Karen's Nature Art
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karensnatureart.bsky.social
Karen's Nature Art
@karensnatureart.bsky.social
2.4K followers 970 following 460 posts
Natural science Illustrator who loves prairies and insects and makes art and jewelry that feature them.
https://bio.site/karensnatureart
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karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished up a piece for the "Flora-8x8" art exhibit that will be up at the Morton Arboretum in Illinois next month. "Last Dance" was inspired by the changing leaf colors at the Schulenberg Prairie.
#sciart #prairie
Watercolor and ink piece of intertwined sumac and compass plant leaves on a white background. Predominant colors are the muted reds of the sumac and the dried browns and yellowing greens of the compass plant leaves.
October 14, 2025 at 3:37 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Had some time to do some plein air sketching while camping at Cedar Hill State Park in Texas...
#sciart #prairie #naturejournal
Photo showing a watercolor sketch of a patch of purple, fuzzy blazing stars lit from the side with the actual plants used as reference. Photo showing a sketchbook with a rectangular box filled with a watercolor landscape of a fall prairie with hills in the distance and the reference landscape behind it. There's also a pencil sketch of a tarantula at the bottom of the page.
October 7, 2025 at 10:36 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finally finished the right page on my August 2021 moth survey from my IL Prairie Nature Journal. Just love the diversity of all these moths from the Midwest!
#SciArt #moths #naturejournal #prairie
Two page spread of realistic watercolor paintings of a diversity of moths plus handwritten inked information including the common name, wingspan, and larval foods. The moths have shadows beneath them which makes it look like they're on a white sheet ready to take off. The moth survey is from August 18, 2021 at the Schulenberg Prairie at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL.
August 6, 2025 at 9:07 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished a new design and uploaded it to Society6- check it out! #SciArt #prairie #insects
society6.com/a/artists/ka...
Ink and watercolor sketch of a medley of wildflowers including firewheels, lemon beebalms, purple coneflowers and winecups. A small grasshopper, native bee and a Gray Hairstreak butterfly blend in with the flowers.
June 27, 2025 at 6:48 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Making some progress on the right page of my moth spread from August of 2021.
#SciArt #moth #naturejournal #watercolor
Unfinshed page of brown and gray moths that have different patterns and shapes. Top half of the page has realistic moths in watercolor and the lower half has pencil outlines of moths.
June 7, 2025 at 11:40 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished the left page of my moth survey from August 2021 in my IL prairie nature journal. So many colorful moths out there...
#SciArt #prairie #naturejournal #moth
Nature journal page with colorful moths realistically painted in watercolor with handwritten names and information in ink beside each one. Each moth has a shadow as if it's on a white sheet with a light from above. At the bottom in ink is- August 18, 2021 Moth Survey, Schulenberg Prairie, 79 degrees, humid and still- lots of activity! 8-11 pm, WS-wingspan, LF-larval food
May 13, 2025 at 11:44 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished the journal page celebrating our latest trip to Tandy Hills in Ft. Worth. What a special place... so many pocket prairies tucked in among the hills, including one filled with blooming Barbara's Buttons.
#SciArt #prairie #naturejournal
Nature journal page with a watercolor sketch of a hill of blooming white fuzzy flowers at the top and watercolor and ink drawings of close-ups of the flowers at the bottom. A green and orange Juniper Hairstreak feeds on one of the flowers at the left. Handwritten notes: Barbara's Buttons, April 26, 2025, Tandy Hills, 83 degrees, sun with clouds, found on very rocky, exposed soil. Deborah Young showed us where BB hill was- gorgeous!
May 3, 2025 at 7:50 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished this nature journal page after a couple of sketching visits to the Ft. Worth Nature Center and Tandy Hills.
#prairie #sciart #naturejournal #pleinair
Nature journal page with watercolor and ink drawings of prairie flowers with handwritten notes interspersed. A colored Largebract Indian Breadfruit flower stem has some inked leaves behind it. Note: Friday April 11, 2025, Ft. Worth Nature Center, 80 degrees, sunny and warm. Lots of puccoons, TX paintbrush, and butterflies! On the right is a pale lavender Penstemon cobaea flowerstalk with a long-horned bee flying at one of the flowers. Note: April 12, 2025, Tandy Hills, 78 degrees, sunny and breezy. Lots of purple paintbrush, prairie celestials, Texas sage, Engelmann's sage and primrose. Image of a nature journal with an unfinished sketch of Penstemon cobaea behind the reference plant. This was the second image drawn on the page. Image of a nature journal with an unfinished image of largebract Indian breadfruit behind the reference plant. This was the first image drawn on the page.
April 24, 2025 at 7:45 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Painting more moths from a moth survey in August of 2021 at the Schulenberg Prairie at the Morton Arboretum in IL.
#SciArt #prairie #naturejournal #insects
Watercolor paintings of colorful moths on a nature journal page with penciled in moths waiting to be done. They have shadows beneath them making them look as if they're ready to fly off the moth sheet.
