Sanderlings

The cute little birds in this weekend's painting are called Sanderlings. They are a winter migrant to the UK, so can be seen anywhere along the British coast at this time of year. I have only seen them a few times, once on the beach in Hythe, Kent and a few times on the sandy beaches of Guernsey. They are very energetic little things, and run up and down the beach as the waves break and rush backwards, exposing the little crustaceans and molluscs that they eat.
I thought they would make a delightful composition, due to their speckled plumage. What I enjoy the most about this painting is the reflection in the sand. This was achieved by wetting the paper around the birds, then blobbing 'paynes grey' (my favourite and the most useful colour in my palette!) onto it with a thick, flat brush. I left some areas pale and added white inky streaks to areas that would catch the light around their feet and beaks. The finishing touch was the black reflection of their legs, again applied in small horizontal strokes to give that watery effect.
I really enjoyed painting these birds and I will probably try similar subjects in the future. I have often seen Turnstones on the beach in Hythe. These are beautiful little birds with striking summer plumage, which could easily be recreated with my speckled, flicking method of applying paint

Portrait of a Hare

Well as of tomorrow the half term is over and it's back to work. So I have made the most of my weekend by painting another Hare. Again, this was produced relatively quickly. I sketched the outline out in pencil yesterday, but the actual colour only took 3 hours to put down. I wanted to blend the Hare into the patch of grass it is sitting in, so I only added the hint of fur and the outline of it's long legs. The grass is also pale and very loosely applied to give a light and expressive effect. As with my last Hare painting, dark brown, black and white paint was flicked over a tan base to create the fluffy fur effect.
I much prefer this to the upright Hare portrait I produced last year. The pose is better and the ears are more pronounced and alert. Most importantly, I think this Hare has the 'flighty' look. He's been disturbed, is listening carefully, and thinking about making a break for it. The secret to achieving this effect to to paint a big bright eye, with a sparkling white highlight. It instantly makes the animal look 'alive'
Once Spring comes around, it would be great to go out and get some more Hare reference to help compose some more paintings. I would particularly like to capture some boxing hares, one of the best Spring spectacles. The only problem is trying to find such an elusive creature! The countryside around Brabourne in Kent where I grew up, will probably be a good place to start. Roll on Spring!

Silver Dorking

I have taken advantage of the first day of half term, by getting stuck into this proud cockerel. I used some reference gathered from Hackney Farm, where they had several breeds of cockerel strutting around with their hens. Thier cockerels were somewhat raggedy looking, so I made sure for the painting that I presented a sleek and healthy looking individual.
This painting was very quick to produce. I find that the more I paint the more confident I become with mark making and application of colour and water.
I think my favourite part of this image is the tail. I am fascinated by the green sheen that the black feathers emit in the light, so I layered turquoise over dark blue and black watercolour. By adding a drop of water the darker colours rushed to the edges of the feather, leaving the turquoise shining through. I don't use masking fluid on my paintings so I carefully work around areas I want left white, and then flick white ink or acrylic to create extra fluffiness (like at the base of the tail) or for extra highlight.
As I have a full week off, I will probably be able to get another watercolour done. My next subject is likely to be either some Sanderlings or a line of comical coots.

Hare in Form

I seem to be getting into the habit of posting paintings a week after I have finished them. I blame it on the hectic working week I have had, which has meant I have been getting home every evening exhausted and tired of looking at computer screens!
The Hare portrait and boxing hares I produced a year ago have captured a lot of attention, and I am told they are very popular with buyers in the art market. So here is my third attempt at a Hare. Hares are extremely hard to spot in the wild, due to the fact they crouch down in dips in the ground which they dig out, called 'forms'. They will suddenly bolt out at the last minute if they feel threatened, scaring the life out of you as you probably thought it was a lump of dirt!
I have captured the wary look in this hare. He could bolt at any minute, the wild eye fixed on you. The fur of a hare is layered with grey, black, blue and brown hair, so to capture this layered look I flicked all these colours one at a time onto the paper. With the grass, I layered green and yellow ochre then scraped out blades of grass with my fingertips (a messy method I know!) This was far more effective than painting blades of grass individually.
I will probably keep revisiting Hares as a subject. They are beautiful creatures and there are endless ways to represent them.

Scarlet

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I would be painting a Scarlet Macaw. Well, here is the finished result, and I have to say I am very pleased with this one. I have painted Macaws before. I began this blog with a pair of Green-wing Macaws, a watercolour I was very proud of. They are such a wonderful subject to paint, with rich red feathers and endless texture. I thought the Scarlet Macaw would be a perfect subject, with its gorgeous rainbow coloured feathers and long tail.
These watercolours do take a while to create, mainly because I have to wait for each section of colour to dry before moving onto the next. If I didn't do this all the colours would run together in a muddy mess. Dropping water or white ink onto slightly damp colour creates the highlighted feather effect, which is important with a subject like this. It would be far too dark and flat otherwise.
This painting will be entered into the BBC Wildlife Artist of the Year competition this week. The 'World Birds' category is the best place for it. I will also be entering my little egret into the 'British Birds' category. I'll know in April whether I have once again made it onto the shortlist.