I found an article from an old newspaper clipping regarding the creation of a protected game preserve in British Columbia sometime back in the early 1900’s. Included were three images which may have been early photographs or steel engravings perhaps. It was difficult to tell because they were quite small. Two of them were long range views of the mountains and valley below, the third being this image of two hardy souls from another era.

I took an immediate liking to the scene because it depicts a time in our history when exploration of our beautiful resources was still new and surprising at times. I knew it would make fun sketch. I love to sketch what appeals to me in some way. It sometimes isn’t until I get into the process that the why of it’s appeal becomes conscious to me. In this case I knew right away that their clothing and exploratory imagination was the clincher for me. They could see the potential for a large game preserve spread out before them. They imagined the magnificent region being set aside and protected for the sake of preserving that which was already being exploited even in their day.

Taking ourselves back to another period provides many opportunities for great sketching experiences. Particularly if we aren’t prone to travel far and wide, reference images to other times and places are a great option for maintaining the daily sketching fix.😉