Merlin

Long day, Long week.  Back to Project Bird.  This is a Merlin, we say these a couple times in Utah.  This colored pencil drawing is of a rehab Merlin getting well before returning to the wild.

Prairie Twilight - Part 2

SO another night of working the clouds and I darkened the foreground.  You cannot tell from the photo, but I used the opposite non-brush end of the brush to scratch grass in to the thick paint.  I am going to let the painting dry and will work some dry brushing into the clouds and put a thin lighter wash into the grass of the foreground.  When I am happy with both, I am going to add the Pronghorn silhouettes to the skyline.  Sometimes it is better to let a painting rest.  A little time and space helps the artist spot the problems or issues.  Sometimes time results in a restart on a clean canvas to try a different tact.  Occasionally, a painting just comes together without any effort.  Occasionally.   I'll take better photos in daylight and show some of what I have mentioned. 

Prairie Twilight

Tonight I worked on getting the clouds depth worked in.  Working the edges in the transitions between the clouds. Tomorrow, I want to re-work the foreground to develop its depth and work the clouds more.  

New Painting

Something different tonight, I am going to work a painting through and post the results.  This is an oil painting, which will be a twilight sky with Pronghorn Antelope silhouetted on the horizon.  This is the basic thin colors to block in the canvas and remove the white.  More tomorrow.

Zuni Kachina

Today was an interesting day of work, come home early to a frozen water pipe and the need to replace insulation.  I finished up with a headache, so no artwork tonight.  I got the headache to go away eventually with pain killer and meditation techniques.  I feel a little anxiety if I don't do some art everyday.  Above is a colored pencil sketch of a Zuni Shalako Kachina.  The Shalako is a winter solstice ceremony and it makes the harvest too.  Outsiders don't get to attend these ceremonies, probably because people were behaving badly.  Our loss, I like these sketches for their design and simplicity.  I do them because I want to, so enjoy.

Dallas the Pit Bull

Meet Dallas, she is my sister-in-law Michelle's rescue Pit Bull.  Since it is Michelle's birthday today, this is her card from Barbara and I.  This is a pencil sketch with an ink box outline and my 'Chop' of my initials.

Pied Kingfisher

This is a Pied Kingfisher, she is a native of Africa and the Middle East.  She might be found elsewhere but I have only seen them there.  This is a reference sketch based on observation of one for around fifteen minutes.  I made notes of colors and bands on the feathers.  This is a female and she is a cousin to the Belted Kingfisher which was yesterday's post.