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| "Big Bluestem in Bloom" - color pencil drawing - © Bruce A. Morrison |
Archival Works Friday (Yes I Know It's Saturday!)
As
I mentioned before - I'll post a painting, drawing or serigraph
(silkscreen prints) from the "archive" files of years past...and give a
little back story on the work. I hope you'll find it interesting!
Posting the first Friday of the month...
This
Archival Works day is a color pencil drawing...my use of this medium
dates back to the early 1960's. My first "Side Walk Art Fair"
participation in Ft. Dodge, IA had all color pencil drawings; I think I
was about 12 years old at the time and I only remember one of
them...probably a "self preservation" mechanism so I won't still be traumatized by how bad they must have been!!!!
The
subject in the highlighted drawing "Big Bluestem in Bloom" is related
to my 2 1/2 decade infatuation with "Prairies". I don't think my love
of prairies is a very well kept secret - having been involved in prairie
projects from the college level, public entities, and private
consulting. Georgie has referred to me as "Prairie Boy" to many folks
over the years (Ha!). Ya, well that's sure not where she found me - but
yes, stuff happens doesn't it.
When
we found the acreage here 20 years ago, it was the perfect fit for
us...we had a few trees and a small bit of wooded habitat with nice
spring ephemerals, and some great hillside gravel slopes with actual
native prairie remnants...something that has become less easy to find in
Iowa...only less than one half of one percent of this state's original
prairies still exist. This little spot may not be on the super quality
charts but even places like ours are disappearing much too frequently.
Something
that I was hoping for in our little spot in the former tallgrass
prairie was a place to work and play...it has lived up to my hopes yet
has so much further to go. But we all have a lifespan...we're just
making the best of what this "gift" of time has presented us. I always
wanted to just walk out the door in the morning...or heck "anytime", and
wander with the camera or paint brush, and record native prairie plant
communities and the fauna
found
there. It has been a wonderful gift! Every day here is a blessing! I
found myself not just photographing forbs (wildflowers) and grasses,
but also painting and drawing them.
When
I'm out and about on the pastures, I often video tape things as I'm
photographing them...video is just a side hobby now...I used to do video
taping and editing for educational institutions, government agencies
and non-profits, for part of my living, but no longer - it's simply
something fun to do now.
The drawing in question...
One
morning in mid summer I was out early on the pasture photographing
things in the first light of the day. The flowers and grasses, insects
and birds...the usual.
Later I was in the studio downloading files and editing images and
sorting through the morning's video footage. As I was watching footage I
came to a frame that I'd only recorded - a lot of times I'm easily
distracted and forget to take stills (photographs) also (and vice
versa). There was an image from the video that grabbed me - "That'd
make a great color pencil drawing!".
"Big Bluestem in Bloom" - color pencil drawing was born from a still frame in the video footage.
I
have since been inspired many times in a like manner from other footage
as well in past years...some landscapes, some flora and fauna.
If
you've followed me this far and haven't nodded off or just plain zoned
out and left, I'm going to leave a link here for a video I edited
together 9 years back...it's of a walk down Waterman Creek about 5 miles
south of the studio. During this walk I was inspired to paint two
landscapes from the footage you'll watch. The video is here -
After
you watch this video, go to my web site at the following link, it will
take you to my Archived Works page. There are two oil paintings there
that were inspired from footage in the video. The link is here -
(I'm really making this too easy!)
The
first person that gives me the name of one of the 2 paintings inspired
by footage in this video, will win a free signed print of that painting. Just the first person, responding to this story...just give me "one" of the painting titles and you win!
Thanks for hanging in there and good luck!
Hope to see you on the Tallgrass!
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