Hold Nature Close
August 2026
Want to get closer to nature? Sit in silence amongst the trees, dunes, or where ever you may roam. Watch the flowers or grasses sway and bow in the wind. Feel the wind or light breeze against your skin and in your hair. Lay on your back and look up, what do you see? Listen to the wind travel through the leaves. Or hold some of nature in your hand.
Top to bottom: pine needle, feather, 3 sticks. All found natural materials I am using as my drawing tool.
Unfortunately, I can’t be outside all the time. Until I live in a treehouse or small cabin in the woods, I’ll bring pieces of nature indoors. This sketchbook contains drawings drawn only with a feather, sticks, or pine needle. My old travel photographs are the subjects. These particular images are from Colorado, Utah, and monsoon season in Albuquerque. After choosing a photograph, I wonder, ”oof, will I be able to draw this?” Happily, I like all the drawings because they resemble the photos and feelings. You may notice the artistic license I took and changed little things here and there.
Drawing with these implements is challenging, in a good way. There is less control, since these aren’t a formal pencil or pen. The sticks and feather have a tendency to twist in my hand as I draw. The tips are raw which has a rough dragging feeling against the paper. Also, due to the natural tip, the ink doesn’t flow evenly. Sometimes the applied ink is thin, thick, stutters, or blobs on the page. Each drawing is an adventure.
Exploring the different marks is exciting. In the drawing (below, right) of Double Arch from Arches National Park. The heavier application of ink on the right creates a dark shadow. It makes me think, what’s back there? The arches are strong yet delicately reach across like arms touching the larger rock on the right. The stains on the rock naturally fall semi-smoothly down the formation. The voids are filled with a blue sky that feel either stormy or early dawn.
Color is added to select areas or sometimes the entire drawing. Watercolor is applied with a water brush, something I typically use on the trail. The quick application and soft colors add dimension and movement to the drawings. My eye like to shift from the stark black and white areas to the soft colors. In the top left image, you’ll see trees reflected in the river with a rocky river’s edge. This is the Animas River in Durango, CO. Both sides of the drawing have texture and visual interest. It is balanced by not adding color to the entire drawing. I like the density of the rocks against the reflection in the water and trees in the background. My eyes circulate from the rocky edge on the left, into the water, slowly up the trees being reflected, and back around to the rocks.
Drawing regularly helps me become more comfortable drawing this way. The organic materials give me more freedom to practice and play. I like my loose and natural style. Try holding a bit of nature in your hand to draw, paint or sculpt. See what the connection feels like and how it impacts your creativity.