Sketching Nature

Learn how to start a botanical sketchbook from scratch, to improve both your drawing skills and your appreciation of the natural world. Sketchbooks are a simple yet great way of becoming more involved with nature, while learning to draw and paint with purpose. Sketchbooking is also a great way to stop and appreciate the world around us, with all the wellbeing benefits that brings. This beautiful yet practical book is aimed at those starting out in botanical art and nature journaling. The simple rationale is to make keeping a botanical sketchbook accessible to all who want to try it by providing an attractive book filled with practical advice. The book features instruction on the process of creating a sketchbook from the very beginning, with step-by-step images, beginning with an illustrated introduction about the wellbeing benefits of keeping such a book. From there, the author provides practical recommendations on materials including using ready-made sketchbooks or creating your own from loose sheets with simple bookbinding techniques. An introduction to the materials and equipment is followed by simple techniques and colour mixing guidance, with examples of sketch pages and details throughout. A range of several step-by-step sequences show the process of the development of sketchbook pages and how to construct them, covering content and composition, what parts of the plant to include, and how to deal with different subjects. It also reveals how and where to add colour swatches and what types of notes could be included on the pages. The process of creating sketchbook pages develops throughout the book to include a range of subjects, building in complexity, such as adding insects and habitats and more intricate pages with several subjects. AUTHOR: Dianne Sutherland (@diannesutherlandart) has been a botanical artist for 35 years and a tutor since 2010. She is qualified in both Science and Art with a Diploma in Botanical Art and BSc in Biology specialising in plants. Her work has been included in several publications and has been included in numerous exhibitions, in the US, UK, Singapore, Indonesia, Spain and Australia. In addition, Dianne works as a freelance illustrator and has worked for clients including Unilever, Boots, Adidas, Four Seasons Ocean Club, Bahamas, Method and Standard and English Garden Magazine.