Resources: Sketching + beyond
*This list is dynamic, and in-development. Feel free to make suggestions (use the comments section or contact us directly) re additional resources and great examples that should be included.
INSPIRATION
- Guild of Natural Science Illustrators (link to Facebook page)
- Nocturnal wonders: looking closely at moths
- New species at risk book written in indigenous languages by GNWT departments of Environment and Natural Resources and Education, Culture and Employment, and the Sahtu Renewable Resources Board (illustrations by ecologist and artist Jean Lieppert Polfus).
- www.buzzhootroar.com – a graphics-driven blog that shares and/or explains a scientific concept in 300 words or less.
LEARN TO DRAW & IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS
- 4 tips that can make digitizing sketches feel more like fun than drudgery.
- CommNatural monthly newsletter – from ESA SciComm Section co-founder Bethann G. Merkle, this monthly newsletter provides tips, inspiration, and activities for making art-science connections in k12 and post-secondary classrooms & research settings.
- Sketching animals – good (albeit casual) tips from 8 sketchers
- 3 free online sketching workshops from Strathmore (art supplies company)
- A Life in hand: Creating the illuminated Journal (Hannah Hinchman, 1991)
- First Step Series: Sketching and Drawing (Cathy Johnson, 1995)
- Keeping a Nature Journal (Clare Walker Leslie & Charles E. Roth)
- The Sierra Club Guide to Sketching in Nature (Cathy Johnson, 1997)
- Urban Watercolor Sketching (Felix Scheinberger, 2011)
INCORPORATING SKETCHING INTO SCIENCE & NATURAL HISTORY
- Drawing to learn in science research substantiating multiple benefits of drawing in science, from Science (Aug. 2011)
- Field Notes on Science and Nature (book) (review in Nature); edited by Mihael R. Canfield, foreword by E.O. Wilson
- Context and sketching exercises for keeping a natural history sketchbook/journal
- Science says art will make your kids better thinkers and nicer people
- STEM to STEAM (incorporating art & design into science)
- Video on observation and field journaling by naturalist & artist John Muir Laws
USING SKETCHING IN YOUR CLASSES (classrooms, field trips & field courses)
- CA Native Plant Society field journal curriculum (GREAT intro to nature sketching, whether you’re a teacher or not.)
- An Invitation for Engagement: Assigning and Assessing Field Notes to Promote Deeper Levels of Observation
- Picturing to Learn -research/teaching methodology for university science students which uses drawing to assess student comprehension and increase student engagement and learning
USING OTHER PEOPLE’S IMAGES
(same rules apply for illustrations)
- Is saying “Photo by Google” good enough for crediting images found online?
- Who owns the copyright when it’s your camera but someone else takes the photo?
- Working with an illustrator:
WHY IMAGES MATTER
- Communicating science through context: visualizations
- What if all the images went away? Scientific American explores scicomm without images
- Why images are more powerful than words, and where to find good images online
YOUR IMAGES ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Are you really giving away your intellectual property rights when you share your images on social media? Maybe. Here are some best practices for sharing while retaining your rights.