Halloween Bird Hats!
This is the sixth year that I’ve made Halloween costumes for one or both kids. I guess they really haven’t been costumes so much as hats. One drawback is that the kids have to spend a lot of time explaining … Continued
Carolina Wren Pencil Sketch p54
One Carolina Wren wasn’t enough! These cute birds can make quite a racket at times. The males are exceptionally vocal, making a “teakettle-teakettle-teakettle” call. These wrens are also known for making nests in odd places. I’ve seen photos of their … Continued
Jumping Spider on Daisy Step-by-step Transparent Watercolor
Well, you can’t accuse me of selling out. While I love jumping spiders, I can’t imagine there is a huge market for detailed watercolors of them. Maybe I’ll be proved wrong. For a while frogs and toads were among my … Continued
Common Ground Dove Watercolor and Ink Step-by-Step
The Common Ground Dove isn’t a bird that I’ve been around my whole life. I’ve only encountered them while on trips to Florida. I really enjoy these beautiful little birds. This particular one was sitting on the dikes between flooded areas at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island.
Blue Jay Transparent Watercolor Painting Step-by-step
I have a lot of mixed feelings about Blue Jays. They are undeniably beautiful and intelligent birds, but they have a lot of ugly behaviors. Maybe that big brain just causes too much trouble? Blue Jays can empty a feeder … Continued
Batrachology: Amphibians in Art (January 18 – April 13, 2014)
Print available here. I’ll have nine paintings on display in the upcoming Batrachology: Amphibians in Art show at the Alden B. Dow Museum of Science & Art in Midland, Michigan. The show runs from January 18–April 13, 2014. It should be an interesting collection … Continued
Halloween Bird Hats!
I have the coolest kids in the world. Every year they request an unusual costume. Inevitably it is some sort of animal. In the past requests have been bear, penguin, Red Fox, shark, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Keel-billed Toucan, Tocu Toucan, Great … Continued
American Tree Sparrow Transparent Watercolor Step-by-Step
I really like the American Tree Sparrow. They are tough little birds who visit our Michigan home in the cold, harsh winters. As Spring finally arrives the smaller Chipping Sparrows replace them. For a very brief time you get the … Continued
Boat-tailed Grackle Pencil Sketch p34
Boat-tailed Grackles shimmer with iridescence. What appears to be jet black fades into beautiful metallic blues, greens and purples. Of course all of that gets lost in a simple pencil sketch! At some point I’ll need to render this in watercolor … Continued
Tricolor Heron Pencil Sketch p33
The Tricolor Heron is an underrated bird. Maybe it needs a better name. There are Great Egrets, Great Blue Herons and Snowy Egrets, which all sound rather cool. Then you have a mundane name like Tricolor Heron. Of course I … Continued