Douglas Fir trees have formed the backdrop of much of my life. Just look at snapshots of the houses I’ve lived in, schools I’ve attended and places I’ve gone hiking and camping, and there you will likely see a Douglas Fir somewhere in the distance. I’ve mostly taken them for granted until recently when I began to study them as subjects for botanical art. I never realized before that theirs are the only cones with fringes–how special is that? I’ve started listening more closely to the unique sound of the wind shushing through their long drooping branches on stormy evenings, and admiring the softness of their bottle-brush like twigs.
Part of my first assignment with the SBA course that I took was to do a small values study in graphite, and I chose a Douglas Fir twig and cone as my subject. It remains my favorite of all the botanical art I have created so far, more because of my attachment to the tree than because of any merit of the drawing.
Drawing of Douglas Fir twig and cone for SBA course
After the course I started painting on vellum and realized that its texture and warm color would make it a great support for a Douglas Fir cone painting. To emphasize the unique beauty of the cones, I decided to make the painting larger than life. So after examining countless cones on my walks through the neighborhood, I found one with nice long fringes and a plump shape. I made my drawing 1.5 times the actual size.
Preliminary drawings of Douglas Fir cone
Next I made some color charts to help me select pigments to mix in order to match the colors of the cone as closely as possible.
A color chart of browns
I did a small trial fir cone painting on a fragment of vellum for practice last autumn, plus tried out a few color options. Now I’ve started the final painting and will post an update on it soon.
What trees are ubiquitous in your area or what trees do you remember from your childhood?
This blog is about my journey as a botanical artist--what I am learning, what inspires me and what I am currently drawing or painting. My desire is to continually hone my skills to better express my wonder and gratitude for the beauty of the creation around me in the Pacific Northwest (USA).
I love your graphite study- what a really wonderful subject. It will look fantastic on the vellum too! I often use cerulean with burnt sienna, partly because of the wonderful granulating effects you can achieve… perfect for those earthy textures. I recently discovered Schmincke cerulean (I normally use W&N) which is quite transparent and so really useful for those warm highlights. Best of luck!
Thanks, Shevaun! Good tip about the Schmincke cerulean–I’ll have to check that out. Cerulean is such a wonderful color but sometimes I want to go with transparent only.
Tall GA long-leaf pine trees have always been a dominating presence in my life. But I think the mighty oak may be my favorite…love to sketch oak leaves and acorns. I have always said if I were a tree…I would probably be a ‘scrub oak’! Ha! I also love the sassafras tree and it’s 4 different shaped leaves…how cool is that!
Beautiful work….I have long admired this lovely graphite drawing also!