The humble pencil is one of my all time favorite mediums to create with. It is incredibly versatile, cheap and easy to use. I absolutely love the sensation of drawing on paper, caressing the surface with each sweep across the page, then pressing hard into the fibers to get those rich blacks. Drawing often becomes a form of meditation for me, especially when I’m slowly developing subtle shades of grey, layer upon layer. I hope you enjoy this little sample of my pencil work: Mottlecah, Eucalyptus macrocarpa study.
In-your-face opulence; a visual stunner! That’s how I remember my first encounter with Eucalyptus macrocarpa, or Mottlecah. Innumerable encounters later this tough, ungainly beauty still stops me in my tracks. If I could grow it in my garden I would. Geometric spirals of tightly packed blue grey leaves spread in patches along dark spindly branches, winding towards the sky and trailing downwards. Soft white velvet fur on each new leaf contrasts with a smooth sharpness as they age. And the flowers; the shear size of them is astounding! They burst from their enormous gumnut cocoons as vibrant flashes of red, tipped with yellow pollen. Luscious. This indulgent display in a harsh, dry landscape seems to sing of absolute joy in being: a show of decadence even when things are tough.