AT A GLANCE
Drawing From Nature
“Drawing from Nature” is a science- and artbased curriculum that Karen Fuchs has developed and teaches to students in grades K–12 and
in workshops for adults. This course is about
seeing the world around us by scrutinizing the
organic forms, patterns, and structures found in
the natural world. Patterns such as branching,
the spiral, the star or radial, and the retiform or
mesh are explored and studied, sketched and
drawn, and then modeled in 3D using various
materials and techniques, including sculpture
with wire and clay, printmaking and cyanotype,
kirigami and collage, and so on. Students are
encouraged to make connections between the
natural and the manmade or ‘built’ environment. For instance, in the study of branching,
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some examples in nature include tree and plant
growth, leaf venation, animal circulatory systems, coral and seaweed, water flow, mineral
dendrites, single brain neurons (Purkinje cells),
frost and ice crystals, and lightning, whereas
manmade constructs include mapping, urban
planning, circuitry, and cladograms. After drawing this efficient growth pattern from examples
and specimens, visualizing the definition of
branching in terms of dividing, expanding, and
extending, students create a wire tree sculpture
that models this concept. The natural world
offers unlimited inspiration and information
and stimulates curiosity. This curriculum crosses
disciplines and integrates art, design, science,
math, and technology.
SciArt in America December 2014