Multimedia Science Illustration: Bees of California

This workshop will cover biological illustration techniques in multimedia using colored pencil, watercolour and gouache. We will walk through the process of biological illustration from start to finish to create our first illustration. After a walk through the Museum’s pollinator garden to look for bees, participants will have an opportunity to create another illustration with guidance from the workshop leader using real specimens. Attendees will learn about wild bees of California, and techniques in observation and accuracy important to science illustration and identifying bees. Techniques in layering colour using different mediums will help our illustrations come to life!

This workshop is hosted by the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History and the UCSC Norris Center for Natural History. It will take place at the Museum, partly outside. In the case of inclement weather, we may choose to move the workshop inside.

About the Workshop Leader: Sofia Vermeulen (www.sofiacoco.design) is a University of California, Santa Cruz Anthropology student and artist who practices biological illustration. Growing up in Canada, Sofia acquired a great interest and respect for the natural world and art soon became a method to capture its wonders. Sofia valorises biological illustration as both a deep study of the organism as well as an appreciation of its form and existence.