Journal Entry: A Sense of Place
My first entry in my quickie DIY journal (see previous post) was really fun to create. I liked the larger size of the full spread – about 14″ x 9″ – it gave me much more room to develop a theme and create more interest on the page. The book was easy to hold in the crook of my arm and I could clamp my watercolor palette on top of one of the pages and walk around. I am on to something new!
UPDATE: May, 2022. My new journals have a page spread of 12″ x 9″. This allows me to use 12″ x 9″, 90-lb watercolor paper which I cut in half to create the pages that are then 6″ x 9″ .
The idea for the page content came from watching an 8 minute video by John Muir Laws titled Sense of Place. Our mission was to go outside and pick three things that caught our eye and that we could carry. We were then to create a page – including a landscapito (or I would do a skyscapito) – that created a sense of place. Would someone be able to look at the page and feel that they knew something about where the page was created. At the moment, i am in Nebraska where I walk almost every day on the same two roads. I always find something different – every time. What do you think? Does this petrified wood, fall leaves, bird feather, commentary, and metadata give you any sense of my place?
Yes, I gained a sense of place of where you are. These two pages are so lovely and compelling, I instantly felt that spirit. I am so looking forward to the OLLI class on August 24. I write books, I create fiber collages, I walk in nature, I LOVE nature, and now I look forward to your teaching me how to bring all of those somewhat disparate activities together in one place.
I enjoyed meeting you today along with the other very enthusiastic participants. I am so looking forward to seeing how the field journal process moves us closer to this wonderful world we live in. I hope you find inspiration for your books and can share some of that with us.