...young nature artists use acrylic paints to create beautiful nature art on rocks.
Matty helps by answering questions, getting paints, changing water...and just laughing with the kids.
...wherever you looked, birds, snakes, salamanders, turtles, and frogs were coming to life under the skilled hands of young nature artists! (If you look closely, you can see the gentleman on the right has created a beautiful Northern Cardinal. Unfortunately because of the angle of the rock, we can't see the colorful Common Yellowthroat the gentleman on the left created...)
...it was thrilling to watch everyone focus and really get into their art. The variety of styles and subjects was amazing...
(You should have seen the stones after these two lovely ladies were finished. They were gorgeous!)
...towards the end of the workshop, Matty sat down and painted a stone too. He created a beautiful frog.
If you're in the area, be sure to check out Jenny's calendar of events. She always has something scheduled at the nature center, and if you live in Cincinnati, Shawnee is only two hours away. The lodge is lovely, and escaping into the forest feels like you've gone worlds away. If your child is at all interested in herpetology, you need to visit Jenny at the nature center. She is the most hands-on naturalist I've ever met. She has an unsurpassed talent for awakening a love of nature in children. You will be amazed at how much your child will learn from just a few minutes with Jenny...
p.s. Matty and I will be volunteering for a week next year at Shawnee too, and we're going to put on the free workshop again. Maybe we will see you there. I'll be sure to post the date next summer.
...also...painting on rocks is really fun! We used really smooth rocks, and I loved the way the creamy acrylics would glide over the surface. I painted a Hooded Warbler on one side of the rock and then flipped it to paint a Northern Cardinal on the other side. I'll write more on that later...
19 comments:
oh what a wonderful art class - combining nature and art into greatness. so neat to see everyone's expressions.
they are true artists
That looks like a great idea, and a wonderful time! It's amazing what one can do when given the opportunity.
OH Kelly, What great fun ---and such a wonderful time for mother and son to be together... Looks so interesting --and I can tell how much you two enjoyed your time there... Congrats.
Happy 4th!
Hugs,
Betsy
That looks like a wonderful class! Everyone was so engrossed in their work. I especially liked the shot of the sweet little girl painting on the rock on the ground. You must have had so much fun doing this with Matty.
It's a pleasant task to talk to the children. Good artists at work!
It's funny how much the kids all love to paint. I hope they retain that! What a fun day!!
How very, very cool! That looks like so much fun for everyone. :))
MY FAVORITE PICTURE IS THE LITTLE GIRL PAINTING ON THE ROCK ON THE GROUND. HAT ON BACKWARDS , DRESSED IN PINK . SHOE COLORS ARE GREAT. SO SWEET. A REAL KEEPER.
That looked like lots of fun, and you could tell from your pictures how fascinated everyone was with the project. I especailly liked the picture of the little girl squating down, painting her rock.
How wonderful to be able to share your love of nature and gift of painting with others.
That looked a lot of fun Kelly.
Those young artists had so much concentration in their faces.
What a terrific experience. Looks like your young naturalists/artists had a great time.
Hey, Kelly. What a fun post. You guys are awesome, and so are the budding artists in your workshop.
Thanks for visiting my blog!
How cool! They'll want you every year for this. Thanks for sharing such a onderful experience!
Absolutely fabulous!! What an awesome activity - so wonderful that you and Matty were able to share your passion with these lucky people. The photos make it all look like such an enriching time -- truly a time for them all to remember!
...thank you everyone for the kind words! We had so much fun. Everyone is so nice at Shawnee...and so creative. I really enjoy every minute I get to stay there. It's a very special place...with special people...
Looks like a great class! I love your unposed shots of the kids. At that age the kids have such focus, so unselfconscious! And you must be so proud of Matty!
What fun. I wish I could have joined in.
We just had a beach house family reunion with eight kids. I brought kids watercolors and paper along. They really enjoyed painting shells and sand-dollars, both using them as models and painting on them. And I got a kick out of joining in and watching them.
Shows with even my small amount of experience you can lead this kind of activity.
Kids, nature, paints for young and old. You did a good thing, I'd say. (This is dumb, but I can't help thinking ahead a few hundred years to Martians or merely other earthlings discovering these rocks, a la the cave paintings we get so worked up about--what will they say about us?).
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