New Exhibit at Starbucks

AvesInArt has just put up a new show!  Birds of Uruguay, in paintings and photographs, is now on view at the Starbucks in Storrs-Mansfield, Connecticut.

Interior view to the gallery wall.

After closing time, Sue making final preparations.

Some of the colorful birds of Uruguay.

Come to see the show and let us know what you think.  And, if you're interested in seeing these birds in person, check the Southern Screamer Birding Tours website, and consider a trip to Uruguay!

Bird Portraits?

This spring I'm trying something new.
I've painted a few bird portraits in a new medium - acrylic on canvas board.

Green Jay (Cyanocorax luxuosus) from the Rio Grande Valley of southeastern Texas

I love the classic side-view portrait, but have always been intrigued by some of Jorge's photos which capture a front view.  Just about the only birds that actually have binocular vision (where they see what's in front of them using both eyes to create a forward-facing field of view) are the OWLS.  The rest of the birds have a wide field of view primarily to the side of the head, which is useful for detecting predators.  So, while a photograph may capture an instant where the bird is facing the camera - it is not actually focusing on you at that moment.

My choice of these two species was due to the intriguing patterns on the faces. The Green Jay is a bird of subtropical to tropical forests, where sun-dappled shade is common.  These colors and patterns work well to confuse and conceal the bird's actual features.  The pale blue feathers above and below the eye stand out from the black mask, and appear to be distinct feather tracts that at can be manipulated, perhaps in display.  

Jocotoco Antpitta (Grallaria ridgelyi) from the Andes of southern Ecuador

The pattern of light and dark on this antpitta's face is unique in the genus Grallaria - which is why it immediately caught the attention of ornithologists Robert Ridgely and John Moore, who discovered it very recently in the tropical humid Andes of southern Ecuador - in 1997!

I have often wanted to do a series of these photos (or paintings!) entitled "Here's looking at you" - but of course they aren't really looking at us at all.

National Juried Show!!

Common Potoo, Nyctibeus griseus

My watercolor painting of the Common Potoo (Nyctibeus griseus) was just accepted to the member's exhibit at the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators (GNSI) annual meeting.

Last summer I completed the painting for our Greater New York GNSI chapter's fall exhibit entitled Nature's Camouflage.  This small exhibit has gone on to several different local venues since the September 2013 opening at Highstead Arboretum in Redding, Connecticut.  (see previous post!)

Now my painting will hang at the Museum of Natural History in Boulder Colorado from April through September 2014.  The 2014 conference and annual meeting will be held at the University of Colorado, Boulder, nestled at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

A full week of classes, technique workshops, demonstrations and field trips to the nearby mountains and museums, the annual meeting is always a great way to learn - both from experienced instructors and fellow artists.

I attended several days of the conference last summer - at College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine - and came away inspired to try out some new painting techniques.

Detail of notched eyelid, Nyctibeus griseus.

This watercolor of the Common Potoo was done before that experience, so it's my standard combination of wash and dry-brush with finishing touches of gouache to highlight the white feathers.  I really enjoyed working on this piece, and used museum study skins, photographs and videos as reference material.

Detail of chick, Nyctibeus griseus.

Well, if you find yourself in Boulder, Colorado this summer, stop by the Natural History Museum and check out the Guild of Natural Science Illustrator's Member Show - my potoos will be there!