Broome, Western Australia July 2019

In July 2019 I was in beautiful Broome in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. This is a very interesting coastal town of nearly 19,000 people and is famous for pearling. It is full of vivid colour and natural phenomena, as well as having sunset camel rides and dinosaur tracks in the beach rocks, dating back 130 million years. The sunrises and sunsets are unbelievably spectacular.

I had a group of 12. I only take limited numbers as I demonstrate and tutor constantly, so everyone gets the very most out of the tour and has individual tuition and guidance.

Here are some of my sketches from this trip. 

Broom courthouse on left, where markets are held weekly, and Johnny Chi Lane on right, with people waiting for their bus.

We sketched in the grounds of a pearl shop, where there were many historical artifacts from the pearling days.

And a very special sketch from the Japanese Cemetery, the largest Japanese cemetery in Australia dating back to 1896. Most of the graves are of the Japanese migrants who settled in Broome to prosper from the rich pearling industry. It is a memorial to those who were loved and lost.

The wording on one of the gravestone read:

"We did not see you close your eyes,

we did not hear you sigh.

We only hear that you were gone -

without a last goodbye."

Sketching in Bali & Borneo May 2019

In May, I was privileged to take a small group of 9 to Borneo, where we sketched the amazing orangutans of Central Kalimantan. As travel was along the river waterways, the klotok boats we travelled in did not accommodate any more.

Prior to flying to Borneo, we spent three days in Jimbaran, Bali, and I ran workshops on how to sketch the orangutans. We also ventured further afield for more sketching and a little exploring. It is a beautiful place with lovely people, and I never tire of visiting. Over the years have taken many groups to very special places on the island to sketch, away from the crowds.

Le Mayeur Museum, in Sanur. This is a place I try to visit when I go to Bali. I love the history of the Museum and the wonderful detail in the buildings.

We flew from Denpasar in Bali to Surabaya in Java, transited there and continued on to Central Kalimatan. Our aim was to visit three orangutan rehabilitation centres in the Tanjung Puting National Park. 

During this tour we not only saw and sketched orangutans, but proboscis monkeys, gibbons and the long tailed macaque monkeys, all unique. In the ecolodge we stayed there were a troop of gibbon monkeys living in the trees. I also saw a giant monitor lizard stealthily moving along on the muddy river environment underneath the walkway I was sketching from.

There were various colourful birds (the Bornean Bristlehead, stork-billed kingfisher and garnet pitta), and green water snakes which could be seen along the river.

This is my forest scene, showing the various birds and animals to be found along the river environment.

Mother and child eating bananas at the rehabilitation centre. The babies stay with the mother until they are about seven year old. There is a very special affectionate bond between them.

This was my cabin along side the river and set into the forest. The gibbon monkeys would occasionally jump on the roofs of the cabins during the night.  

With the logging of the forests these endangered species may only be with us for another ten years.

I have an extensive article on this tour which will be published shortly in Australian Artist Magazine, where I describe the sketching tour in more detail, and with more sketches.

Botanical art & Sketching in Bali

I have just returned from a wonderful week in beautiful Bali. It was so good to escape Sydney’s winter if only for a week, and to immerse myself in the warmer climate - balmy breezes, beautiful local people, a fantastic workshop environment and a fabulous group of dedicated students.

The morning was dedicated to botanical art and afternoons to sketching and sightseeing. There was time for leisurely massages, swimming in the ecolodge pool each afternoon, and some incredible shopping - where else but the art shops. The prices are unbelievably inexpensive and everyone bought up big. 

Udyana Ecolodge in Jimbaran. It was situated in a very quiet area with no tourists apart from ourselves.

The botanical art workshop was done in a room with a verandah, overlooking the beautiful gardens, in abundance with flowers and butterflies.

After a long day painting botanical art portraits,  spending time sightseeing and sketching in various locations, it was time for a swim.

 

The final review and exhibition contained a variety of  plants from the garden. The results were amazing. It is so rewarding for me as a tutor to see a participant who has never painted botanically before to produce such wonderful paintings.

Sketching Central Australia 2017

I am thrilled to be taking an art group sketching to Central Australia in the first week of July 2017. This is somewhere I have always wanted to explore, and to be able to experience the incredibly red earth, the unique flora and to explore the gorges is going to be magic!

Here is some information:

1 - 7 July 2017

Sketching Central Australia with Leonie Norton

Capture some of Australia's most stunning landscapes and natural features on this amazing tour of Namatjira Country. Sketch and paint the majestic gorges, rolling hills and mountains, crisp white gum trees and much much more!  Flights, accommodation and most meals included. Optional balloon flight over the MacDonnell Ranges and a helicopter flight over Glen Helen Gorge.

For more information, brochure and Itinerary:

www.aussieredbacktours.com.au

www.holidaysketching.com.au

New web page for Central Australia in progress

A-Z of Travel Sketching article

My new article for Australian Artist Magazine is out now at newsagents. If you subscribe to this magazine you should have your copy now.

It is going to be featured in following issues with more information and sketches.

