Taking a walk in the woods is good for you - FACT!

We all know that taking a walk in the woods makes you feel better and this is something that is really important to my practice. I recently read a fascinating article in the Ecologist which refers to a recent study by A UK research team from Herriot-Watt University. They measured how the brain responds to walking in different environments and found clear proof that...

Walking in nature and spending time under leafy shade trees causes electrochemical changes in the brain that can lead people to enter a highly beneficial state of “effortless attention.”

The article also draws parallels with the work of Rachel Kaplan and Steven Kaplan in discussing the restorative mental benefits of being immersed in the natural environment;

When you enter a green space of natural light and shadows containing the colors of nature, you can also enter a particularly reflective mode at the same time in which you are able to comprehend more than one thing at a time, a state in which stresses and pressures are reduced...All in all, being in nature produces a fully restorative experience.

So although it is what I already knew this somehow serves to emphasise the importance of our green spaces and making time to immerse ourselves in the natural world. I was also fascinated to note that particular reference was made to the benefits of play and exploration in nature; all my mucking about along the river or in the woods takes on a different meaning.

Packing up

In Search of Green finished at the Bowery on Friday. A few last photos taking advantage of the shadows and then it was packed away. I would like to show it again somewhere new... any suggestions of a suitable gallery near you?

Thank you to all those who were able to visit the exhibition for all the kind thoughts and comments I received in the comments book. It means more than I can say.

Playing with sunshine and shadows

On the way to the studio today I dawdled to play in the shadows, which cheered me up after a bad week.

This weekend I will be joined by a couple of other folks to play with making prints using sunshine and shadows. It should be the perfect weather for it.

On the edge of vision

"And often when I wake at night, and listen to the silence, or wander far from people, in the greyness of the evening, or stand and look at quiet water having shadows over it, some vague image seems to hover on the skirt of vision, ever changing place and outline, ever flitting as I follow. This so moves me and hurries me in the eagerness and longing, that straightway all my chance is lost; and memory, scared like a wild bird, flies."

Lorna Doone by R. D. Blackmore

shadows and stars

an exercise in surface and light

Lengthening shadows

This time of year delicate structures start to reveal themselves after the fullness of autumn fades. I am aware of missing the change in seasons, wrapped up in a world of work.  While I have busied myself, in another world muted greys and greens and lengthening shadows have been developing a soft palette of botanical patterning.

Lately time has taken on a different quality for me. Days and weeks slip by and sleep is fugitive. in spite of the seeming lack of time to reflect, in recent days I have noticed a few fleeting glimpses of things from the past; reminders; shadows of thoughts to bring me back to the why and wherefore. It has also been a time to consider the important things that define me, reminding myself that money does not motivate me and that seven years is too long to wait to renew old acquaintances. Still it was worth realising that we may be a few years older but deep down just the same as we ever were.

Knowledge of self is more valuable than all the study and diplomas in the world.

Walk more, look more, smile more, sleep more

Ailsa Well

While doing some research into 'a sense of place' I found out about some of the ancient sites around Bingley. I was amazed to discover that there are ancient carved stones in the woods above Bingley and lots of woodland springs that probably had spiritual significance for our ancestors. The is one spring in the centre of Bingley that I already knew about called Ailsa Well. It can be reached from the Riverside Walk.

          

It was beautifully cool on a sunny afternoon and the sound of the gently running water was incredibly calming. I was really pleased that it had been well cared for; it would be so easy for something like this to be lost in the chaos of modern town development.

Also along the path I came across this stunningly beautiful corridor of dappled shadows.

drawing shadows from projections

These are some of the drawings I created by projecting my digital photos onto a sheet of A1 paper and drawing over the marks. I have used a variety of different media but found charcoal to be particularly appropriate because of the variety of marks that can be made, especially fuzzy marks and soft edges.

I was quite pleased with the results, even though some of them took a long time, as I haven't any large-scale drawing for ages. It was really enjoyable working in this way and using the projector seemed relevant to the idea of projected light and shade in the shadows.

My two young nephews think the drawings are of islands in a lagoon, which is pretty imaginative and interesting.

Dancing shadows

During the brighter summer days I am seeing more and more beautiful shadows, especially the clear shadows cast through trees onto pavements. These photos were taken in Mrytle Park, Bingley. I found it really interesting how the intricate patterns constantly moved and changed with the weather and sunlight. It is also worth noting the connection between these shadows and pinhole photography - a very small gap between leaves can act as a camera obscura, a basic form of pinhole camera, and project the sun's image onto the ground; this is one of the ways a solar eclipse can be viewed.

I have since projected these images onto A1 paper and made some large-scale drawings. I will upload these at a later date.

Painting shadows

Noticing a shadow on the wall this morning I decided to make a drawing/tracing from it. The shadow was from a potted plant and was made by a shaft of light from a gap in the curtain. I didn't really have a plan for the drawing so I picked up some grey acrylic ink and just started painting on the paper I stuck on the wall. This was perhaps not the most suitable media as the shadows really had quite soft, fuzzy edges. I think the areas I put in with a watered-down solution, later in the drawing, seem better.

As I worked I noticed how quickly the shadow was moving and changing with the altering direction of the sun. Although we would normally consider this to be a slow movement it seemed fast in comparison to the speed of my drawing, but it was only by drawing it that I could notice the speed. I also noticed the layers of shadows of different densities. I think there are lots of ideas from this that can be developed.

Shadows on a window

Shadows on a window remind me of my original ideas. I love the dappled light and the movement of the shadows. I think I would like to do some large-scale drawings of shadows. Perhaps I could stick some tracing paper on the window and trace from the actual shadows.