Song Sparrows sure seem to be friendly little birds. Their cheery “Madge-Madge-Madge, put-on-your-tea-kettle-ettle-ettle” call is always a welcome sound. We get them in our yard frequently, but in really low numbers. I don’t think I’ve ever seen more than one at a time. We’ve … Continued
I’m still behind on posting and have been uploading things out of order chronologically. For example, I finished this watercolor before Christmas. (!) I was looking through photos from last year’s trip to Florida and decided to do a watercolor … Continued
Orange-crowned Warblers are often described as drab. While they aren’t as flashy as a Hooded or Kentucky Warbler, they really are quite beautiful. It took me a long time to confidently identify them because they have so many subtle features. The past … Continued
What is cuter than a Chickadee? Chickadees are incredibly common, and I’ve sketched them dozens of times, but I’ve only painted them once. Their high-contrast coloration makes them a little trickier for watercolor. For the same reason it’s hard to get a good … Continued
After a large, complicated, time-consuming botanical painting, I wanted something, small, fast and simple to work on. I sorted through a stack of doodles and composited a few into this coral reef scene. After the rigid realism of the last watercolor, it was … Continued
I haven’t done a purely botanical painting in ages. I think the last one I did was of Fringed Polygala back in 1999! I’m always painting plants as backgrounds for insects and birds, so they aren’t foreign; they just haven’t been … Continued
This flamingo painting is based on photos I took at the fantastic Toledo Zoo. I’ve been going there for more than 20 years. My second trip there was probably the most memorable. I was living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, at the time … Continued
The Numata Longwing Butterfly is native to most of South America. Its yellows, orange and black contrast really well with the dark greens of the leaf and background on this painting. Macro views of butterflies take a long time to … Continued
It’s been about 18 years since I last painted a butterfly. At that time I created several to decorate our infant daughter’s bedroom. I used to paint them life-sized, but these magnified views posed more of a challenge. Those tiny facets on the wings took a long time to … Continued
This painting of a Black-and-white Warbler was based on photos I took at Magee Marsh Wildlife Area in Ohio. I think the first one I remember seeing was at Shaker Lakes in the Cleveland area. In my mind I thought … Continued