Did you know that flies have halters? That hummingbird tail feathers sing? Or that bees have five eyes? The closer you look, the more incredible ordinary things become.

Seen through the pages of an artist’s sketchbook journal, the extraordinary biodiversity in our city comes into view. Exploring Vancouver Naturehoods takes a closer look at nature wherever you find it in our city, whether in a beautiful park, a tree-lined street, your backyard, or a plant poking through a crack in the sidewalk. These are Vancouver’s “naturehoods” – any greenspace in your neighbourhood no matter how big or how small. This local artist uses her sketchbook as an opportunity to discover and explore nature throughout our city and as a portal to connect with community on many levels."

Natural science, medical, and botanical illustrator Vicky Earle delights in connecting people to nature through art. After graduating from the University of Toronto with a degree in medical illustration and bio-communications, Vicky has called Vancouver home for over three decades. Vicky’s goal is to help foster curiosity and an affinity for the natural world by encouraging people to follow their own art practice. Her preferred medium is watercolour on paper, occasionally using metal point and mixed media.

Vicky Earle's profile page

“Exploring Vancouver Naturehoods is a rich journey into nature and into the mind of a curious explorer. Vicky Earle looks deeply, asks questions, and then looks again. If you are a Vancouver local, you will delight in learning new places to explore and the secrets therein. But anyone, anywhere, can grow and be inspired by this approach to observation. The journal pages in this book are a guide to how we too can get more out of every walk in nature. It matters less where you look, but how you look. Vicky shows us how with page after page of joy, wonder, and discovery.”

John Muir Laws