As well as the birdwatching logbooks, part of the project with Greenwich Peninsula was to offer some workshops to the community. The Urban Village Fete was the first, and my second instalment was a drawing workshop at the Ecology Park for local residents, and this took place on Saturday 10th June.
I arrived at North Greenwich tube to a spectacular–if very hot–day of blue sky and sunshine. There was a slight breeze as I strolled along the riverside towards the Ecology Park; if ever there was an appropriate use for the word “oasis”, Greenwich Peninsula’s Ecology Park is it.
Nestled amongst the buildings, it was alive with dragonflies and insects, and the terns were swooping overhead calling loudly. I had seen a couple of Oystercatchers on the mudflats, but in the Park itself, the Coots and Common Terns were most apparent.
About 18 people attended the workshop, with a range of adults and families. We started with some basic techniques to loosen up, followed by some specific tips on how to draw birds. Tooled up with pencils and our sketchbooks, we headed out to the hides and boardwalks to have a go at drawing what we could see.
Drawing gives us an opportunity to stop and engage ourselves with our surroundings, and notice things in a way that snapping on a phone camera simply can’t achieve. Two or three people said how relaxing they found it to really concentrate and slow down. The hides were beautifully cool, and a number of the attendees remarked that they had not ever been to the Ecology Park so it was a great opportunity to introduce residents to a fantastic resource for both wildlife and us. The logbooks are a great way to encourage people to notice what birds are around, and I am so pleased to be working on such an innovative project.
We will be hosting an event for the local school at some point, and there will hopefully be the chance to run another drawing workshop in the early autumn as the Ecology Park welcomes the winter visitors.
My tick list for Saturday was as follows:
- Common Tern
- Grey Heron
- Reed Bunting
- Reed Warbler
- Moorhen
- Coot
- Mallard
- Little Grebe
- Magpie
- Oystercatcher
- Pied Wagtail
What a great course. We ran one once for kids at Minet Country Park, West London. That’s when I did a crash course on drawing birds! We had some great colours and imagination though!
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ah yes I always get a lot of unicorns! 😁 great fun though, and lovely to see their total lack of inhibition!
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