Keeping a Visual Nature Journal
The grace to be a beginner is always the best prayer for an artist. The beginner’s humility and openness lead to exploration. Exploration leads to accomplishment. All of it begins at the beginning, with the first small and scary step.” ~ Julia Cameron (The Artist’s Way) I wish I could draw. This is what most people tell me when they avoid putting pencil to paper. My answer? You can, but your expectations are in the way. Too often we focus on the product – what we want to create. Our culture values the end result: the finished item, the goal reached, the happy ending. Think instead, about the process of drawing. A few pencil marks can reflect an observation and a connection. For me, the process of keeping a visual journal is a pathway. Every time I sketch something, I create a new connection to nature; I get to know my subject on an intimate level, I ask questions, I reflect, I explore. My first journals...