Marjolein Bastin's Nature Sketchbook

Hoardica is in the Netherlands this week, possibly field sketching with Marjolein Bastin. You can read this week's post about Hoardica here.

I did not have the time to create a postcard to document the event,

but instead wanted to share the back story of how I happen to know one of Holland's national treasures.

Back in my Hallmark days (another life time!),
I not only had the privelage of meeting her and having books personally signed by her, but rarer still, I was one of a handful of artists who spent three days up in Kearney, Mo (at a studio outpost),
walking, talking, sketching and seeing nature through Marjolein's eyes.
Later, back in Holland, Marjolein personally inscribed a copy of her published sketchbook (all in Dutch) to each artist who attended the workshop.
WoW!
Don't know if the book was ever available in the U.S.

Each page is dated and shows 2-3 pages were filled each week as part of her 16 hour day "at work".  She not only sketched, but taped in flowers, feathers and insect wings so she had actual samples to draw from later. Her finished illustrations are highly detailed.
She also writes observations, which become design elements on each page.

While at the 3 day workshop, all of us artists were expected to keep our own sketch journals.
Wasn't difficult with such a great mentor and inspiration in our midst!

It's been 20 years (almost to the day) and my dried plants haven't crumbled away.
The Scotch tape is still sticking tight and hasn't yellowed.

I look at my pages and am reminded of the sunny days, walking through the woods and prairie, with a petite, wren-like woman who allowed a large spider to crawl on her hands (the better to observe him close up!) and stopped us all to watch the ballet of a meadow lark bending a stalk of prairie grass as he alighted to rest a minute (it became one of her more famous and most copied subjects).

I envy Hoardica.
I hope she gives my regards to Marjolein!