Vintage Art Appreciation: On an Apiary by Aleksandr Makovsky

On an Apiary, 1916
by Aleksandr Makovsky (1869 - 1924)

The happiness of the bee and the dolphin is to exist.
For man it is to know that and to wonder at it.
― Jacques Cousteau

It is so small a thing to have enjoyed the sun,
to have lived light in the spring,
to have loved, to have thought, to have done.
― Matthew Arnold

And we should always remember that, in matters of evolution, nature will select for the ability to adapt and survive, not for maximum convenience to mankind.
― Phil Chandler, The Barefoot Beekeeper

Don't Just
Don't just learn, experience.
Don't just read, absorb.
Don't just change, transform.
Don't just relate, advocate.
Don't just promise, prove.
Don't just criticize, encourage.
Don't just think, ponder.
Don't just take, give.
Don't just see, feel.
Don’t just dream, do.
Don't just hear, listen.
Don't just talk, act.
Don't just tell, show.
Don't just exist, live.
― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart

Free Botanical Illustration for Cardmaking, Collage, Journaling or Scrapbooking: Common Hazel (Corylus avellana)

Our world is falling apart quietly. Human civilization has reduced the plant,
a four-million-year-old life form, into three things: food, medicine, and wood...
― Hope Jahren, Lab Girl
Second colour plate from an antique French botany book that shows Corylus avellana, the common hazel, a species of hazel native to Europe and western Asia. To download this high-res printable botanical illustration (without a watermark) for cardmaking, collage, junk journaling or scrapbooking projects, please click here.

Here is an example of how I used it as a journal cover:

From my personal collection of ephemera. All digital scans by FieldandGarden.com are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Please credit and link back to FieldandGarden.com as your source if you use or share this work.

Free Whimsical Fairytale Illustration for Cardmaking, Collage, Crafting or Scrapbooking: Overheard Between the Mice

A little nonsense now and then is cherished by the wisest men.
― Roald Dahl
A very sweet black and white fairy tale illustration from 1901 that shows a mischievous garden fairy with butterfly wings, creeping up close to listen in on a couple of mice's whispered conversation as they huddle under a tangle of nasturtium leaves. Originally captioned "Overheard Between the Mice." I wonder what they are saying?

You can download the high-res 6" x 4.5" @ 300 ppi JPG without a watermark for cardmaking, collage, crafting or scrapbooking project here.


From my personal collection of ephemera. All digital scans by FieldandGarden.com are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Please credit and link back to FieldandGarden.com as your source if you use or share this work.

Free Botanical Illustration for Cardmaking, Collage, Journaling or Scrapbooking: Cornish Oak (Quercus sessiliflora)

Faith sees a beautiful blossom in a bulb, a lovely garden in a seed,
and a giant oak in an acorn.
― William Arthur Ward
A colour plate from an antique French botany book that shows the Quercus sessiliflora, the sessile oak, also known as the Cornish oak or Durmast oak. You can download this free printable botanical illustration (without a watermark) for cardmaking, collage, journaling or scrapbooking project here.


From my personal collection of ephemera. All digital scans by FieldandGarden.com are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Please credit and link back to FieldandGarden.com as your source if you use or share this work.