Just thinking about Yellow Warblers can put me in a better mood. I need to remember that sometimes. This is a perfect bird to render in transparent watercolor. All those super-saturated yellows, along with oranges and reds, plus a few olive colors thrown in make for a striking bird and a fun painting.
This is actually only my second time painting a Yellow Warbler. My last one was a really quick ink-and-wash effort almost exactly ten years ago! Considering they are so common here in mid-Michigan, I should’ve painted a few by now. The field closest to where we walk our dog is loaded with them in the spring and summer. We almost continually hear them singing their “sweet, sweet, sweeter than sweet!” call, along with the sounds of Song Sparrows, Eastern Meadowlarks and Red-winged Blackbirds. Although we see an occasional Yellow Warbler’s nest in the summer, once winter sets in and all the leaves are down, I’m always amazed at how many of their nests I had walked by and never noticed. I’m always disappointed when these beautiful warblers leave, for they are one of the earliest to migrate.
This was painted on Kilimanjaro 140lb cold-pressed paper. I’ve really grown to like this paper. For background washes it is super cooperative. It has good working time and isn’t as highly textured as some other cold-press papers. Although it still has a few bumps, it doesn’t have enough to get in the way of putting in some tiny details. I have a block of Arches Cold Press that I’ll try soon to share a comparison.
What birds inspire you to create? Share your favorite moments or paintings in the comments below!
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Here are some links of note, including a couple of new ones:
- Bohan Art’s NEW print-on-demand shop
- Bohan Art newsletter
- Bohan Art Blog RSS feed
- Bohan Art social media
Finally, if you’re interested in buying the original watercolor of this or another painting on this site, let me know. Prints, licensing and commissioned work are also available.
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