This drawing course will explore periods in art where nature has been used as a catalyst for personal expression and scientific investigation. We will use traditional drawing tools and approaches to create drawings based on observations gleaned from walks at the Charles Ives Nature preserve. This course will take a multi-faceted approach to meet the individual interests of each student. We will begin with a lecture that focuses on a period in art, examining the sociological, philosophical, and scientific influences of the time period, and students will then complete a response drawing. The course will culminate in a final project that reflects the student’s personal interests in the natural world. While drawing and artistic expression are the focal points of this course, weekly written reflections will deepen the students' understanding of nature and their relationship to it with the intention of cross-pollination among disciplines.