COLORHODEISLAND is an ongoing project to illustrate and document wildlife and plants of the Rhode Island area in a coloring page format. Issues are released and added to the site as they are completed.
COLORHODEISLAND's pages feature patterns and images of birds, animals, plants, insects, fungi etc. that can be seen in Southeastern New England. Each issue includes a story or poem about the scene in large type and more detail about the featured life forms in smaller type. The issues are organized to correspond with what you might find in season. These are plants and animals that I have seen in RI myself, while driving, taking walks, and visiting rivers, parks, beaches etc.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
After being raised by research scientists and trained as a translator and writer, I grew up in the semi-feral culture and environment of Providence, RI. I find refuge and hope in the wild birds and plants that thrive in abandoned lots and in nature's persistent way of springing up everywhere and calling us to reckon with her. I have worked for many years as an art and general education teacher, and with the experience of 40 years of life I now feel capable of taking on the task of building culture for the next generation. With this project I am attempting to activate the understanding that we are, at every moment, alive within a living environment.With this project I hope to make it easier for humans to maintain a relationship with the living environment that is sustainable.ABOUT COLORING:
Why color?
Coloring pages can be used by all ages for meditation and to relieve stress. This series will be of particular use to adults seeking to reconnect with nature in their every day lives, teachers in search of extra classroom materials, and for parents looking for unbranded, non-cartoonified material to enjoy with their children.
I first encountered the idea of coloring as a stress- relief / meditation / focus tool from an article put out by a WELEARN women’s literacy newsletter. I started using simple coloring pages in my classroom as part of a stress-management lesson. I encouraged students to color as a free-time activity, and even as a pre-test activity to establish focus. Students loved it; I myself started to color occasionally when I needed to take breaks. I found that I often had to design my own pages to get the right level of complexity and interest. Many coloring pages contain too many details to be completed in a reasonable time. I have used simple coloring routinely in the classroom, and even color my own patterns when I can find the time. I started this work before coloring came into fashion! - and I will likely be working on this collection long after the craze has passed.
Below are two articles about the benefits of coloring:
“Coloring Isn't Just For Kids. It Can Actually Help Adults Combat Stress.” by Elena Santos, 10-13-2014, The Huffington Post.
“Adults Who Color Tout Tranquility, Mindfulness, Stress Relief” by Grace Smith, 4-1-2015, in Education News.
What to color with?
Treat yourself to pens, pencils and crayons that make a satisfying mark. There is nothing more irritating than a poorly functioning crayon or pencil - or a drying out marker! Buy one good set of simple colors. Learn how to mix them! Don't leave them out as kids' playthings. They will be destroyed :(
THANKS TO OPENSOURCE SOFTWARE!
This project would not have been possible without the following free programs:
Inkscape (layout)
GIMP (image editing)
LibreOffice (writing)
BlueGriffon (web site design)
FileZilla (sends files to internet host)
Thanks for reading and happy coloring!
Sincerely,
Beatrice McGeoch
COLORHODEISLAND by
Beatrice McGeoch is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.