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April Sketchbook: Days 1-7

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Friday 7 April 2017

April Sketchbook: Days 1-7

Up in the dark wood, the plants are starting to grow. Blossom is out on the blackthorn, primroses and bluebells are starting to flower. I wanted to make some sort of record of the developments for my work about the Spinney and I had also suggested to my painting group that a daily drawing sketchbook would be a good way of getting back into observed drawing before our first meeting at the end of the month. 
So it seemed only fair that I should do the same and I really need to get back to this essential bit of looking and seeing.

So here are the first 7 days of sketches. I try to limit the time and not be precious. It’s just a bit of daily practice but also a really good ideas generating process. A4 super cheap sketchbook with just 32 pages perfect for a month.

I collect a bunch of single leaves and other bits and pieces from my route. Some leaves are small, just emerging, some already well on their way. I keep them in a plastic bag in the fridge. Easily mistaken for salad apparently.

salad

Some of this weeks ‘salad’… Mmmm…delicious!

1-2-april 

1st April : Arum, 2 thistles..(ouch), burdock, fascinating agrimony with its additional leaflets, celandine, dock.
2nd April: Dog’s mercury, speedwell, ground ivy, primrose, wild garlic, goose grass, cranesbill, violet, dock with spots, field maple, dandelion, elm seed, ivy, cow parsley.

5-6-april

3rd April: Pine twig, dock again showing how the leaves turn back on themselves, spurge laurel flower and leaf. This shiny leaved plant manages to survive under the canopy of the wood and has curious nondescript little flowers and the beginning of the berries at this time of year. Dogs mercury again showing more of the plant and the spray of tiny flowers. A cowslip. This one from my garden but they grow happily on the banks of the reservoir so included in the “route”

4th April: Goat willow stem and its lovely catkin which has a fascinating structure when you look closely. A twig of blackthorn which is beautiful, a long black stem ending in a few white flowers. En mass this is such a poignant evocation of spring in the British countryside.

5-6-april-


5th April: Common hogweed leaf. a young one and the very odd flower of coltsfoot with its long snaky stem with scale leaves. The flower has faded but again a fascinating structure.

6th April : Feathers picked up over the last couple of days. A big pheasant feather and I think an accompanying small one. A very beautiful spotted woodpecker feather and a mallard feather rescued from the little that was left of the bird on the waterline…only its head was intact. I know I should have brought it back to draw,  but….
 
7th

7th April : A page of deconstructed  little wych elm seeds. A small bunch had blown off the tree by the shoreline. I removed them from their twig to draw. There are  17 of them. They are neat,  heart shaped seeds with a red seed capsule. I missed the flowers which are tiny red-ish bobbles. It seems so early for a tree to already be setting seed. When ripe they will rain down like heart confetti all over the village and into our garden.

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3 Comments:

Blogger Shady Gardener said...

You are so inspiring! Happy Spring!

7 April 2017 at 20:55  
Blogger Diana Studer said...

heart confetti - to be used for a wedding, or are they woody and unkind to throw?

7 April 2017 at 23:12  
Blogger sharp green pencil said...

Hit there SG. lovely to hear from you and thank you! There is so much going on out there I am finding it hard to keep up .. also sun is distracting!

Diana.. Hmm.. weddings.. always a tricky subject. If you were minded to have a wedding in a village church in April which had elms and blackthorn and cherry nearby.. and if it were a suitably windy day .. you could be showered with delicate blossoms and seeds.. all very symbolic.. all very rural idyll..all very unlikely :). Actually they are papery thin and very delicate but do shrivel up and become less attractive quite quickly! Ahh so much symbolism.. so much innuendo! :)

10 April 2017 at 08:58  

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