Here are a few pages from the article and some sketches from my recent Fiji trip where I took a group of enthusiatic participants to Koro Sun Resort in Savusavu.

Page 26

Page 29

Bulikula Beach - Savusavu Fiji

This was sketched from the workshop room I used while at Koro Sun Resort, Savusavu

The pattern on the cover of one of my Fiji Sketchbooks represents the traditional handmade tape cloth of Fiji. These are fun ways to decorate your sketchbooks from various destinations.

Fiji - Painting in Pardise

Just back from an incredible week at the beautiful Koro Sun Resort in Savusavu, Fiji. I had a group of 11 participants for Botanical Art in the mornings and Travel Sketching in the afternoons. Some of the group became so engrossed in their botanical paintings they also spent the afternoons in the Workshop Villa. It is actually the Seaside Restaurant and the hotel gives it over to me for the week. It is the best location I have had for my workshops - a 180 degree view and ample room.

These are some views from the workshop villa.. It is a wonder we get any work done. What a unique space to be in.

Each morning at 10.30am precisely, a delicious morning tea was provided. A chef was appointed to prepare some delicious treats for us each morning, and these arrived still warm from the oven.

Some of the group enjoying morning tea

The group consisted on both absolute beginners as well and experienced artists, and I was amazed by what was produced. Most people explored the gardens and rainforests of the resort to choose their plants. Even though Cyclone Winston hit the resort in April 2016, the staff had worked tirelessely to have it back to standard for new guests. Nature did its part for us, and the trees that were ripped bare were making up for lost time by blooming profusely. Some of the gingers were produing up to five flowers from the top of the main stem.

Here are a few of the botanical paintings done in the week.

 

The resort is set between the rainforest at the rear and the lagoon and sea at the front. It is the epitomy of 'tropical' and I love every day I am there. This was my tenth year teachng workshops at Savusavu and each year I find new places to go. or to just relax in some free time and soak up the atmosphere.

It is extremely rewarding to be with such wonderful participants and to see what they produce for the week.

The resort spa. Enjy a massage while listening to the sounds of the waterfall

The infinity pool with sunken bar - just the place to watch the sun set.

We were so spoiled with the quality and presentation of the food in Koro Sun. Every meal was an absolute adventure. The chef's creations were not only totally delicious, but the menu was so well considered, that they was always something for any palette or even food intolerance (which seems to be more common these days). What we all appreciated was the serving sizes were not huge, and we always found space for dessert or a refreshing sorbet after mains.

So now I am back home and into my routine, which is working.........

Before I go I will leave you with a few images of the some of the group sketching in the rainforest, and the beautiful Mela, who does the best massages in the Spa, and is also an expert  on the medicinal properties of the plants on the island. She takes a Herbal Walk where she explains about the plants and their uses in traditional medicine.

So perhaps I will see some of you in Koro Sun next year - May 2017, for another extraordinary week. It is certainly hard to settle down to an 'ordinary' life..

Sketching Historic Hobart

I have just arrived home from a fantastic 7 day sketching tour of Historic Hobart.  With eight in the group we used Hobart city as our base and ventured out each day to a different location. The weather was very good for us with daily temperatures of around 23 and 24 degrees. 

There is so much history connected with Hobart which is nestled on the banks of the Derwent River and was founded in 1803 initially as a penal colony. 

It is truly a city proudly exhibiting its heritage, culture and spectacular scenery. We drove 1-1/2 hours to Port Arthur where we spent a full day exploring and sketching. This was the site of the penal colony. The many houses surrounding the gaol complex have been wonderfully restored so you can experience where and how the inhabitants lived. Ongoing restoration work is apparent in the gaol. 

Port Arthur Penal Colony

There were sketches in Salamanca Place with its original sandstone Goergian buildings,  and of course historic Battery Point where some of the oldest houses in the area are found. Arthur Circle also proved a popular sketching site. 

Some of the original settlers cottages at Battery Point

Some of the group sketching the original houses at Arthur Circle

A spacious air conditioned bus took us out of Hobart for three consecutive days. In Richmond we sketched Australia's oldest convict built bridge, and enjoyed the warm sunshine while we sat beside the river with the ducks and geese enjoying a frolic in the water.

Australia's oldest convict built bridge in Richmond. 1923. 

There was a real English feel about Richmond, and with the sketch above you can see the quaint two storey cottage with bright red canna lilies and white and blue agapanthus growing on the banks of the river.

The village of Ross was on the itinerary and it was also convict built with celtic symbols around the bridge arches.

Celtic symbols

Sketching Ross Bridge

Another very historic town we visited was Oatlands which boasted some wonderful Georgian houses and Callington Mill, where flour was ground in 1837. Fortunes were won and lost on flour mills but gradually the mill closed down in the face of changing technologies.

The miller's cottage which was a very basic two room house.

Oatlands Lodge c1837 which was a guest house, and remains so today.

As all good things must come to an end, so we left Hobart feeling the richer for the history of our Nation that we captured in our sketchbooks. And I certainly look forward to another historical visit.