#wildlife art

hares: very weird, extremely unsettling

Hey all! If you missed my live webinar, it’s now available on youtube! Learn a bit about how illustration is used in science, take a tour through a bunch of work I’ve done for IBP, and stay tuned at the end for a brief photoshop demo and some Q&A.

at work. at play.

My friend John Baumlin is an absolutely incredible artist (and person!).  His work has appeared in many publications, galleries, and museums and I think it should appear here as well.  He tells me he’s working on a website, but doesn’t have one yet, so I can’t link you to him directly.

John is a naturalist to the core, and his work reflects his passion for and understanding of nature and it’s various denizens.  Having the chance to watch his paintings come to life (I was able to see “Wake Up Running” in various stages as he worked on it) has been an honor, and I can tell you that no photograph can do his work justice!  (Though I think this is true of any original artwork.)

Until you have the chance to see his work in person, I hope this post, featuring a select few of his pieces, will do!

In order:
“Wake Up Running” 24" x 36" oil on linen
“Big Cat Messages” 20" x 20" oil/linen
“Lion Skull” watercolor, 14" x 18"
“Daydreamer” 14" x 11" oil on board
Interpretation of Shere Khan12" x 9" oil
“Harris Hawk and Saguaro” 18"x24" oil
Merlin illustration for cover of Breeding Bird Atlas of New York State
“Peregrine with Mourning Dove” 24" x 18" oil
“The Wanderer” 48"x48"oil on linen
“Pronghorn Study” 8" x 10" oil

Here’s a pile of little oil paintings I finished recently. Each is 5″x7″ and is oil on panel.

“Crepuscular” Short-Eared Owl
“Sunrise Glimmer” American Crow
“Tanzanite” Prairie Warbler
“Peridot” Chestnut-Sided Warbler
“Citrine” Black-throated Green Warbler

A very special thanks to Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren of Flickr for their permission and reference photos for the short-eared owl and the prairie warbler!

Three oil paintings I finished this autumn:

 "Ever Return" Indigo Bunting, 11"x14" Oil on Panel. My favorite part was painting the birch catkins! Inspired by a location near my home, a hilltop covered in quartz conglomerate outcroppings, highbush blueberries, birches, sassafrass…

“Watchful Kestrel” (Falco sparverius), 5"x7" Oil on panel

“Restless” Tree Swallow, 7"x5" Oil on panel

Special thanks to Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren for their inspirational creative commons photos for the last two paintings!

My oil paintings from this year, some carrying heavy “2020 energy,” so to speak.

From top to bottom:
“Fading Light” Blue Jay, 12″x24″ oil on panel
“Drifting Into Evening” Crow, 16″x12″ oil on panel
“Instability” Snowy Egret, 24″x12″ oil on panel
Detail of “Instability”
“Hallowed” Hermit Thrush, 16″x12″ oil on panel
“Northern Cardinal in Dogwood” 16″x20″ oil on panel
“Sky and Shadow” Crow 5″x7″ oil on panel
“Crow Portrait” 7″x5″ oil on panel
“Goldfinch with Lilac Spires” American Goldfinch, 8″x10″ oil on panel
“Red-Bellied Woodpecker” 5″x7″ oil on panel

“Eternal”Barn Owl, 24"x18" oil on panel. Painted for my current exhibit, “Featherlight” at the Crary Gallery. A lot I could say about this one but I really enjoy the idea that everyone takes their own meaning!

“Storm’s Departure” Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, 16"x20" oil on panel. One of my headline pieces for my solo show at Crary Gallery in Warren, PA, for the month of August. One of my favorite memories of TX was seeing these perched high up, in the evening sunlight…

“Tiny Watchtower” Ruby-throated Hummingbird, 5"x7" oil on panel.These little dudes are SO FIERCE and defensive of their territory. I once watched one chasing off a cooper’s hawk!

“Woodland Queen” Eastern Wild Turkey 9"x12" oil on panel.
This beautiful hen raised her poults behind my house last year, and I feel like I got to know her a bit.. I knew I wanted to paint her portrait when she was among the Persicaria sagittata; it has tiny white flowers on thin stalks… it looks like they are hovering!

The Great Swamp Beast

Finally had time to finish this one.  Only took forever, but I like the results.

The Sabear. A prehistoric mixture of bear and feline.

Fruit bat pen and ink.

Portrait of a wolf

pen and ink of burrowing owl

Needle Felted Elk by Teresa Perleberg

more progress on this one

some work from today, started a new painting, its going well so far….and a bonus bunny picture!

Progress pictures from today. Got a lot further than expected!

Some of today’s work, backgrounds done and drying nicely, next for he acrylics…really looking forward o painting these two!

OK, so here’s the beginning of a few things that will be keeping out of mischief for the next couple of weeks..
More wildlife painting, small sculptures LOTS of leather work….and the blank paper is a secret!

The Barn Owl.
Everything that makes up a barn owl and some of is English and Welsh folk names.
Finished painting, now to varnish and frame then hopefully on to a wildlife art exhibition 

Raven.
Finished painting and all varnished ready to be framed and hopefully bound for a wildlife exhibition.

Another week, another painting! Now its the turn of the Barn Owl. 

Finished! Now drying after varnishing and then for some decent pictures of it

Nearly there!