Essentials
Imagine a week on an island off the coast of Maine. No cars, no stores, no streetlights…just good company, good food, starry skies, blue horizons, and long days spent almost entirely outside. These are the essentials for Arts and Birding, a week-long program I facilitate each year at the Hog Island Audubon Camp. Because I’m teaching, I don’t have time to complete much artwork of my own, but I did manage a few pages. And as always, I came away inspired to keep observing, sketching, and sharing my work with the wider world.
Notes: (Clockwise from top) It’s not all birds! We also explore and sketch coastal scenes, plants, and life in the watery realm between high and low tide; Hog Island has a great collection of bird specimens, including a drawer of bird eggs; Young osprey nesting on the island are banded by wildlife biologists each year. It makes for fast sketching, but it’s a thrill to see these birds up close; Just the essentials for a week of Arts and Birding.
Arts and Birding is open for both sketchers/painters and photographers. Here’s a few photos from the week taken by photography staff and participants.
Registration for Arts and Birding 2019 opens in October; the session often fills quickly. Stay tuned here.
Drawn In 
Magnificent. I was entranced looking at your journal!
Great! Entranced by art is a good thing!
Heavenly way to spend the week.!!
Yes it is! I especially love being outside and surrounded by people who are excited by art and nature.
Another wonderful class! I loved mine with you. As you know since rather I’ve painted birds with kids in ME and FL …..local birds to get them to be familiar with their birds. Indeed , share your talent. That’s why you have it and you are so good at sharing it. Thank you.
Loved the paintbox painting….says it all. Cinda
Thank you Cinda! So glad you are sharing your talents too!
Since then…….automatic spell fix can getcha!
Such happy art!
love the sea – and these are beautiful
Thanks Maureen! Glad to bring a little piece of the ocean to your inbox.
I need a week like that to get me reconnected to nature journaling again — I’ve fallen off the wagon, and you’ve inspired me, as usual. Thank you for sharing. One of the things I most envy you for is being in a place where the night sky is so visible — that photo of the milky way is stunning, and of something I hope to see someday!
Oh Rosanne- I do hope you can be in a place someday to see the night sky in all its brilliance. That photo was taken during a night photography session and it is, indeed, stunning! It can be hard to keep a regular habit of nature journaling going. Perhaps setting a goal observing and drawing once a week (or even once a month) would help you pick up the pencil. And consider coming to Maine…
What a wonderful way to spend a week, immersed in the landscape, no external distractions. Sounds blissful! And despite having only a little time for your own work you produced such delightful sketches.
Thanks Anna- It is a lovely way to spend a week!
Very lovely inspiring sketches… !
Lovely! I’m never disappointed! Exploring the tide pools was something our girls and I enjoyed. Thank you for sharing .
I love the sense of discovery. There’s always something fascinating to see and learn in this watery realm.