April 9, 2025 at 9:25 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Time to work on some moths... these are from a moth survey in August of 2021 at the Schulenberg Prairie at the Morton Arboretum in IL.
#SciArt #prairie #naturejournal #insects
A hand with a tiny paintbrush is putting the final touches on a watercolor painting of a speckled cream moth with brown lines and 2 black patches. Five other colorful moths are completed above it. Pencil drawings are below waiting to be done.
March 29, 2025 at 4:48 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Had a chance to visit Tandy Hills Natural Area, a remnant prairie, to see how spring was progressing... found some puccoons to sketch!
#prairie #sciart #naturejournal
Photo showing a sketchbook with a watercolor and ink drawing of fringed yellow puccoons behind the actual flowers drawn.
March 23, 2025 at 8:38 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Starting a new moth page in my IL prairie nature journal. These were all seen in August of 2021 at the Schulenberg Prairie.
#SciArt #insects #naturejournal
Photo showing the top of a nature journal page with two realistically painted, colorful moths and several others penciled in. Watercolor is the medium used.
March 9, 2025 at 8:31 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
"Texas Prairie Snapshot: November"
watercolor and gouache
Finally finished this piece inspired by a visit to Tandy Hills Natural Area in Fort Worth, TX back in November of 2023.
#prairie #SciArt #insects
Realistic watercolor and gouache painting depicting prairie plants in November. The background features fall colors in grass-like strokes. Three stems of dark brown yucca pods anchor the piece while the fluffy white seed heads of false prairiewillow dance across the painting. Pink blazing star flower stems and lavender aromatic asters intermingle with the prairiewillow. In front is a dark, dried compass plant with a tiny western pigmy-blue butterfly resting on it. A male American bumble bee feeds on an aster.
February 28, 2025 at 7:04 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Working on this page brought back great memories of attending the bumble bee workshop at Nachusa Grasslands back in 2021. We were able to get close looks at many different species, but the conclusion was that our native bees are precious and need care.
#SciArt #insects #naturejournal #prairie
Watercolor and ink paintings of 5 different species of bumble bees plus a miner bee and a leafcutter bee. Handwritten ink notes are interspersed among the illustrations. August 7, 2021, Nachusa Grasslands, 88 degrees- felt like 95+, hot and humid with some clouds. Five species of bumble bees are depicted. Bombus pensylvanicus- American Bumble Bee- found on early goldenrod, Bombus auricomus male- Black and Gold Bumble Bee- big eyes! Territorial. Below that is the female feeding on beebalm. Then Bombus vagans-Half-black Bumble Bee- hairy looking! In the middle is Bombus affinis-Rusty-patched Bumble Bee feeding on Joe Pye Weed. Below that is a Bombus citrinus female- Lemon Cuckoo Bumble Bee and the male feeding on Joe Pye Weed. The queen invades host colony, kills other queen, eggs and larvae and forces workers to care for its own eggs. Hosts-B. impatiens and B. vagans. At the top right are 2 smaller native bees- Andrena aliciae- yellow-faced miner bee and Male leafcutter bee- brushy front legs. Note at bottom- Rusty-patched Bumble Bee workshop (federally endangered) - looked for B. affinis, B. pensylvanica, B. vagans, B. citrinus male and female and others. Between all the groups, 15 Rusty-patches were seen! Preferred habitat- border between woods and prairie
February 18, 2025 at 2:57 AM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Happy Valentines Day!
#ArtYear #insects
Watercolor and ink painting of a heart-shaped mass of Texas bluebonnets with a Red Admiral butterfly feeding on the flowers.
February 14, 2025 at 4:56 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Working on a bumble bee page in my IL prairie nature journal... so much diversity to celebrate as long as we keep working to maintain their habitats!
#insect #naturejournal #SciArt #prairie
Journal page showing watercolor paintings of different species of bumble bees as well as pencil drawings and a work in progress with the tips of fingers holding a tiny paintbrush. Handwritten notes are interspersed among the bees.
February 13, 2025 at 8:15 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished the right page on this spread from my IL prairie nature journal... each prairie has its own special communities!
#prairie #SciArt #naturejournal #insect
Handwritten notes at the top of a nature journal page with ink and watercolor sketches filling the rest of the page. Lavender blazing stars and nodding onion are on the left and center bottom. A swirl of white flowers goes up a stem and a black wasp is feeding on them. A white nodding onion with a yellow and brown dragonfly is on the right with a brown common wood- nymph below it. A bright pink purple prairie clover hugs the right side of the page. Handwritten notes- July 31, 2021, Bluff Spring Fen, 78 degrees, sun with clouds, lovely day. Saw Halloween Pennant, male and female Calico Pennants, saw weird group of flowers winding around stems-rope dodder! Saw silvery checkerspots, surprised to see purple prairie clover still blooming, lots of whorled milkweeds, nodding onions, beebalm, gray-headed coneflowers, and compass plants.
February 7, 2025 at 12:23 AM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finished up this midsummer page from my IL prairie nature journal. The royal catchfly and blazing star in the middle were done in the prairie so I left them as is.
