Channel Islands Nature Journalers met at the botanic garden today, but it was unexpectedly closed. Not to be deterred, we spent a few hours observing the nature in the adjacent park. I was entertained by the contortions of a fastidious drake.
I was intrigued by the differences in the plant communities on the north and south sides of the ridge, so decided to record the obvious species. I ended up hiking about twice as far as I planned, because I inadvertently left my art supply bag near the turnaround point and didn’t discover the fact till I was nearly all the way back to the start. Lucky it was lovely weather and I didn’t have to be anywhere else.
We have a pair of nesting bald eagles at the local lake, and I caught a glimpse of them the other day. Very exciting! They don’t have a webcam, but they do have a Facebook page.
So attractive. So invasive. 😩
Nature Journal Club was fabulous as usual. We had 18 attendees, five of them first-timers. Our potluck picnics are always something to write home about, and we all enjoyed spending a few hours exploring and observing both micro and macro natural phenomena, from aquatic insects to towering yucca flower stalks. These meetups are one of the highlights of my month.
We are not usually ones to dress our animals in clothes. But it’s been much colder here than at Malibu, so we’ve given Bodie a wrap to wear at night when the temps drop. She appreciates it!
I found myself in downtown Ventura with some time to spare, so I popped into the Museum (“FREE ENTRY ALL MONTH!”) for a quick peruse. I was drawn to a collection of hundred-year-old bottles of photo retouching ink. As I copied the gorgeous typography, I was well aware that another person had hand-lettered this very artwork some time prior to 1911. Thank you, whoever you were, for creating an object of beauty I can admire and copy a century later.
We went out to a local tavern for dinner and live music, a rare event for us! I took limited art supplies—a couple of watercolour pencils and a waterbrush. I took the easy route of sketching inanimate objects instead of the patrons and performers.
Landscapes are not my strong suit, but I’m working on it. I’m trying to represent the shapes and values rather than the details—with varying success.
hashiworks 