Ollie Fern
@whalefern.bsky.social
cyanotype artist, photographer, painter, and creature espousèd to @nemerevermore.bsky.social. Pike Place handmade artist! photos mine unless otherwise noted. no ai (ugh). if you see a pigeon tell it i said hi. art at https://www.whalefern.com
the Nuthatch Intimidation Dance is a masterclass in chutzpah. objectively they are just pointy little anger puffs way outmatched by the average woodpecker, but BOY do they sell it. 🪶
September 3, 2025 at 3:57 AM
the Nuthatch Intimidation Dance is a masterclass in chutzpah. objectively they are just pointy little anger puffs way outmatched by the average woodpecker, but BOY do they sell it. 🪶
Back east, my mom put up a suet feeder, and the drama was incredible 🪶
September 3, 2025 at 3:47 AM
Back east, my mom put up a suet feeder, and the drama was incredible 🪶
Anyway, it was a weird, exhausting holiday weekend, and if any of the handful of really nice people who stopped by my table are on bluesky, thank you for buoying my spirits.
September 3, 2025 at 2:59 AM
Anyway, it was a weird, exhausting holiday weekend, and if any of the handful of really nice people who stopped by my table are on bluesky, thank you for buoying my spirits.
people keep asking how long a print took to make, *not counting the photography*, and going forward I think I will simply decline to exclude that from my answer. While I loved spending three hours in a frigid lake with <5 feet of visibility, the print wouldn’t exist without that effort.
September 3, 2025 at 2:44 AM
people keep asking how long a print took to make, *not counting the photography*, and going forward I think I will simply decline to exclude that from my answer. While I loved spending three hours in a frigid lake with <5 feet of visibility, the print wouldn’t exist without that effort.
Seattle: I’m teaching a photo cyanotype workshop in October! After learning the basics, students will use their own photos to create fine art cyanotypes, and also take home their transparencies for use in future printmaking. The class is beginner-friendly 🦋. www.studiopianonobile.com/shop/the-cya...
September 2, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Seattle: I’m teaching a photo cyanotype workshop in October! After learning the basics, students will use their own photos to create fine art cyanotypes, and also take home their transparencies for use in future printmaking. The class is beginner-friendly 🦋. www.studiopianonobile.com/shop/the-cya...
A new piece from my recent freshwater snorkeling adventures! I could only see a few feet in front of my face, and I’m pleased with how the print conveys the eerie flickering light. Photo cyanotype on mulberry paper.
August 31, 2025 at 8:36 PM
A new piece from my recent freshwater snorkeling adventures! I could only see a few feet in front of my face, and I’m pleased with how the print conveys the eerie flickering light. Photo cyanotype on mulberry paper.
Reposted by Ollie Fern
As we say... If your Beak is a Spear then your tongue must be an Arrow!
a four-second emotional journey from "the heron looks so lovely in the peaceful morning light" to "I guess I knew on some level that their tongues must be very long and pointy. but I didn't, like, viscerally understand it until now." 🪶
August 30, 2025 at 8:41 AM
As we say... If your Beak is a Spear then your tongue must be an Arrow!
a four-second emotional journey from "the heron looks so lovely in the peaceful morning light" to "I guess I knew on some level that their tongues must be very long and pointy. but I didn't, like, viscerally understand it until now." 🪶
August 30, 2025 at 2:34 AM
a four-second emotional journey from "the heron looks so lovely in the peaceful morning light" to "I guess I knew on some level that their tongues must be very long and pointy. but I didn't, like, viscerally understand it until now." 🪶
it's real, I witnessed it: a hummingbird vs. butterfly throwdown in which the butterfly won
August 30, 2025 at 12:09 AM
it's real, I witnessed it: a hummingbird vs. butterfly throwdown in which the butterfly won
traces of blöödchëëp remain
🪶
🪶
August 29, 2025 at 11:29 PM
traces of blöödchëëp remain
🪶
🪶
we missed a zucchini
August 24, 2025 at 6:05 PM
we missed a zucchini
cower before the great golden eye
August 24, 2025 at 2:49 PM
cower before the great golden eye
Tomorrow evening (8/13) is my last cyanotype scarf workshop for a while 🦋. After this, the next scarf printmaking class is on December 17th. To sign up for tomorrow’s class: www.studiopianonobile.com/shop/the-cya...
