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John Doughty - Nature Printer

John presents "Plants and their Images" with the aim of promoting greater appreciation for the wonders of the natural world. Nature printing involves depositing inks and paints onto plants then pressing them onto various surfaces to leave an exact impression of the original plant. The program illustrates the value of nature printing in medicine and the historical involvement of famous persons like Leonardo da Vinci and Benjamin Franklin. Program concludes with demonstrations of how-to-do nature prints and an opportunity for the hands-on production of nature prints for the classroom. Each student will be given a fax example of colonial money which features a nature print design, as well as a hand-printed card made by Doughty.

Grades: 3-6; Time: 45 minutes; Availability; flexible with notice. Required: two 5 to 6 foot tables in front of class. Study Guide provided.

John Doughty is a retired chemist who has been doing nature printing for over 25 years. He is a 20 year exhibitor at the Mountain State Arts & Crafts Fair. John is a past president of the international organization, The Nature Printing Society. His work was selected as part of a year long exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. and he is the co-author of a book, Creating Art from Nature: How-to Handprint Botanicals. He teaches adult classes through the Elderhostel Program.

Curriculum Guide

Grades 3-4

Language Arts & Social Studies
Nature stories
Local Geography
Famous Americans

Math & Science
Plants/medicinal
Exploring and observing
Geometric shapes

Arts
Designs; patterns
Early print
Art appreciation

Grades 5-6

Language Arts & Social Studies
American History/culture
explorers
Famous historical persons

Math & Science
Plants: origin of medicine
Environment
Geometric Shapes

Arts
Elements of design
Using organic shapes in artwork
Early printing techniques