ATC Mushrooms and Nature Journal

A while back I purchased a Prismacolor .005 brown ink pen/marker, and while I did a little playing with it just after I purchased it I didn't really make anything worth posting. Since I was between major projects this week I decided it would be fun to see if I could do something with the pen that I would like, and would show off it's capabilities. When used as just line the ink seems a bit light, but with the stipple I was able to get some really dark areas.

I found a reference photo of some mushrooms that I  had printed out and used it to create the Artist Trading Card image above. Done entirely with stipple on a cream colored piece of Stonehenge paper.

I love how with Stonehenge and stipple the areas left blank seem to glow, and appear lighter than the paper actually is, fun.

I have started the process of setting up a couple of major works. The above is a sketch based on a reference photograph I made a couple of weeks ago of a tree trunk in the pond at Daniel Webster. That day there were 13 turtles hauled out on the stump, a record, last fall there were days when I would see 8 or 9 turtles on the stump but never 13. I am fairly sure that part of the reason there were more this spring is because the stump has shifted and I think rolled in the water a bit, displaying some different surfaces that the turtles can utilize.

I will be doing this with pen and ink on Bristol board which is why the drawing is so rough. Details will be added with pen when I get to the actual drawing, all I need to work with are basic shapes and outlines. I still need to do a bit of tweeking, esp with the turtle shapes, but the basic outline is done.

I think I also have a subject for a drawing, but will surprise you with that one later.

The other day I was up at the Trailside Museum in the Blue Hills Reservation. My goal was to make more photographs of the mallard ducks that usually occupy the pond. I did do that and got some good photos with the new lens. Sometimes I don't write up my visits to Trailside, but there was enough going on there that I felt I should.

The above drawings for the entry are some pine needles and  a pine cone from a tree that is near the museum building. I think it is a White Spruce, the pine cone was the length and color typical for those trees. However since White Spruce is native to areas further north of MA. I have a feeling this was a planted tree.

The lower image is a rough rendering of the flowers of a Witch Hazel bush. The flowers are very distinctive and early bloomers in the Spring forest. Though we are seeing a lot of early flowers this year because of the warm winter and recent weather. Still when I checked the status of the Trout Lilies there was still no sign of them. There were daffodils blooming at the center this week, and last year they didn't bloom until April.

Above is the photo I used as reference for my Witch Hazel drawing. The flowers really are strange and not very large. The bushes seemed to be covered with these light green filaments, contrasting with the dark red flower and the grayish/black stems.

Above is another photo of a daffodil, this one is just starting to open, but you can see some open flowers in the background.

That is it for today. Hope everyone is having a great weekend. Per usual comments are always welcome.