Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
LightNews LightNews
banner
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
@swordfernstudios.bsky.social
1.5K followers 290 following 860 posts
Artist | Portland. Painter, forager, photo industry freelancer, & creative.

Obsessed with fungi, & noticing the little things that make life wonderful. Texture & details make me happy!

🛒🛍️ https://swordfernstudios.company.site
Posts Replies Media Videos
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
For today’s #ArtAdventCalendar I’d like to share a mini painting inspired by the Columbia River Gorge.

‘Camassia Quamash’

A perennial herb, native to western N. America in large areas of southern Canada & the northwestern United States. A staple food to First Nations people, & pollinators love it!
Visual Description: A colorful painting featuring a detailed bright electric blue/purple wildflower against a soft blurred vernal wetland backdrop of greens and golden yellows. Inspired by basalt cliffs, native plants, and meadows in the Catherine Creek area of Washington. Caption: For today’s #ArtAdventCalendar I’d like to share a mini painting inspired by the Columbia River Gorge. ‘Camassia Quamash’ A perennial herb, native to western N. America in large areas of southern Canada & the northwestern United States. A staple food to First Nations people, & pollinators love it!
December 20, 2025 at 10:08 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
1/2:
My porcini & ferns painting for both #artadventcalendar & #forestfriday
One of my favs! This piece got me my first gallery invite! The gallery owner was out walking his dog & saw my work in a coffee shop.
My porcini & ferns painting for both #artadventcalendar & #forestfriday Detailed still life painting of a porcini mushroom framed in by two ferns pointing inward to the bolete, at the foot of the bolete is a wood sorrel leaf, chanterelle mushrooms, and mossy stones. The rounded composition creates a dramatic visual effect against the black background.
December 19, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
mush-photos.bsky.social
With Christmas around the corner, it feels right to share a few more Amanita muscaria photos 🍄

📷 Canon 5D Mk III
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS USM
M, f/2.8, 1/80, ISO 320
Stack of 77 images
10/23/21
Northern Oregon Coast

#mushroom #fungifriends #mushrooms

🍄📷 📸🎞 🌿🌱 🟢 🍄 🍄‍🟫
Three perfect Amanita muscaria, mushrooms with an iconic red cap covered in white dots, grow from very mossy ground. The two mushrooms on the left are very young and small. The mushroom on the right is very large and is perfectly shaped. Its base is bulbous and the stipe is thick with a slightly rough texture and off-white color. The cap is very round, like three quarters of the top of a round red ball, uniformly fire engine red, and covered in evenly spaced white spots.
December 19, 2025 at 2:57 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Keeping an eye on the index 👁️ 👁️

www.pizzint.watch
Pentagon Pizza Index - Real-Time OSINT Dashboard
Track pizza popularity around the Pentagon as a geopolitical indicator. The conspiracy theory that's taking OSINT by storm.
www.pizzint.watch
December 19, 2025 at 3:56 AM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
infinitescream.bsky.social
solidarity with trans people and death to fascism
December 18, 2025 at 11:55 PM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
hijodeloceano.bsky.social
Native Plants for Pollinators: West of the Cascades. Infographic courtesy of Oregon State University
.
.
#nativeplants #conservation #habitatrestoration #backyardhabitat #guerillagardening #urbanwildlife #rewilding #pacificnorthwest #washington #oregon #california #britishcolumbia
An image of an example native plant garden for pollinators in the Pacific Northwest west of the cascades, showing moist and dry areas, habitat for wildlife, and appropriate species to use. Image courtesy of Oregon State University A graph showing common names for a variety of native plants for the Pacific Northwest west of the cascades, and their bloom season and color by month. Image courtesy of Oregon State University
April 18, 2025 at 11:32 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
My painting ‘Courtship’ for Just Like Honey, opening this Friday. If you're in PDX please come to the opening, it’ll be a party! Details in alt text

Antler & Talon Galleries
12/19, 5-8 pm. Two new exhibitions, DJ, drinks, & tattoos

Pls share!

