Sketching Nature as a Summer Hobby

Despite not having studied art formally, I enjoy taking a pencil and sketchpad outdoors in the summertime. The intricate beauty of foliage and flowers beckon me to capture their outlines on paper. It is a simple enough sort of summer hobby that costs no more than acquiring paper and pencils for materials. Then I must carve out the time to slow down and concentrate on the beauty I discover.

In recent summers I have taken my sketchpad up to the woods and fields of Canada. There I sketched wild strawberries, as well as other floral specimens I could not always name. Sketching is a way for me to meditate on an appreciate the beauty of nature's design. Though it does not require me to travel, I find that getting away from my everyday scenery helps me to notice what I find in a new place. Sometimes it is hard to slow down enough in my own neighborhood or backyard, but I should, nevertheless. Sketching is a hobby I can do almost anywhere, whether one I am a tourist or simply exploring my neighborhood and weed-strewn backyard.

Annie Dillard has expounded on the overlooked natural treasures that are worth seeing. In her book, A Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, she observes that "there are lots of things to see, unwrapped gifts and free surprises. The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside from a generous hand."

For me, sketching nature in the summertime is a chance to enjoy collecting the beautiful "pennies"--leaves, flowers, even blades of grass-- and savor them kinesthetically and visually. As I strive to commit the delicate outlines to paper, I appreciate the design that I must study and behold. I cannot duplicate the details as precisely as a photographer, but this actually helps me stand in greater awe of what wonders that creation unfurls each summer. I can but capture an imperfect impression, yet the memory of drawing what I see carries me far into the barren winter months and beyond.

Creating nature sketches does not, in my opinion, take a great amount of artistic skill. What it does require is patience and a contemplative spirit--to slow down and see the exquisite wonders that surround us but can otherwise go unappreciated. That there are so many arts festivals in the summer (which I also enjoy) is further evidence of the universal desire to behold beauty. For me, sketching nature is a summer hobby that turns me from bystander to participant as I intently see and interpret the natural world. It is time to gather my pencils and paper canvas once more.


Sources:

Dillard, Annie. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. New York : HarperPerennial, 2007.