#SciArt #prairie #naturejournal #artyear
Watercolor and ink sketches with handwritten notes at the bottom. Left to right- Royal catchfly flower stalk with bright red star-like flowers and a deep purple stem. Leaves are just inked. Next is a loose watercolor of a dense blazing star with light purple fuzzy flowers. Last is an inked stem with a vine with green leaves and a trumpet- shaped white flower winding up. A black tiger bee fly is perched on the stem. Below is a yellow coneflower with a camouflaged looper on it. Notes-July 20,2021, Schulenberg Prairie, 82 degrees- felt like 88, sunny and humid - felt nauseus and dizzy after sketching for 1 hr 10 min - compass plants still beautiful, beebalm, culver's root, rattlesnake master-at peak - still a few prairie clovers July 27, 2021, Schulenberg Prairie, 81-84 degrees, sunny and humid- then clouds came, air quality alert - found 9 camouflaged loopers of various sizes on gray-headed coneflowers, largest had yellow petals on it- so cool!
January 29, 2025 at 6:19 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Another complicated page finished in my 2021 IL prairie nature journal. Reminding myself that there's still beauty to be found and shared...
#ArtYear #prairie #naturejournal #SciArt
Watercolor and ink sketches with handwritten notes interspersed throughout the page. Top note- Compass plants are gorgeous this year- lots of stalks with multiple flowers. Left to right are drawings of the flower stalks of white Culver's Root, the white textured balls of Rattlesnake Master and the white flowers of Whorled milkweed. Behind the rattlesnake master are the yellow drooping petals of the Gray-headed Coneflower. Note- saw viceroy and red admiral on rattlesnake master Note at bottom- July 14, 2021 Nachusa Grasslands and Sculenberg Prairie, 80-84 degrees, humid- sunny and then cloudy, Clear Creek Knolls and Stone Barn Trails, saw Regal Fritillary at visitor center on butterflyweed, with Donna, lots of MI lilies!
January 23, 2025 at 3:30 AM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Finally finished (after 3.5 years) the left page of this spread in my IL prairie nature journal.
#SciArt #prairie #naturejournal #ArtYear
Watercolor and ink sketches interspersed with handwritten notes. Note-July 1, 2021, 80 degrees, sunny and breezy, Schulenberg Prairie, lots of rain in the last two weeks Note #2-Purple and white prairie clovers, queen of the prairie, Culver's root and MI lilies blooming. Leadplant and butterflyweed are gorgeous and covered in bees and butterflies. Lots of monarchs on butterflyweed. Sketch- detailed sketch of a flower stem of leadplant with its multiple fuzzy, purple stalks dotted with orange stamens. The leaves are only inked. To the right is a bright orange/red butterflyweed flower stalk with a yellow, black and orange wasp on it. Below and to the left are 9 white prairie clover stems in various states of bloom. A bumblebee is facing head on, pollinating one of the flowers.
January 11, 2025 at 11:49 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
One of the bonuses of having a mini- prairie outside your studio window...
#SciArt #ArtYear #naturejournal
Photo of a page from a prairie nature journal held up against a window showing a snow covered prairie yard. The bottom half of the page has 2 watercolor sketches- 1 of yellow and brown prairie plants in a little snow and 1 with plants covered in snow. Handwritten notes- Jan 10, 2025, mixed precipitation and some snow, 33 degrees, home prairie. Jan 10- inch of snow overnight- every branch covered- gorgeous!
January 10, 2025 at 5:45 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
A winter wonderland...
Vertical photo showing a brown, multi-trunked crepe myrtle with tall grasses and prairie plants in front, all covered in snow, every blade and twig.
January 10, 2025 at 3:18 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
So sad for the loss of our precious pup after a battle with cancer. He was a faithful companion and studio assistant and we will miss him very much...
Portrait of a beautiful tricolor sheltie with a background of grass.
January 6, 2025 at 3:23 AM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Started the year out with a hike and sketch at a remnant prairie in Ft. Worth. Started plein air and finished at home.
#SciArt #naturejournal
Finished watercolor sketch of a burned section of prairie with burned stalks and a yucca in the foreground. Handwritten notes- January 1, 2025, Tandy Hills, 45 degrees, sunny with a breeze, Manly Men/Wild Women Hike with Brett and others Dec. 19 was the first phase of a prescribed burn at Tandy Hills Photo of a nature journal with a rectangle shaped sketch of a recently burned prairie with some junipers near the horizon held up to the prairie that was drawn.
January 3, 2025 at 7:27 PM
karensnatureart.bsky.social
Mint plants are the host plants for the colorful little Southern Purple Mint Moth.
"Southern Purple Mint Moth"
Hand-sculpted polymer clay and brass, rose quartz, sterling silver, cherry quartz and rhodonite
#SciArt #invertefest
Handmade painted polymer clay and brass moth whose wings are yellow with a dark pink pattern. The moth is hanging off an oval rose quartz and sterling silver pendant and the necklace is made of handmade sterling silver links alternating with cherry quartz and rhodonite bead links.
December 31, 2024 at 12:11 AM