It was a peaceful yet creative day led by Margaret and Blair, with a super group of folk who enjoyed getting to know the trees and forest.
We began small in the morning with some relaxed doodly pieces followed by a mindful visual exploration of the trees whilst still in the workshop, and inspiration from the tree markmaking of Hokusai which we also worked from. We then walked in the forest spending time with the trees and engaging with our senses, drawing the sounds, collecting rubbings, textures and natural objects..
In the afternoon we chose a tree to focus on and connect with, working with moss and twigs from around the tree with ink and some charcoal. After a wee break and cuppa, and nicely timed to move into the workshop and avoid the thundery build up of rain cloud, our final piece of the day was an exuberant flourish of biological tree, branch and moss markmaking, using some natural things we collected like pine cones, as well as twigs and brushes.
Some comments from participants:
‘Loved the whole day, especially enjoyed being outdoors amongst the trees. No where to go, just sitting, feeling’
‘I liked the gentle introduction then the contrast between being indoors and outdoors – it felt encouraging and interesting’
‘Tree markings – memories of activities as a child. Preciousness of trees’
‘I really enjoyed the drawing to sounds – I used colours for different sounds which was fun! Also using moss etc to paint was great. Also going out in nature I am able to notice small details’
‘Playing with the wide brush and coloured inks – surprisingly easy to make graceful marks with the whole arm’
You must be logged in to post a comment.