Galapagos Through the Eyes of an Artist

Hello! My name is Staci, and I am an artist and photographer. 

My favorite subject to work with is wildlife, so the Galapagos Islands were an obvious dream destination for me!   I created a journal out of a watercolor book, which I will be sharing with you in my blog posts.  Some things I painted and drew before my trip to the islands, in anticipation of what I would see there.

Some were created after the trip, using my photographs and experiences as inspiration for the images.  I work in acrylics, gold leaf, colored pencil, collage, mosaic...whatever medium is the most useful for getting my vision across.

This is a map I made of the islands, which I filled in as I travelled around Galapagos!

I also enjoy sharing interesting facts about the animals and landscapes, as well as travel tips to ease your own journeys.

The company I booked my cruise to the islands with, Adventure Life, is having a contest through this blog. The winner receives a trip to the Galapagos--if you enjoy these posts, please consider voting to send me to the islands I did not get to experience on this trip!  I would love to visit them and have them inspire more art.  A new blog will be created documenting that trip and the pieces I create from it.

My hope is that you will be inspired, get great advice and enjoy my journey through this blog!  Happy Travels!

Staci

The Galapagos Islands are amazing.  Basically, everything you have ever heard of, that is cool and awesome...is absolutely true. You might be eye to eye with a Blue Footed Booby.  You might get splashed in the face by a sea lion.  You might find yourself having a conversation with a salt-spitting, crusty old marine iguana.  And it is marvelous!  How did it all come together?   I did some research before I went, and found one of the reasons Galapagos is special is because of all the different currents that converge on the archipelago (fancy word for a group of islands).   As I read, I pictured the currents as various colors, swirling and mixing as they clashed into each other.  The result became a painting in acrylics and gold leaf. 

As I flew into Baltra airport, I imagined what it was like to be an animal, riding in on a bit of driftwood all those years ago. 
 

 
The islands are really only the top of undersea volcanos.

What would it have been like to arrive as they were formed?

What an experience that must have been!