In the fast-paced whirl of modern life, finding moments of calm and connection often requires a conscious effort. Art provides a unique avenue for achieving mindfulness, especially when practiced in the natural world. Two artistic processes that beautifully marry art with the serenity of nature are nature journaling and en plein air painting. In this blog post, we'll delve into these practices, offering definitions, tips, and a closer look at an example artwork, The Creative Fire.
What is Nature Journaling?
Nature journaling is the practice of recording observations about the natural world in an artistic format. This could involve sketching a landscape, noting the colour variations in flower petals, or even charting the behaviour of birds. The key is observation: not just seeing but truly noticing your environment.
Tips for Nature Journaling:
Carry a Dedicated Journal: Have a specific notebook and a set of pencils, pastels or watercolours that you use only for your nature observations.
Start Small: Your first entries don't need to be masterpieces. Sketch or write about a single leaf or a small rock. The detail observed in small things can be immense.
Regular Entries: Make regular entries to observe the changing seasons, which can deepen your connection with the environment.
Engage All Your Senses: Write down what you hear, smell, and feel, not just what you see. This multisensory approach can enhance your mindfulness and observational skills.
What is En Plein Air?
En plein air is a French term meaning "in the open air." This traditional form of painting involves working outside, directly in the landscape, capturing scenes with natural light. This method was famously used by the Impressionists, who were keen on capturing the transient effects of light and atmosphere in their paintings.
Tips for En Plein Air Painting:
Lighting Is Key: The quality of natural light changes throughout the day. Many artists prefer the golden hours of early morning or late afternoon for their soft, diffused light.
Simplify Your Kit: Bring only the essential tools—paints, brushes, a canvas or board, and perhaps a portable easel. This makes it easier to move around and capture different views.
Embrace the Elements: Weather and changing conditions are part of the challenge and charm of plein air painting. Let them influence your work, reflecting the reality of the scene.
Practice Mindfulness: Use the time to really connect with the landscape. Observe the sounds and smells, and let the peace of your surroundings infuse into your work.
Case Study: The Creative Fire
The Creative Fire is an exemplary work that embodies the spirit of both nature journaling and en plein air. This painting shows a scene set in a vibrant landscape, where the artist has depicted the dynamic interplay of light and shadow. The artwork resonates with the energy of the natural world, capturing not just the visual splendour but also the emotional stirrings that the artist experienced in that moment.
Analyzing The Creative Fire
As an artist, the call of the wild is not just about adventure—it's about capturing the fleeting moments nature offers us, moments that are as transient as they are beautiful. Recently, I embarked on such a journey at Elk Island, where I braved the cold winds to create a watercolour piece en plein air, which later inspired a larger acrylic painting in my studio.
Here's a glimpse into that process.
Outdoor Beginnings: Watercolour on a Windy Day
The Challenge: Elk Island presented a scene of stark beauty under the challenging conditions of a cold, windy day. The wind was chilling but also invigorating, as I set up my pochade box in a picnic enclosure that had a cozy fire pit. This became my compact, mobile studio ideal for such adventure.
Materials and Methods: I happened to have some firewood in my trunk, so I was all prepared to make a cozy warm fire. My pochade box was stocked with a small watercolour pad and a variety of brushes and paints. The simplicity of watercolour was perfect for capturing the subtle interplay of light and shadows of the burning fire, although the movement offered a lot of visual merging colours and shapes in ways I hadn't planned. I prefer using Winsor and Newton paints for their vibrancy and heavy hot press Arches paper.
Artistic Approach: With limited time and shifting light, I worked quickly, laying down washes of colour that captured the essence of the landscape. This spontaneous method of painting not only challenges an artist to think fast but also to embrace the imperfections that come with environmental influences.
Studio Transformation: The Larger Acrylic Piece
Back in the warmth of my studio, I felt compelled to revisit the raw beauty of Elk Island with a more durable and vivid medium. I chose acrylics for their ability to hold colour and detail over larger areas, allowing me to expand on the nuances of the smaller sketch.
