*Our professional evaluator uses our tool to explore her own process as a botanical artist.
Name: Cynthia Gehrie
Date: January 16, 2013
Which Studio Habit(s) did you use?
Observe, develop craft, envision
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I Used: What materials did you use?
I used black walnut ink that I make from black walnut
husks from the trees on the farm.
I also used a French ink paper that was developed for
calligraphy. To make the marks I
used several Speedball nibs that allow me to use a dip ink process to make
very fine lines and larger darker lines. I used natural materials that I collected on my daily walk
in the Shell Ridge preserve in Walnut Creek, CA while visiting my brother and
his family. I gathered
containers to bring water into the studio area and small jars to rinse the
ink out of nibs and for clear water to change the quality of marks in parts
of the drawing. I used soft pastels to add a slight amount of color to parts
of the feather and pinecone.
This dry media was necessary to keep from moving the ink, which is
lightfast but not waterproof.
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I Did: What was your process? What steps did you
take to create your work?
I set up a drawing area by opening my easel to be flat and
placing a drawing board to make a tabletop. I set out the nibs and practiced with each, noting the
mark I could make with each one, and making a small drawing to show the
quality of line for each. This
helped me select specific nibs for each drawing. I studied each object before drawing it, looking at its
proportions, visualizing how to make the marks that represent visual elements
in the natural materials, and how to use other materials such as water and
pastel to create effects. These
were solutions I came up with in response to questions like, How do I make
the downy part of the feather fluffy?
How do I see, understand and represent the pattern in the
pinecone? How do I use the ink
to get contrast from light to dark?
I needed to develop a strategy to solve the problems that different
elements in the natural materials represented.
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I Felt: What feelings did you have?
I chose subjects to represent elements in the natural
materials that were challenging for me.
I really did not know whether I would be able to do these drawings in
a successful way. Could I figure
out and represent the pattern and variation in the complex pinecone that used
a spiral, but not exactly or uniformly?
How could I use the variations in form to make the spiral more
interesting and dynamic? Could I
make the close lines of the feather close enough and the down look really
fluffy? I realized that I could use
water to soften the small marks of the down. Selecting the finest crow quill nib helped me to draw the
lines. Would I be able to
separate out the overlapping oak leaves so that they were distinct, yet a
complex unity on the twig? I had
doubt. I began to generate
possibilities, and test them to see how to do them. I began to gain confidence that I had an approach that
might work. I dove in and began
the basic sketch in pencil, then turned to the pen. The great thing about the ink I make is that it is more
forgiving than most ink. It can
be lifted with water if I do so quickly when I realize a mark is wrong. This helps me be more confident
because every mark is not permanent.
I can take more risks. I
can change my mind.
See Yourself Thinking: Map yourself doing this activity. What are you doing? Step outside of your body (focus on a specific part or see yourself from the other side of the classroom). Use schema to illustrate what is going on and add words and thought bubbles as needed.
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Critical Thinking related to Studio Thinking based on Area of Study: (prompt to be developed by teacher)
