Last Day of School at the Park :: Mom learns a lesson

I love the idea of sketching and painting outdoors. The kids also thought going to the park to do a little art sounded fun.

So, off we went.
The last day of our school year.

Gear

My view

Boating pooch

My quick sharpie sketch

Cool morning in the shade

Nothing better

...for me, that is.

The kids provided a few quick outputs with little focus and detail.

They really just wanted to enjoy the outdoors, catch guppies, untangle fishing lines, watch heron, and run through the wildflowers.
It was their last day of school after all!

We wrapped up the art session quickly, then simply enjoyed being at the park and lake.

My final piece also shows distraction. The busload of kids playing in the park behind us didn't help either.

Lesson learned: Next time we paint en plein air, we'll start somewhere less distracting--our yard, neighborhood walking trail. When we take a nature hike somewhere more novel, I'll have the kids bring their camera and snap their favorite shots of something they can sketch and paint later when they'll be more likely to focus on the task and concentrate on details.

We've had better success bringing nature indoors for art.

MK's work from earlier in the year

Now, time to start planning for next school year.