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In early summer I started this new project. I was going to make a new concertina book about insects in my own garden. So, every day for more than 3 months, I have been strolling in the garden, looking for any small creatures. Armed with my phone, I took pictures of snails, bees, bumblebees and beetles, butterflies and spiders, flies and mosquitoes. At first I was afraid that it wouldn't be possible to encounter a wide variety of insects but in the end, I'm quite happy with the result! Until now, I may be proud of the amazing amount of 72 different creatures with the most poetic Dutch names.
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A simple pencil drawing can be so satisfying. Slowly and carefully drawing, focusing on the area just below the pencil, observing every detail of the subject. I try to draw every day. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, a Hungarian-American psychologist is the architect of the notion of FLOW, which is “being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement and thought follows inevitably from the previous one. Your whole being is involved, and you’re using your skills to the utmost.” And an old Chinese saying, quoted by David Hockney, says: “Drawing needs three things, the heart, the hand and the eye, two won’t do.”
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I've always wanted to draw a chicken but nothing ever came of it. Finally, last week, I spent the whole day drawing this huge black-and-white chicken in my Moleskine sketchbook, ànd doing the lettering. Now I'm figuring out what I will draw on the opposite page. I've already got some ideas!
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The honey bee, the bumblebee, the butterflies and other pollinating insects are in danger. Some species have already disappeared never to return. Fewer pollinating insects will effect us more than we imagine right now, also in our daily economy. So it's best for all of us if there are more uncultivated places for bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects. I try to apply this in our own garden. It's a start if everyone with a garden should do the same! This quote of Albert Einstein says a great deal about what we know now and shows what a visionary he was!
IF THE BEE DISAPPEARED OFF THE SURFACE OF THE GLOBE
THEN MAN WOULD ONLY HAVE FOUR YEARS OF LIFE LEFT.
NO MORE BEES, NO MORE POLLINATION, NO MORE PLANTS,
NO MORE ANIMALS, NO MORE MAN.
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A few weeks ago I was blessed with a group of enthusiastic students for a colored pencil workshop. A butterfly is, of course, a rewarding topic for study and spring is the perfect time of the year to do this. It's been two most enjoyable days where everyone learned about the different types of pencils, best papers to work on and best techniques to draw a photo-realistic butterfly. Using colored pencils is much more than just coloring, it's building up layer by layer and I'm sure that every student in the class can agree with me that working with colored pencils helps to create a feeling of calmness and Zen!
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I love butterflies and I never get tired of painting them. Here's two details of a concertinabook I made in 2009.
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Watercolor painting of a twig of eucalyptus, with credits to Lupen Grainne who's photo I was allowed to use as a reference: thank you Lupen! I love the greyish color of the leaves with the bright red branches.
Aquarel van een takje eucalyptus, met dank aan Lupen Grainne voor het gebruik van haar foto als referentie: dankjewel Lupen! Ik hou heel erg van de grijzig groene kleur van de bladeren samen met de felrode steeltjes.
Aquarel van een takje eucalyptus, met dank aan Lupen Grainne voor het gebruik van haar foto als referentie: dankjewel Lupen! Ik hou heel erg van de grijzig groene kleur van de bladeren samen met de felrode steeltjes.