Scaling Up: Transitioning from a small watercolour to a large 30x40 acrylic piece involved rethinking the composition to suit the new scale. I used the photos I had taken as references to enhance the foreground and background, providing depth that the smaller piece could only hint at.
Techniques and Challenges: Acrylics lend themselves to layering, so I built up the painting in stages, starting with broad washes of background colour and gradually adding details. The challenge was to keep the spontaneity of the plein air piece while refining the image; to achieve this, I occasionally stepped back to view the work from a distance, ensuring I maintained the original's vibrancy and motion.
Final Piece: The last section of the post would feature images of the acrylic work at various stages, from the initial layout of colors to the detailed final touches, showcasing the evolution from a simple plein air sketch to a detailed studio masterpiece.
This artistic journey from Elk Island's chilly winds to the controlled environment of my studio was a reminder of the joys and challenges of plein air painting. Each environment brings its own unique influence, shaping the art in unforeseen ways. By sharing this process, I hope to inspire other artists to embrace the unpredictable nature of outdoor painting and to find ways to let these experiences inform larger, more detailed works. Whether in the wild or in the studio, every brush stroke is a step on the path of artistic discovery.
The Symbolism of Fire
Fire, an elemental force of nature, has captivated the human imagination since time immemorial. It has been revered, feared, and utilized in countless ways across various cultures and spiritual traditions. This section explores the rich symbolism of fire through different contexts and stories, illuminating its profound significance.
Indigenous Traditions and the Sweat Lodge
In many Indigenous cultures, fire is not merely a physical phenomenon but a sacred entity that serves as a conduit to the spiritual world. The sweat lodge, a ceremonial sauna, exemplifies this belief. It is a place of spiritual refuge, healing, and renewal where fire heats stones that are then placed in the center of an enclosed lodge to create steam. This practice is deeply symbolic; the fire purifies and the steam evokes the primordial waters of creation, facilitating a rebirth of the participants. The fire used in sweat lodge ceremonies is treated with great reverence, often being kindled with specific prayers and rituals that acknowledge its sacred role as a communicator between the physical and spiritual realms. This process reflects a broader Indigenous worldview in which elements of the natural world are interconnected and imbued with spiritual significance.
Tibetan Tradition and Tummo
In Tibetan Buddhism, fire symbolism takes a mystical form in the practice of Tummo, or the "inner fire" meditation. Tummo is a technique used by practitioners to access deep states of meditation that generate bodily heat. This practice involves visualizing a blazing fire along the spine, which serves to awaken the kundalini energy at the base of the spine and propel it upwards through the body's central channel. The goal of Tummo is to blend and harmonize the male (solar) and female (lunar) energy channels within the body to achieve an expanded state of awareness and enlightenment. This form of meditation highlights fire’s symbolic association with transformation and spiritual awakening, illustrating how internal fires can lead to profound inner change and clarity.
Fire as a Symbol of Passion and Creativity
Beyond its physical and spiritual manifestations, fire universally symbolizes passion and creativity. In literature and art, fire often represents the burning intensity of romantic love, the fervor of deep passions, or the illuminating spark of creative ideas. For artists and creatives, invoking the symbol of fire can be a method to express the dynamic and consuming nature of the creative process—just as a fire transforms wood into ash, the creative fire transforms thoughts into tangible art. This symbolism is evident in expressions like a "spark of inspiration" or "burning passion," which convey the power of fire to initiate and sustain energetic and transformative processes.
Additional Contexts and Examples
Fire also plays a crucial role in various mythologies and religious texts. In Greek mythology, Prometheus stole fire from the gods to give to humanity, symbolizing enlightenment and the pursuit of knowledge despite potential consequences. In many Christian traditions, fire represents the Holy Spirit and is used in rituals to signify purification and the presence of divine power.
Moreover, the transformative power of fire is central in alchemical traditions, where it is considered one of the primary processes for achieving the transmutation of substances. Alchemists used fire as a metaphor for the personal transformation needed to turn lead (a symbol of the unenlightened soul) into gold (a symbol of spiritual enlightenment).
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