The Art of Walking
I achieved a big milestone this week: I’ve walked and run 300 miles since January 1st. Being outside for a few miles each day has great benefits. Witnessing subtle changes of seasons and the comings and goings of plants and wildlife, combined with a chance to think inspires my artwork and grounds me in this place. Like the roadside weeds in bloom this week, few of my miles are standouts alone, but together they add up to something worth celebrating.
Tips and Techniques– Forming a regular habit — like walking or sketching regularly– takes some doing. The two most helpful things I have found for both are making a commitment and planning your time to fit them in. For me, the two activities support each other, as inspiration while walking turns to artwork and artwork completed leads to a desire to see what’s happening next. One mile leads to two leads to 20 and before you know it, your sketchbook is full.
Drawn In 
Congrats Jean! So cool. And some of my favorite flowers too.
I like the combination of purple vetch and daisies in bloom right now. Day lilies and more to come.
This is particularly beautiful!
So glad you like it. It’s pretty jumbled, but that’s sort of the way it is out there.
Wow! Great milestone and even greater painting. Love this message!
Thanks so much!
Lovely, Jean. I’d enjoy knowing the sequence you laid these flowers on to your page, if you actually did so while walking. No foul if you saw what you needed and then designed the page all at once.
Hi Peggy- I brought my sketchbook and a pen on a walk and started with the red clover on the left. From there, the hawkweed. The sun was going down and the bugs started to bite, so I collected other flowers and sketched and painted at home. My desk was a mess of pollen and fallen petals by the end. Had the bugs not been bad, I would have sketched it all while along the road and painted back at home.
Congrats! That is quite the milestone! Love this sketch too, it yells ‘spring!’….and the feather…brilliant touch.
Thanks much! Just found the feather this week and thought I’d add it.
Jean, I love the way your roadside flowers flow serendipitously onto your page.
I, too, admire our roadside wildflowers on my walks, but my biggest struggle is that I often end up doing more looking and drawing than walking, haha!
That’s not a bad thing! I don’t take my sketchbook on most of my walks. I mostly notice and then go back later to sketch the things that caught my eye.
Super awesome, Jean! 300 miles in such a short time period …… nothing to shake 3B pencil at! Yay! I’m fully agreeing with your walking/running philosophy….. thinking time, watching things change over time when traipsing familiar routes ….. appreciating those roadside nature encounters! Your journal pages are wonderful, always wonderful. It’s a great lesson too; weedy things deserve full observation and appreciation! Oh, I love that bee! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Barb– I’ve been a walker/runner for a long time, I really made a commitment to making it a daily habit when I broke my wrist. I found walking to be a great focus and way to stay active despite the things I couldn’t do. Then I just kept going. There are so many roadside encounters with wildlife. Good stuff all around!
That’s fantastic,Jean!
Congratulations on your 300 miles! Your posts are very uplifting and your sketchbook pages are so well done! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you Betty. I’m thrilled to reach this milestone and hope I can double it by the end of the year. I appreciate your kind feedback!
Thanks so much, Jean. I’ve become rather shy in the past few years and your words are encouraging me!!!💖
That’s nice to hear Pegi. Thanks.
You’re welcome!😁
Gre
Love the flowers, Jean. Great advice: walk everyday you can and sketch everyday you can.
Thanks Peggy. I love being outside, especially after working indoors all day.
Jean, Your “Walk in the Woods” is a great way to slowly observe more. I recently got a S&B Beta sketchbook hardcover. I’m curious as to how you lay the book when you do 2 page drawings. I noticed the binding is in sections so I’m thinking that I can go to middle of section, the book will lie flatter . Am I on right track? Your posts are always inspiring. Thank you.
Dane Farner. Flint Michigan
p.s. I use binder clips to hold the pages open when I am sketching. Helps with windy conditions.
Hi Dane- Before you use the sketchbook you can relax the binding by opening and closing it in sections. Start with one of the obvious sections and open the book all the way flat. Then chose another and do the same. You’ll want to repeat this a number of times. Once you’ve done the obvious sections, you can do some of the pages. Sometimes, the binding glue seeps onto the paper and you’ll have a messy “gutter” (that the center of the book where the pages come together). I just go ahead and use them as is. Then you can start in the front. You may want to do some fun “test” pages in the beginning. Try out different pencils, pens, paints, etc. on the paper to see how they perform. This can be a good way to face the initial blank pages of a new sketchbook. Good luck and enjoy!
You may not see this comment because by now, you’re traveling and when you get back, you’re going to have so many new ideas and images flying around your head! But anyway, as you’d guess, I love these lowly wildflowers and your homage to them. Especially Yellow sweet clover! That and the white version have been favorites for decades. 🙂