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The Art of Nature at Home

Explore science illustration with artists featured in our annual exhibit, The Art of Nature, and get tips for how to make your own science illustrations at home.

Science Illustration Prompt: Engage Your Senses

Explore science illustration with artists featured in our annual exhibit, The Art of Nature, and get tips for how to make your own science illustrations at home. This post is from Yvonne Byers.

A watercoloring kit lying on the sand

As they say, “curiosity killed the cat”. Luckily I’m a human with one life to learn as much as I can about the amazing world we live in.
—Yvonne Byers

Yvonne Byers painting a watercolor of a cluster of cacti

Prompt: Engage Your Senses

There are so many great ways to use a nature journaling project to connect to your local habitat(s). One of my favorites is sequential observations — making notes and sketches about an organism you observe over time. Spring is a great time to do this because there are so many visible changes happening in our environments.

Your yard may look like a bunch of weeds but somewhere hidden amongst the chaos is an oasis you can indulge in for a little while.

The finished painting of the cacti

Find a sit spot in your yard where there is something that has caught your eye. Take a comfortable seat and before even putting pen to paper just sit and take everything in. Use all your senses to hear, see, smell, feel, and maybe even taste the elements, plants, and critters that surround you.

Do a quick free write to get your brain juices flowing and then sketch away and enjoy the comfort and beauty of your own home! 

Explore more of Yvonne’s art here.

Science Illustration Prompt: Sequential Observations

Explore science illustration with artists featured in our annual exhibit, The Art of Nature, and get tips for how to make your own science illustrations at home. This post is from Megan Gnekow, recipient of the Museum’s 2019 Laura Hecox Naturalist Award.

A watercolor of a bird of prey feeding a chick

I make scientific illustrations because I want to inspire folks to look closely at the world around them. I want to make complexities and relationships more clear, helping people understand that all organisms are connected to each other. — Megan Gnekow

Prompt: Sequential Observations

There are so many great ways to use a nature journaling project to connect to your local habitat(s). One of my favorites is sequential observations — making notes and sketches about an organism you observe over time. Spring is a great time to do this because there are so many visible changes happening in our environments.

Choose an organism that you can observe regularly over a period of time (the period of shelter-in-place is a good place to start!). Observe the organism you have chosen as frequently as you are able to and make notes and sketches about what you observe. Note date, time, location (macro-habitat and micro-habitat). Use as many of your senses as you can and record what you learn!


Illustrations by Megan Gnekow using the San Jose City Hall peregrine falcon nest camera hosted by the Predatory Bird Research Group in 2017.

Recording your observations over time gives you insights into an organism and the environment in which it lives. Hopefully this plants a seed for further observations and exploration. Don’t worry about making beautiful drawings. Just sketch and/or note what you observe! 

If you can’t get outside or have other limitations to observing organisms, there are plenty of webcams available to inspire you — I would suggest a bird camera hosted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology or the falcon cam at UC Berkeley.

Read more about Megan Gnekow here and visit her website here. Explore all of her illustrations from this peregrine falcon series here.