Prairie Burn


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The prairie burn drawings and sketchbooks were made in the spring of 2005 after controlled burns on the restored prairies near Northfield. I dragged my paper and sketchbooks across the ground, sometimes slowly, and sometimes quickly. I walked through the burn looking for a variety of charcoal. Raspberry branches that partially escaped the burn made sharper lines, while grasses turned to dust. I applied a lot of pressure to some of the paper, and sometimes very little as I moved it on the found charcoal. I like the directness of this method and the immediacy of the result. I appreciate the intensity of the necessarily fleeting experience of drawing in this way, as the charcoal soon disintegrates and the prairies grow lush and green.

Drawings

sketchbooks