Preparing panels for oil painting gave me some time to leave the studio while they dried. The local park was offering a chance to see some large raptors (birds not dinosaurs!) up close. I came home with a renewed appreciation for their attributes and their design.
Owls are associated with wisdom so even this barred owl appears profound when he calls out, “Who cooks for you?” in the still of the night. Hardly equal to the Bard Shakespeare but being this adorable you can also call out “Too cute to care!”
Just had to spend a couple of hours capturing the memory. (Charcoal pencil on sketch paper)
The Bard is Barred
Kingfisher Study
Another study.I watched a pair of these birds almost every day this past summer.They flew between two trees above the Saugeen River and announced their arrival twice a day with a loud, rattling call. Always successful at fishing, they seemed very businesslike, more like organized shoppers than hunters. I took pictures but never caught the detail necessary–needing a better lens than what I have I suppose. So, bird books out and perusing terrific birding sites has me trying to understand the feather patterns, colours and just plain attitude of these feisty little dudes. Seems only fitting to dust off the watercolour media for these water ‘kings’.
(watermedia on toned paper)
It’s not easy painting green…
study of old, open grown cedar tree on a grey day in Grey-Bruce
Kermit the Frog found being green to be a challenge and landscape painters have often complained about the colour as well. I am joining the chorus these days as my interest in landscape painting is taking me into this ‘jungle’ of verdant hues. Tucked away in my studio with the window providing a nicely framed view of the backyard, I’ve been practicing. Cedar trees are plentiful here and are challenging to represent, convincingly. Seeing green spots before my eyes from all this makes me wish for sunlight and the man-made hues of last summer!
Two figures fishing and taking the sign, “Dead Slow” to heart.
study, mixing landscape greens
study on Arches oil paper of Saugeen River