#portlandart #pdxart #pdxgallery #artforsale #painting
Art Opening & Holiday Party Antler & Talon Galleries 2714 NE Alberta St. Portland, OR Dec. 19th from 5-8 pm. Two new exhibitions with a DJ, drinks, & live flash tattoos by Jennifer Parks & Meg Adamson. Painting description: Detailed painting of PNW Long toed salamanders, mushrooms, and lichens with a black background on a hexagon shaped panel. Art Opening & Holiday Party Antler & Talon Galleries 2714 NE Alberta St. Portland, OR Dec. 19th from 5-8 pm. Two new exhibitions with a DJ, drinks, & live flash tattoos by Jennifer Parks & Meg Adamson.
December 17, 2025 at 8:05 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Hey Oregonians & fellow Portlanders! Donate to @barkformthood.bsky.social via Give!Guide. Every $10 donation earns you a 10% discount at SymbiOp, plus a chance to win today's Big Groceries Day package - New Seasons gift cards from $100-$500! Learn more 👇

giveguide.org/nonprofits/b...
December 17, 2025 at 5:22 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Another little friend, the Western toad for #ArtAdventCalendar

I’d like to explore more watercolor in 2026.

#frogs #frogart #wildlifeart #animalart
Close-up view of a vibrant colored western toad. The toad, with its intricate details and realistic texture, is depicted sitting on a bed of bright yellow-green moss against a light blue sky. The artwork is framed by a white border. The painting showcases a detailed rendering of the toad's skin, highlighting its unique markings and textures. #ArtAdventCalendar
December 16, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
thundergoose.bsky.social
Good news for the Northern Hemisphere!
keithdecent.bsky.social Keith Decent @keithdecent.bsky.social · 10d
Next week the days start getting longer
December 16, 2025 at 3:44 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
We met an owl while walking our dog at dusk this evening. It was hunting squirrels in the big Douglas firs & happened to be going low right as we walked up. It was really cool to watch. At one point I just decided to lie down to keep watching because it was hurting my neck so bad. 🤣 10/10 very cool.
December 15, 2025 at 2:21 AM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
I’m excited to share my newest painting ‘Courtship’ with you!

I shared WIP shots a while back, here’s the finished piece for a gallery show. Just Like Honey 2 opens at Antler & Talon Galleries in PDX 12/19

I dig these hexagon panels.

#ArtAdventCalendar #natureart #salamanders #mushrooms #lichen
An acrylic painting on a hexagon panel with a black background. A view of a tiny world on an orb of moss. In the middle are two long toed salamanders, surrounded by mushrooms, lichens, and a redwood sorrel at the top of the orb. #ArtAdventCalendar.
December 14, 2025 at 5:13 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Hey Portland Oregon folks! I’m at a holiday market in SE this evening.

Support art by real living artists! I make nature inspired art. If that’s not your thing there is also a variety of jewelry, plants, decor, vintage, baked goods, & other goodies!

Here til 10pm. Come through!
📍5939 SE 82nd ave
December 14, 2025 at 2:01 AM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
brendanlh.bsky.social
I beat Metroid Prime 4 a couple nights ago. 100% items, it took 16 hours and change. It did weird things to my brain, and I needed to write about it. So enjoy this unplanned meditation on the fourth Metroid Prime game.

