A Pacific Northwest Nature Sketchbook

by Jude Siegel

Keeping an illustrated nature sketchbook can be eye opening, and anyone can do it, at home or while traveling. This step-by-step guide to painting by the ocean, near rivers, and in valleys, forests, desert, and mountains offers dozens of practical tips for combining watercolor and ink to create pages rich in personal meaning. With her gentle humor and low-key approach, popular teacher Jude Siegel encourages everyone to venture outdoors with sketchbook in hand to try their artist's wings. Lavishly illustrated with more than 140 of the author's stunning original watercolors of Oregon and Washington.

Genres: Art, Nature, Nonfiction, Journaling, Drawing

202 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2006

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good detailed description of how to keep a nature sketchbook/watercolor journal, with lots of specific examples from the Pacific Northwest (that bit got old by the end). I did get some great quotes on creativity out of this one.

[Tara Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for getting started with sketching and watercolor. Very encouraging and easy to follow.

[Kellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely inspiration for many of my favorite places.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm filling up a sketchbook with exercises from this book. It's for novices but there are some good things for even a fine arts grad, who wants to loosen up and refresh their style, that's me! I saw this in a catalogue that came to gramma's mailbox in CV (now my mailbox) and ordered it. (she gets great mail!) Nice ideas about using pen and ink combined with watercolor. Good for people who like to journal, too. I have all of Grampa Mac's sketchbooks and they are journals kind of like this. In the fall I carried a sketchbook with me while catching the bus to work and for Christmas Andy gave me big paper so I can do some more of this in the spring.


Addendum January 2009. Went back to this book again, used it for sketching and water color this fall and winter. Even though the writer is not a fine arts student, her intuitive skills are good for refreshing ones style.

[Pat Loughery · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've had this on the Amazon wishlist for a while after a friend recommended it to me, but I didn't look at it sooner because I didn't want another person's sketchbook. However, Jude Siegel has done a nice job with a high-level, not super detailed or demainding, call to nature sketching and journaling. Her discussions of drawing, composition, watercolor are all helpful. The fact that she works in the Pacific Northwest where I live is a bonus too. This is well worth checking out at the library (as I did) and then buying a copy (as I did next.)

I especially liked her loose style, no painstaking details. And her warmup exercises, including "spirit drawing", trying to loosely grab the spirit/life/energy in a place before thumbnailing and then actually sketching.

Excellent exercises throughout; I'll be doing these on schedule this summer!

[Reuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rats! This is the book I wanted to write, but my neighbor beat me to it (and she draws much better than I do, too). Still, I'm glad this was written and published.