composed of sub-adult males or jakes, all at different levels of maturity, giving them uniqueness both in skin enhancements, color and expression.
For more views of this sketch page visit A Turkey Work of Art at my new blog, Vickie's Sketchbook.
You may also enjoy visiting Wild Turkeys--A Happy Ending at Vickie Henderson Art to read more about how we nearly lost our wild turkeys and to see more images and sketches of these fun backyard visitors. .
Tulips - Happy Easter - lIN fRYE
Daily Practice
Journal
I painted these several weeks ago while in the car driving back from Charleston -- but saved them to post for today - Easter Sunday. The tulips are blooming everywhere now in colors that say SPRING has arrived!
My single tulip (that has survived 7 years) - is just about ready to open -- and yet everywhere we walked yesterday - tulips were blooming! They say 'Easter' to me -- and I hope everyone's holiday is a most joyous and blessed one!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
Journal
I painted these several weeks ago while in the car driving back from Charleston -- but saved them to post for today - Easter Sunday. The tulips are blooming everywhere now in colors that say SPRING has arrived!
My single tulip (that has survived 7 years) - is just about ready to open -- and yet everywhere we walked yesterday - tulips were blooming! They say 'Easter' to me -- and I hope everyone's holiday is a most joyous and blessed one!
Lin Frye
North Carolina
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