August 12, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Tomorrow evening (8/13) is my last cyanotype scarf workshop for a while 🦋. After this, the next scarf printmaking class is on December 17th. To sign up for tomorrow’s class: www.studiopianonobile.com/shop/the-cya...
saw a BEAUTIFUL WEASEL
August 10, 2025 at 3:52 AM
saw a BEAUTIFUL WEASEL
the otters were eating some very flamboyant fish; maybe sculpin, but what manner of sculpin?
August 9, 2025 at 3:16 AM
the otters were eating some very flamboyant fish; maybe sculpin, but what manner of sculpin?
we’re gay ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
August 8, 2025 at 7:28 PM
we’re gay ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
The shorebird art scarf is finished! Cyanotypes from my photographs of sandpipers and terns in flight, on artisan-handwoven mulberry silk, completely hand-sewn by me. This one turned out more of a sky blue.
August 6, 2025 at 6:45 PM
The shorebird art scarf is finished! Cyanotypes from my photographs of sandpipers and terns in flight, on artisan-handwoven mulberry silk, completely hand-sewn by me. This one turned out more of a sky blue.
Last night’s workshop was amazing? I taught a private cyanotype class for a group of interior designers from JAS, and the intricate patterns they created were beyond stunning. The arrangements were so pretty, I almost didn’t want to remove them so we could finish the scarves.
August 6, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Last night’s workshop was amazing? I taught a private cyanotype class for a group of interior designers from JAS, and the intricate patterns they created were beyond stunning. The arrangements were so pretty, I almost didn’t want to remove them so we could finish the scarves.
A little work in progress, featuring my friend the heron
August 4, 2025 at 10:58 PM
A little work in progress, featuring my friend the heron
THE SWANS ARE FINISHED
(cyanotype on mulberry silk, completely hand-sewn, from my photographs of trumpeter swans in the Skagit Valley)
(cyanotype on mulberry silk, completely hand-sewn, from my photographs of trumpeter swans in the Skagit Valley)
August 4, 2025 at 8:04 PM
THE SWANS ARE FINISHED
(cyanotype on mulberry silk, completely hand-sewn, from my photographs of trumpeter swans in the Skagit Valley)
(cyanotype on mulberry silk, completely hand-sewn, from my photographs of trumpeter swans in the Skagit Valley)
I’ve been quiet because I was frantically catching up on prep for all of the events in the last two weeks, having unexpectedly lost time earlier this month; everything was absolutely great and I’ve spent the last day and a half sleeping.
July 29, 2025 at 8:32 PM
I’ve been quiet because I was frantically catching up on prep for all of the events in the last two weeks, having unexpectedly lost time earlier this month; everything was absolutely great and I’ve spent the last day and a half sleeping.
Some recent cyanotype silk pieces! I’m really proud of the big two-sided egret scarf, which I sewed by hand. It’s on silk satin, so had to be hemmed before printing to prevent fraying, which is always a little nerve-wracking.
July 29, 2025 at 8:16 PM
Some recent cyanotype silk pieces! I’m really proud of the big two-sided egret scarf, which I sewed by hand. It’s on silk satin, so had to be hemmed before printing to prevent fraying, which is always a little nerve-wracking.
me: “I’m having so much trouble with words and concepts; it weirdly reminds me of migraine prodrome?”
narrator, every time: “it was migraine prodrome”
narrator, every time: “it was migraine prodrome”
July 20, 2025 at 11:19 PM
me: “I’m having so much trouble with words and concepts; it weirdly reminds me of migraine prodrome?”
narrator, every time: “it was migraine prodrome”
narrator, every time: “it was migraine prodrome”
freshly printed muppet
July 18, 2025 at 4:47 PM
freshly printed muppet
July events! Phinneywood Art Walk at Piano Nobile, Making Local Market in Bothell, and Urban Craft Uprising at Magnuson Park (Sunday only).
July 17, 2025 at 2:11 AM
July events! Phinneywood Art Walk at Piano Nobile, Making Local Market in Bothell, and Urban Craft Uprising at Magnuson Park (Sunday only).