using energy for flower and fruit production. When it is pollinated it’ s doing its job with reproduction. Trying to capture that energy in my work and some of the spirit of what’ s happening is where my passion is.”
Sometimes these observations of the natural cycle of her subjects stretch over months or years before the undertaking of something like her white oak piece.“ Well, that was a couple of years in the making,” asserts Tina.“ I’ ve drawn this tree over the years. I promised myself a couple of years ago to really commit to the tree. When you stand next to it while drawing, you hear all the birds that are in there. When I looked through my binocs, there were birds everywhere, different species of birds that you can’ t see from far away. I think of her as a mother tree,” pointing to its prominent placement in her studio.“ I love these ancient trees. They’ re amazing.”
As the caretaker of her intentional garden paradise, Tina
Harry the caterpillar crawling on beebalm
“ I am drawn to nature. While walking on trails, rustic roads or in a woodland setting, I collect twigs, leaves and seeds at my feet. This has been my practice for over 40 years in a variety of habitats. Sitting down with native plant ephemera and my sketchbook, is my meditative practice.”
spends her days keenly observing plant ecology and the busy critters that inhabit it. One such visitor she named Harry, a Hermit Sphinx Moth. These striking moths are attracted to Monarda didyma, commonly known as scarlet beebalm.
As her story of curious obsession unfolds, Tina recalls the moment it all began. One day, in her garden, she was drawn to a particular beebalm leaf and started sketching it. True to her disciplined practice, she recorded the event: July 11th, 2012, evening, crickets, birds, katydids, night sounds.
“ But then,” she says,“ as I was drawing the leaf, I noticed a section it had eggs on it.” And so, the dance between subject and observer began. More sketches followed. As the days went by, Tina watched the transformation firsthand.“ I as drawing the leaf, and all of a sudden, the egg metamorphosed into a webbed caterpillar. Look at him— he’ s got such energy,” she says, pointing to her sketches of Harry. She was hooked on Harry!“ You can see he’ s eating the leaf. I was cutting more stalks of beebalm to put in the jar I kept for him. I started sketching him— drawing the leaves, too. You want the action to feel fluid, to move naturally. Their movements are so arched and purposeful. That’ s why I keep a sketchbook out.”
Her attention never wavered, cutting fresh leaves of beebalm and placing them in the jar to feed Harry, who remained obliviously focused on his task. She tried to capture each stage through her sketches— getting him beneath a leaf, noting his size and color,