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An Insect's View, details in nature, Large beautiful moth in costa rica, Large beautiful moth in Ecuador, Painting butterflies and moths in watercolor, Painting Flowers in Watercolor, silkmoth, Timeout for Art
(Detail of an oversized bookmark for a friend who left for an extended visit to the UK.)
“Nature will bear the closest inspection. She invites us to lay our eye level with her smallest leaf, and take an insect view of its plain.” – Henry David Thoreau
One of September’s Timeout for Art posts (Find the Pot of Gold) tapped into the above quote, and hopefully many of you were able to “slow down and inspect what’s lurking nearby.”
This past week presented many opportunities to take an insect’s view of nature, and I never regret time spent at eye level and absorbing those details.
Working from life: Ginger detail (watercolor)
Working from life: thunbergia mysorensis watercolor
Years ago in Costa Rica , I first saw this amazing species of silkmoth (below) while visiting a friend in the higher elevations of the Nicoya Peninsula. The moth looked as if it had been specifically designed to match Cis’s shirt!
This past month in Mindo Ecuador, I again appreciated this unique beauty when it basked beneath the soft light near the kitchen door.
It lingered the following morning – perhaps to be sure that I captured its beauty with the camera!
About a week later, perhaps the same one found its way upstairs and visited while I painted.
The nasturtium watercolor is quite popular! Do you think that it tricked the moth?
It vanished in the daytime and returned the following night. (I gave it a few drops of water!) Obviously on its last days or hours, it moved very little but stayed near until it died.
The next day, I enjoyed capturing its likeness in watercolor.
(Sorry, these photos were taken late at night in not the best light!)
Here’s a thumbnail recap of my insect’s view of nature from the past few weeks. Believe it or not, adding shadows (right column) takes a lot of time!
The final image (thunbergia & butterfly) is a sneak peek of next week’s timeout for art!
Take time to inspect those fine details of nature! The longer you study the details, the more details you’ll discover!
Z
Zeebra Designs & Destinations 
Beautiful work full of love for the details in life. Incredibly sophisticated moths, they blend well with your work. I think they are happy around en in between those paintings. 😉
thanks so much for your kind words! they are beautiful moths and were a joy to paint!
Such beautiful art! I love that moth, it looks to be the size of your hand! Not many that size up here.
yes, that’s a beautiful moth – and one that lingers for a long time in one’s memory! thanks so much for your feedback!
Your posts always awaken us to what’s around us. Beautifully done!
Sista-Z…you are indeed an inspiration. I’ve been a bit under the weather but find your post today leading me back to pen and paper in my own studio….
I SO enjoy looking at your work, Z! Just lovely!
Hugs from Cuenca,
Kathy
Wonderful post, so glad you were able to upload these fantastic photographs. Loved your paintings, the lines and colors are just beautiful. You have such a fantastic environment that’s filled with inspiration – the butterfly was incredible, your spirits probably were rewarding each other. Glad to see your posts again.
hey thanks! it’s been a sunny day in mindo, and i’m enjoyed touring a great site about an hour from here.. now it’s time to return to the lovely property and its flora and fauna.. the hummingbirds are really sweet at the end of the day, and tomorrow i hope that another post shares more of those little bundles of energy!
z
A wonderful post, Lisa. The silk moth, particularly the one on the shirt, is amazingly beautiful. And the photo at an angle looking up – unreal! So are these different species? And are those triangular sections on the fore & hind wings translucent? Looks like it. I love the Nasturtium painting, with and without the moth! And the Ginger, with all its parts.
si; those areas are like tough plastic! nasturtiums are always happy-looking flowers! thanks, amiga!
Thank you!
Incredible work, Lisa. I am constantly in awe. I’m headed back to the states and I ordered a new powerful zoom camera. I’m hoping to take close-ups of moth wings, butterfly wings, and fly eyes. Then, I can get out my paints again and get to work. 🙂
thanks amiga!
have a great trip, and you’ll return with lots of new reasons to be inspired!
Love the post Visiting friends in Playas. Will have to post two time out for art next week. 🙂
That thunbergia is stunning, it reminds me of the house I lived in as a student when I was courting my wife. I’ve tried unsuccessfully to grow one here. Thanks for the memory. You have also captured that moth so delicately and with such passion. Great to see you posting your art again, hopefully the computer problems have been solved. Tony
Needless to say, the moths are glorious. Still, the thing that caught me most were your side-by-sides showing your addition of shadows. Those of us who are neither trained nor talented in your arts look at things like that as pure magic.
As for the insect’s view of things – so true. That’s a wonderful quotation. I brought home an insect from my trip, as a matter of fact. You can see him on this page, the second photo down. Isn’t he a handsome boy?
Gorgeous moths and artwork, Lisa. I’m sure your nasturtium watercolour fooled that moth. 🙂
Aawww … I know that butterflies do not live long but it was sad to know that it was no longer going to visit you. Such a lovely gesture of you to capture it. It had the most exquisite patterns. I enjoyed the post. xo
Wise man.
They are beautiful Lisa! You are such an incredible artist. I feel lucky to have met you, really.
Take care 🙂
G
Reblogged this on The ObamaCrat™.
I love the glowing colours and designs you have captured from the nature around you Lisa, very beautiful.
Lisa, this is a fabulous post! Love the moth with the window panes in its wings! OH, and by the way, there is never a need to apologize for the light. Your work stands the test in any light!
I have really been missing you, but hope that you were having a blast while working and visiting off the grid! 😀
Nature provides you with the most spectacular gifts to hone your art and you in turn do just that for us with your spectacular drawings. Thank you Lisa. 🙂
Mesmerizing. Nature is beautiful. When abused, it becomes a source of fury and disaster, what’s happening to our extreme weather like typhoons and tornados are already the effect of the harm done on nature for generations. Thanks for inspiring so many to love, care and be advocate for Mother Earth. God bless you and your family. And yes, you can share the image links as you asked from your last comment. Thanks for the kind thoughts and prayers.