The Making of an Artist

By Jill Novak

     When I was a little girl, I spent many hours catching insects in the milkweed and tall grass that surrounded our home in Northern Illinois. I stored my precious specimens in a wooden jewelry box, packing them tightly into the tiny drawers. I remember the wonder I felt as I stared into the compound eyes of countless dragonflies and the thrill of holding the delicate wings of a Monarch butterfly between my fingers. The bright sunlit fields and carefree days of childhood warm me, even now, all these years later.
    The subdivision of ranch homes that my family lived in was built on the site an old farm, and the surrounding fields eventually became the property of the grade school I attended. Behind the school was the farmer’s back forty, called “The Cow Path” because of the trodden-down path the cows made on their way to and from the barn. I can remember riding my bike around the school building, playing for endless hours on the playground equipment, and coming home for lunch from school every day.
    The pond behind the school was abundant with frogs and salamanders in the summer—ice skating, aching feet, and red cheeks in the winter. There was even a steep hill directly in back of our house for sledding. It was an ideal country setting, even though we were practically in the middle of town. I know my parents thought of moving to an older, quainter community nearby, but the lure of open spaces made them stay put.
    I was free to run up and down the hill and through the fields, enjoying nature firsthand. Occasionally trees and flowers would find their way into my childish drawings. It is no wonder that at an early age one of the first pictures I painted was of a field, a fence, two trees, and a haystack. My mother entered it the county fair where it won a second premium.
    My mother blessed me with a love for drawing, painting, and the creative process that has now been passed on to my children. She fostered a hands-on, creative home environment by providing an endless stream of art supplies and countless hours to explore with them. And although she died over nineteen years ago, the fruit of her labor and her zest for life carries on. Thanks Mom!

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www.remembrancepress.com/naturejournalingproducts.htm

Becoming God’s Naturalist – Jill Novak Teach your children the magnificence of God by observing and recording His creation.

1.Observe Nature Around You
Front yard /Backyard/Neighborhood – curiosity walks
Garden
Sky
Forest preserve
Nature Centers
Natural History Museums
Vacations

2. Provide basic supplies
Journals/sketchbooks/watercolor paper/charcoal paper. We use one sheet at a time of 110 lb. cover stock fastened to a clip board and store the finished drawing in a binder with plastic sleeves
No. 2 Pencils – Mirado Black Warrior, Portfolio Series available at office Max, charcoal pencils and good erasers (white vinyl mechanical type eraser and a kneaded eraser)
Watercolors - Prang makes a 12 count

3. Fill your house with Art Books -Artist/illustrators/naturalists
Beatrix Potter 1866-1943
Edith Holden 1871-1920 – Diary of an Edwardian Lady – watch out for videos, she was a spiritualist. Her diary is fine.
Tasha Tudor 1915
Marjoleen Bastin
Sarah Mida
Claudia Nice - Christian
Jim Arnosky

4.Check out Books from the Library on how to Nature Journal
How to keep a sketchbook Journal by Claudia Nice
Sketching in Nature by Cathy Johnson
Keeping a Nature Journal by Claire Walker Leslie
Fast Sketching techniques by David Rankin
The Art of Beatrix Potter by Anne Stevenson Hobbs
Natures Sketchbook by Marjolein Bastin
Nature Printing with Herbs, Fruits, and Flowers – Laura Donnnelly Bethmann
Painting Country Gardens in Watercolor, pen, & Ink by Claudia Nice

5. Living Books by Stories about God’s creation
Are You a Dragaonfly? By Judy Allen and Tudor
Humphries
Are You a Bee? By Judy Allen and Tudor Humphries
Bumblebee at Apple tree Lane by Laura Gates Galvin
Look up living books about science and nature on the internet

6. Videos - Be careful to view all videos before your
children view them.
Barry Stebbing - How Great Thou Art
Eric Carle: Picture Writer
Jill Novak - Sketch with Me

7. Make an insect and Butterfly collection. Use a ball jar and cotton saturated in fingernail polish remover to preserve them.

8. Make a herbarium - a collection of mounted, identified, and labeled plant specimens. Group with closely related species. We grouped some of ours by season and location.

9. Books on Nature and gardening
Nature Watch – Mick Manning & Brita Granstrom
The Big Book of Nature Projects-The Children’s
School of Science

10. Create a nature friendly habitat in your own backyard
Gardening / animals

Websites:
www.hiscreation.com

The Nature Journal Curriculum Web

Earth Science
Planets
Insects
Birds
Other animals
Trees & Shrubs
Plants
Habitats & Seasons
Weather
Observing
Identifying
Measuring
Comparing
Listing

Art
Hand-eye skills
Observational drawing versus imaginative drawing
Fundamentals of drawing
Techniques
Sketching/drawing
Painting

Language Arts

Written:
poetry
prose
fiction
nonfiction

Oral:
descriptive,
problem solving
communication
group sharing
oral learning

Social Studies
Local History
Environmental health and history
Mapmaking

Physical Education
Walking and exploring
Outdoor activity
Hiking

Make an insect Collection

God provides all kinds of interesting bugs to draw. Last year my husband found a praying mantis on top of the children’s swing set and a katydid in the bush by our garage. Be on the lookout as soon as the warm days of Spring return.

1. Use a tweezers to pick insects up
2. Make a killing jar. Our favorite is the good old ball jar – saturate a cotton ball
with nail polish remover
3. Use a colander or sieves can be used to scoop out of water
4. Make a sweep net out of an old pillowcase. A sweep net will not get caught on plants the way a butterfly net will.
5. Make or by a butterfly net
6. Beat Sheet, light trap, bait trap

University of Kentucky Department of Entomology
Orkin Insect Zoo: Some thoughts on insect collections
Dr. Richard Brown

Make an Herbarium which is a dried plant collection

Collecting samples of plants and preserving them. As you collect and preserve plant samples over time, a record of the plants native to your area can be established. You will become familiar with the shape of different kinds of flowers, seeds, and leaves.

You will need some materials before you can make your herbarium.

you will need a:
pen
page protectors
glue
two large pieces of board to make a plant press,
heavy objects or books
heavy duty paper towels or newspapers
memory book w/ plastic page protectors
knife or blade

What To Record
Make sure you record information about the plant before taking a sample. The things you may be able to find out about the plant are;
flowers and their color
shape of the petals
number of petals
shape and color of fruits

You can also note information about...
1. the date your sample was collected
2. growing conditions ie in water, in shade etc
3. special characters about the plant – smell texture - the feel of leaves, stems etc
4. location of sample
5. height, shape, type of bark and
6. who collected the sample

What To Collect

The plants you collect will need to show as many different parts of the plant as possible. A stem with buds, flowers or fruit and leaves is a good example. Bark, seeds and roots can also be collected. To collect all parts of the plant takes time and may need to be collected over a year.

How To Press And Dry Plants

Arrange the specimen on layered paper towels or newspapers. Fold over with the same newspaper or use another sheet to cover the plant. If you are pressing a number of plants, separate each with several thickness of paper towels or newspapers. When all specimens have been layered, Put on the top shelf and stack something heavy on top such as heavy books.

The moisture content of the plant will determine if paper towels or newspaper sheets need replacing throughout the drying time.

If your plant has a thick stem or is woody, you can slice the plant stem away to make a flat area, which helps to flatten out your sample. It will cut drying time down and is also helpful if plant specimens are large.

Preparing Your Plant

When your plant has been dried, fix it to a page of your memory book with glue. Cover with plastic protector

A book I highly recommend is: Nature Printing with Herbs, Fruits, and Flowers- by Laura Donnelly Bethmann