Please repost and share it around :)
Within the first hour of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Samus is imbued with psychic powers. From that moment onward, I spent my 16-hour first playthrough wishing I had psychic abilities, too. Not because I want to move things telekinetically or see into the future, but because I wish I could beam my thoughts about Metroid Prime 4 directly into someone else's mind. Your mind. Maybe I wouldn’t have to talk about this game--because, frankly, I think we’ve all talked about it too much already. Instead, you could know—feel—my experience with the game first-hand. If I had psychic powers, you would know what it feels like to have actively, stubbornly, held Metroid Prime as your favorite game these past 25 years, and the self-inflicted expectations I struggled against in the lead up to Prime 4’s launch. And you would know how it felt for all that to dissolve the moment I viewed an unknown world from behind the familiar HUD of Samus’ visor. If I could share my memories with you, you could trace in yourself the same shape of the emotions I felt while exploring Ice Belt--my awareness flitting between the unease in my gut and melancholy in my chest. The sense of scale I felt seeing the megalithic storm clouds of Volt Forge’s skybox. My surprise that Kenji Yamamoto and Minako Hamano somehow found such an alien electric guitar tone, but also chose to feature it prominently throughout the soundtrack. The familiar compulsion to break every green crystal and return to locations to collect lingering items, long before the game asked me to. The way a single unimportant scan in a Lamorn shrine evoked vivid images of the species’ final hours. How else, than with psychic abilities, could I convey the way the dissipating mist in Fury Green’s Cargo Launcher platform never lost its novelty? Or how it felt to look up from the depths of the Great Mines, see the gray sky peeking through the broken rock hundreds of feet above, and think, “This is all I’ve ever wanted from Metroid.” And if I could invite you into my mind, then you, like me, would also question if the only reason these familiar “Metroid-y” moments meant something is because they’re juxtaposed against my frustrations with the story; my disappointment in the brevity of Flare Pool and linearity of The Great Mines; my lingering apathy towards Samus’ companions and underutilized rival; my skepticism about whether this is the direction I want the series to take, if it continues. You would see how these highs and lows blend uncomfortably, echoing the unpleasant dissonance I felt between the oversaturated orange and purple hues of Sol Valley against the dense, dark, moody atmospheres of the on-foot biomes. Or the ways radio calls and escort missions impinge on segments of sublime isolation and engrossing visual design. Maybe after all of that, you, too, would struggle to resolve these contradictions and distill the totality of this arc into a succinct statement of quality, much I like am. Alas, I do not have psychic powers, so these words must suffice. Written & Designed by Brendan Hesse Proofreading & Feedback - Abram Buehner Special thankt to THE CRAWL Patraon Supporters
December 12, 2025 at 4:28 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Today’s #ArtAdventCalendar is a colored pencil illustration. The Western Wood Anenome (Anemonoides oregana), a montane flower species.

Their delicate pale blue flowers light up my path through the woods as I forage morels in the cascades every spring. Thanks for letting me share! 🥰

#botanicalart
Forest floor view of a brilliant pale blue wildflower growing in between a bunch of dead wood and pine needles creating a contrasting look. #ArtAdventCalendar
December 13, 2025 at 5:37 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Over a decade of efforts between ranchers & conservationists to keep grouse off the endangered species list could be undone.

‘Grouse on the Lek’ for last years bird show at Antler Gallery. The original is still available & 20% goes to the OR chapter of Audobon Society.
#conservationart #birders
December 12, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
jayispainting.earthskyart.ca
On Day 12, we now have about 4500 images made by humans posted at the halfway mark.

Do yourself a favour and check it out.

#Art
jayispainting.earthskyart.ca JayIsPainting 🍁 @jayispainting.earthskyart.ca · 15d
One Trick Doctors Don't Want You To Know About:

Your day will be vastly improved by browsing the more than 4000 images of art & beauty posted by almost 600 real humans as part of #ArtAdventCalendar

Just click or long press on the hashtag and select See #ArtAdventCalendar Posts
Screenshot of Bluesky showing options to See #ArtADventCalendar Posts and See #ArtADventCalendar Posts by User
December 12, 2025 at 5:32 PM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
propublica.org
ProPublica spoke to about 150 people who had lived in homeless encampments when cities cleared them out in “sweeps.”

We distributed notecards so people could tell us about the toll in their own words.

