Hannah Bullen-Ryner Made These From Nature (18 Photos)

She Makes Tiny Animals From Feathers, Petals, Leaves. And Not a Single Drop of Glue!

A tiger cub takes shape from leaves and petals. A panda is made almost entirely from feathers. Hannah Bullen-Ryner creates each work outdoors, photographs it, and leaves it where it was made.

Meet Hannah Bullen-Ryner, an Earth Artist Working with Found Natural Materials

Hannah Bullen-Ryner is a British earth artist who works on the outskirts of a town in Hertfordshire, according to her official website. She began as a painter and photographer. In early 2019, a small circular arrangement on the woodland floor led her in a new direction. In a 2020 Bored Panda feature, Bullen-Ryner recalled that a muntjac deer entered the clearing after she finished and stayed with her for about twenty minutes. She saw the encounter as the start of a deeper connection with nature.

Most of her “visitors” are small enough to fit in a palm. She assembles them directly on the ground using locally found feathers, petals, leaves, seed pods, berries, lichen, moss, sticks, shells, and stones. She uses no glue or other permanent fixings, instead layering heavier pieces over lighter ones to keep them in place in the wind. Only the photograph lasts.

She also reuses materials. In an original post about one of her seahorses, Bullen-Ryner explains that she stores tiny elements in half coconut shells near her working spot and rehydrates dried petals so they can be shaped again. Her Etsy page also explains that berry stains in the soil can provide the background color for a later piece.

Bullen-Ryner has described herself as a full-time mother of twin girls. She describes the time spent making art outdoors as quiet and cathartic, saying the process lets her put her emotions into the work, photograph it, and let it go. She discusses painting, motherhood, and nature in a longer interview.

🔗 Follow Hannah Bullen-Ryner on Instagram and Facebook, explore her official website, and visit her Etsy shop

More: See 18 Earlier Ephemeral Artworks by Hannah Bullen-Ryner

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🐅 Tiger Cub — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Orange leaves and petals form the stripes, while blue-gray fragments add shadow. Fine details around the eyes and muzzle give the cub its expression. Bullen-Ryner wrote that leaving these “visitors” outside is part of what makes the process cathartic for her.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🦓 Zebra — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

This zebra is built mostly from feathers, with slim dark and pale pieces forming the stripes across its face and neck. Bullen-Ryner said she had wanted to make a zebra for years but waited until she felt confident in her technique.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐐 Baby Goat — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

The blue-green flecks around this goat came from one of the artist’s favorite finds: naturally colored spalted wood. She combined it with feathers, twigs, seeds, and pale plant fragments to form the tousled coat and bright eyes.

💡 Material Fact: The blue-green stain in spalted wood can be produced by Chlorociboria fungi, whose pigment xylindein colors the wood. Researchers have identified the same fungal stain in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century Italian intarsia.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐇 Rabbit and Daisy — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

A single daisy stands beside the rabbit. Soft feathers create its pale face and chest, while moss, seeds, leaves, and darker fragments define the eye, ears, and nose.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🔥 Phoenix Rising — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Red, orange, and yellow petals form the wings and sweeping tail, with a few blue and violet pieces on the dark soil. Bullen-Ryner described it as her ephemeral version of a phoenix rising.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐰 Catkin Rabbit — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Fluffy catkins give this rabbit its soft, mottled coat. A glossy eye, a tiny dark nose, a few whisker-like strands, and long pale ears define its features.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🪶 Great Blue Heron — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

A long yellow bill runs diagonally across the soil. Pale feathers and blue-gray fragments shape the head and folded neck. In her post, Bullen-Ryner called the bird majestic and elegant.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐭 Tiny Harvest Mouse — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

A twig becomes a perch for this mouse, which Bullen-Ryner said was not much bigger than a blackberry and possibly her smallest creation at the time. The warm orange head and white belly stand out among real blackberries, pale trumpet-shaped flowers, and green leaves.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐸 “Dyeing Poison Dart Frog” — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Bullen-Ryner identifies this frog as Dendrobates tinctorius, the dyeing poison dart frog. Yellow pieces cover the back and legs around the dark markings, while blue and violet pieces define the toes and shadows. She said it was challenging to make but that she loved the process.

💡 Frog Fact: The three poison-frog species documented as having been used on hunting darts all belong to Phyllobates, not Dendrobates, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🦆 Duckling — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

The oversized eye, open beak, and uneven stance give the duckling its wobbly look. Bullen-Ryner described it as taking “one wobbly step at a time.” Pale feathers soften the body, while rust-colored seeds and plant fragments give the head its warm striped pattern.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🦊 Fox in Dappled Light — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Purple patches of light fall across the soil behind the fox. Moss, feathers, seed heads, leaves, and slim twigs form its side profile.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🦔 “Little Autumn Hedgehog” — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Spiky pale fragments overlap with warm brown pieces to create the spiny back. A glossy eye and pointed nose form the face, and the fallen leaves remain part of the composition.

Artist post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐼 Feather Panda — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

This panda was made almost entirely from feathers placed outside on the woodland floor. Downy white pieces create the round face; darker feathers supply the ears, eye patches, shoulders, and the tiny curve of a smile.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🐦 Robin on a Mossy Log — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Orange-red pieces mark the robin’s breast. Bullen-Ryner placed the bird on a mossy log, surrounded by bark, leaf litter, and soft green moss.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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💙 “Grape Hyacinth Blue Jay” — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Grape hyacinth blooms form rows of bright blue feathers. Bullen-Ryner said the finished bird looked almost embroidered with beads. She used dried pink and peach roses donated by her neighbors, along with white cherry blossoms found outdoors.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🧚 Blue Sprite — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Not every visitor is an animal. This vivid blue sprite carries a tiny yellow lantern. Petals, narrow seed pods, feathers, and twigs form its limbs, wings, antlers, and clothing.

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🦦 “Floating Otter” — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

The otter tilts its head with its paws tucked close to its chest, as if floating on its back. Fine feathers, narrow leaves, seed pods, and tiny brown pieces follow the direction of wet fur, while one small flower rests beside the chest.

Artist post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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🪵 Great Spotted Woodpecker — United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Black-and-white pieces form the feathers along the back, while red patches mark the nape and undertail. In her post, Bullen-Ryner wrote: “Be bold. Be brave.”

Original post: Hannah Bullen-Ryner Art

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Which one is your favorite?