Tag: Inspiration
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Cultivating Connection: The Art of Giving Back Through Botanical Illustration
How art and nature intertwine to inspire, heal, and nurture both artist and environment Nature as a Muse and Partner The natural world offers us abundant gifts—fresh air, vibrant beauty, nourishing food, boundless inspiration, and more. How can we, as botanical artists, give back? This question guides not only our creative practices but … Continued
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Practice Patience
Breathe Think for a moment about the timeline of nature. Imagine any natural process – seed growth, blooming flowers, decomposition. Do they happen quickly? Imagine a colorful autumn leaf floating down from its branch and settling in with its siblings on the ground. I like to imagine that this leaf is not in … Continued
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Apples: Realistic Botanical Drawings in 8 Steps
Apples are as satisfying to draw as they are to eat! Curl up with your hot mug of apple cider, and create an apple portrait to warm your heart year-round! Learn techniques combining colored pencil and watercolor to render a realistic fruit (that will make a delightful snack when you’re done!). Practice creating beautiful … Continued
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What You Need to Know Before, During, & After Foraging
Foraging (also referred to as wildcrafting) is searching for wild plants or food in nature. Humans, like many animals, have been foraging since the beginning of their existence. The art of wildcrafting helps us to honor and celebrate food, nature, and each other. It is a great time to explore mushrooms! Not … Continued
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Fall in Love with Winter Magic
As the days grow too dark and cold to hang around outdoors, we need to keep ourselves occupied and our spirits up. Just because we’re not able to comfortably enjoy much time outside doesn’t mean we can’t still spend our time connecting with nature. I want to share with you my favorite botanical subjects to … Continued
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Turning Passion into Preservation
How can we, as botanical artists, make a difference in the world? We can document what is happening outside, right here, right now! Nature’s only constant is change – what you see outside today could be gone by tomorrow. But drawings last much longer! Botanical illustrations are the perfect way to keep the essence of … Continued
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The Practice of Botanical Drawing: Ideas for Expanding Lessons
The Practice of Botanical Drawing Lessons are a guide to build on. Expand each lesson with new and different subjects! Watch this video to get advice from Wendy. We know that masters aren’t made overnight, and that consistent practice is the key to success. Think of my books as a template. I show you … Continued
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Sketching Summer: Ideas & Botanical Definitions
The Practice of Botanical Drawing started as a year-long Challenge, prompting students to track a tree or woody shrub of their choice through all its stages for a year. The final product becomes a “Sketchbook of the Seasons,” with + color and tonal drawings + herbarium components, and + journal documentation from 1-2 trees … Continued
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Verdant Meditations
Thank you to Taliesin Thomas for this lovely feature on dirt-mag.com, aptly titled, “Verdant Meditations.” The piece explores how I became a botanical artist, the philosophy behind the Draw Botanical Method, and a peek into the magic I’ve been making most recently. (See the full feature here.) Plant Partners I work entirely … Continued
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Embrace Your Style
If you have ever drawn, painted, sculpted, designed, built, written, performed, cooked, snapped a pic, hummed a tune, whistled while you worked, created anything in any way, I have news for you… You are an artist! Embrace Your Style Each of us has our own unique style, something special we can’t help but … Continued