➡️ This is what they wrote: https://propub.li/3MTlm33
Handwritten notecard. Prompt at the top asks: What object was most devastating for you to lose, and how have you been coping? Answer below: Dentures. Were thrown away and coping isn't somthing I can do. It’s made me feel ugly, unworthy, can’t go get a job with no teeth. So how can get off the streets until another pair can be made?
December 12, 2025 at 3:15 AM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
It’s not too late to do my #ArtAdventCalendar post!

‘Symbiosis’
Acrylic on panel

Cascades frogs hunting prey with the sundew, hidden among mountain wildflowers, as pollinators buzz about.

#artist #natureart #ranacascadae
My painting “Symbiosis”. In the middle is a carnivorous Sundew plant, their small glands emit a sticky sweet attractant to catch insect prey. At first glance, the sundew & frogs seem devious, but there is an element of cooperation in the web of life. #frogart #wildlife #frogs #art #conservationart #ArtAdventCalendar
December 12, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Reposted by Michelle F Mitchell | Sword Fern Studios
richardlevangie.bsky.social
Just ordered Christmas gifts from @swordfernstudios.bsky.social on #Etsy

Just gorgeous artwork!

109 5 ⭐️ reviews.

www.etsy.com/ca/shop/Swor...
www.etsy.com
December 11, 2025 at 5:30 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
’Amanita Troupe’

Mossy mushroom scenes make my heart pitter-patter 😊

Most pieces have a story from a 🍄foraging adventure. These handsome Amanita were found on a hot day near teacup lake, in the swaying meadow grasses & dappled sunlight.
#art #traditionalartist #ArtAdventCalendar
Acrylic painting depicting four vibrant red and white toadstools nestled amongst dark green grass and moss. The mushrooms exhibit a detailed, realistic rendering with noticeable texture and subtle shading. The background is a deep, shadowy green, creating a contrast with the bright mushrooms. The artist creates nature-themed artwork featuring mushrooms, wildlife, and botanical illustration with a hint of magic. #artadventcalendar
December 10, 2025 at 6:31 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
If you’re in PDX come say hi! Grab a drink & check out our wares this Fri/Sat, 4-10pm at a holiday night market at The Old Pawn Shop, at the corner of 82nd & Woodstock!

Shop various makers & small businesses to get those gifts taken care of, & soak in some Old Portland vibes ☺️

📍5939 SE 82nd Ave
December 9, 2025 at 5:23 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
🎨 ‘Poisons & Parasites’ an intimate forest floor scene featuring a fox skull, Amanita mushrooms, toxic plants, & cordyceps infected zombie ants.

Crazy busy day ahead, I’m finishing a painting, editing, printing, & market prep- Wish me luck!

#ArtAdventCalendar #traditionalart #amanitamuscaria
Detailed acrylic painting of an intimate dark forest floor scene featuring a close-up view of a fox skull, Amanita mushrooms, toxic nightshade + poison oak, and two cordyceps infected zombie ants. The light falls off at the edges creating more drama as the scene fades out. All of the plants and fungi depicted have medicinal uses in various cultures. Part of the idea behind this painting is to more thoroughly examine what we find to be poisonous or toxic. To step away from our lens and see the value of these creatures in a different way. Titled ‘Poisons and Parasites’ 8x10, acrylic on birch panel. #artadventcalendar
December 9, 2025 at 4:25 PM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Gearing up for a holiday night market this Friday and Saturday from 4-10pm in SE Portland.

Come grab a drink and shop from a variety of small businesses. I’ll have these cute mushroom gift tags in addition to my usual nature art!
December 9, 2025 at 6:41 AM
swordfernstudios.bsky.social
Today’s #ArtAdventCalendar is my acrylic painting titled ‘Golden Hour Chanterelle’

If it wasn’t already clear, I live for mushroom foraging 🥰
Close-up view of an a painting depicting vibrant yellow mushrooms clustered on a dark brown log, nestled amongst autumnal foliage. The mushrooms have bright, golden-yellow caps and stems. The background suggests a sun-dappled forest scene with warm, earthy tones.
December 9, 2025 at 12:34 AM