Native plant Illustrations for Silver Falls State Park- a timely enquiry leads to a dream commission.
Pen and ink illustration. Western ground ginger, Asarum caudatum, one of the native plants growing at Silver Falls State Park.
The Friends of Silver Falls State Park
Earlier this year I visited the Nature Store at the South Falls area of Silver Falls State Park. I was hoping the attractive gift store might be interested in carrying some of my botanical art greeting cards and was finally making enquiries. The aptly named Nature Store is housed in the restored historic log cabin to the north of the South Falls Lodge and is run by the Friends of Silver Falls (FOSF) non-profit. Since their founding in 1986 the FOSF’s mission has been to fund educational and interpretive programs at the park and the Nature Store is the main source of that funding. As a very active voluntary organization they have a long tradition of collaboration with the park staff. Being Oregon’s largest, Silver Falls State Park attracts over a million visitors annually so the FOSF provide valuable help on a weekly basis as well as at busy times of the year like the annual Mother’s Day Wildflower Festival.
Perfect Timing!
As soon as I made enquiries at the store a friendly shop assistant (a FOSF volunteer) handed me their administrator’s business card advising me to email her. This I did as soon as I got home and was promptly rewarded with a reply. My timing couldn’t have been better as it turned out, not only was the FOSF interested in selling my native plant greeting cards, they also had a project they were deliberating upon and wondered if I might be interested- illustrating a series of thirty native plant identification sheets to be displayed at the lodge. I could hardly contain my excitement and of course I said yes immediately.
Red flowering currant, Ribes sanguineum. One of my native plant greeting cards that can be found at the Friends of Silver Falls State Park Nature Store.
Old herbarium specimens to be replaced by new botanical illustrations made possible by the Maroe Brown Trust.
Regular visitors may remember browsing through a set of herbarium specimens, housed in a wooden box, that sat on a counter in the lodge dining room. For many years these specimens (provided by the FOSF) helped visitors identify native plants growing in the park. Over time the popular specimens succumbed to the wear and tear of visitor use and had to be removed. At the time of my enquiry the FOSF had just received a generous bequest allowing them to consider replacing the old with new botanical specimens, however, in the end they decided to use botanical illustrations instead. It was my good fortune to walk into the Nature Store at just the right time and thanks to the generous bequest of Maroe Brown – long time FOSF volunteer and native plant lover- I have this great opportunity to work on the new FOSF series of native plant identification sheets.
Illustrating thirty native species-a long term project.
Illustrating thirty native species will take time, several seasons in fact, but I look forward to the challenge. It’s not often that one has the opportunity and funding to really get to know a plant subject: to study and record its different growing stages and most importantly, to observe it in its natural habitat. At 9,200 acres, the park (often called the “Crown jewel” of the Oregon State Park system) is vast. I look forward to exploring its diverse regions as I search for the native plants on the list – and I hope you can join me on this botanical adventure as I write about it here.
Aislinn Adams
Blog #1 Friends of Silver Falls State Park Native Plant Illustration Project.
We all need a community of practitioners to grow and flourish in our own creativity.
What I have learned about sustaining creativity and Botanical Art Facebook groups.
Over the course of this year I will be blogging regularly about my participation in an exciting new project called “Nature Trail 2014 – a natural sketchbook exchange.” However, before I start blogging about this sketchbook odyssey I would like to explain how I ended up being part of it in the first place. To do this I must go back 16 months in time- and tell a story about travel, new friendships, the benefits of being connected to an art community- virtual and “real”- and change.
A catalyst in my process of change.
Last year was an amazing one for me because it was the year I made positive changes in how I work. This process of change started several years ago but didn’t crystalize into tangible results until my trip back to Ireland in November 2012. While there I met members of the new Irish Society of Botanical Artists (ISBA.) Because of this meeting and what ensued, my attitude to my artwork in general and botanical art in particular has changed dramatically.
You never know when a chance meeting can have a profound impact on your work- and life. That is exactly what happened when I met this group of botanical artists at the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin. As a result of that meeting I have become a member of a worldwide community of botanical artists and because of this my work has taken off in a new and more purposeful direction.
Geography is not a problem for botanical art communities.
Although originally from Ireland I live in the Pacific northwest, many thousands of miles from those botanic artists I met in Dublin. Nontheless, thanks to the specialist Facebook groups- Irish Botanical Artists and Botanical Artists– I am in daily communication with many of them and have made lots of new “friends”. Because of this communication, and the support I receive from these “friends”, my work habits, output, and attitude to my own art have changed radically- for the better.
A virtual community of practitioners leads to ”real” community and lots of creativity.
I have learned that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to work alone. I need the support and feedback of fellow-practitioners to sustain my creativity. My first choice is always to meet fellow artists in person but, in my case up until recently, I didn’t know any. Contrary to the many criticisms I’ve heard about Facebook; that it causes people to withdraw from person to person communication as people spend more and more time “talking” on their computers, my experience has been the opposite. Ironically, through these botanical artists Facebook groups I now know more local botanic artists and have started a monthly nature-sketching group nearby. The old adage “it’s a small world” is the same whether online or not.
Inspiration comes from a community of practitioners.
We all need inspiration to start something and to keep it going- especially when the going gets tough. Many of the members of these Facebook groups are world-class botanic artists. Their work is incredibly beautiful and very inspiring, but what is equally inspiring is their willingness to share it and discuss techniques and materials freely. If I have a bad day drawing when nothing seems to go right I post a comment on the Botanic Artists’ page and always get encouraging and funny responses.
Abundant generosity flows from a community of practitioners.
I have also discovered that people are very generous with their support and knowledge. No matter how successful and busy members are they always seem to be able to find the time to share some helpful information and give good advice. There is no professional jealousy- instead abundant, thoughtful, generosity.
Great ideas and new projects too!
It is said that we are more intelligent (and creative) when we work together in groups. That is certainly the case with these Facebook groups. By seeing the creative ideas shared online by this botanical art community, my own understanding, knowledge and creativity grows. The Nature Trail 2014 project is a perfect example of this “intelligence.” As I was saying at the beginning of this blog I will be writing regularly about this project in the coming months. I hope you will come back to see its progress and maybe be inspired to start your own nature sketchbook or join a botanical art group on-line or in your area.
Aislinn Adams
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