Birds of a Feather

My love affair with birds goes back as far as I can remember, well, maybe not quite that far. Anyone who has met me knows before too long that birds and I are pretty inseparable. I don't mean physical birds, like pets, as I do not have any right now. I mean the presence of birds in my mind and in my work. I possess quite a few bird-themed items, however, I am particular about exactly what kinds of bird work appeals to me. For one, I care that a bird is labeled correctly. For the record, the term "seagulls" is not accurate. Look them up in any bird identification book and these birds will be found under "gulls". There is a distinct difference between crows and ravens, no, we do not have Blue Jays on the West Coast (unless they are really, really, really lost). We proudly boast Steller's Jays and Scrub Jays. And my biggest soap-box topic is that birds are protected. Under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 more than 800 birds on this continent are protected, meaning they are illegal to possess in whole or in part. This includes feathers, birds found from natural death, nests that are still in a tree or building, etc. I had this conversation with a woman earlier today, she wanted to know if crows were protected, yes, were gulls protected, yes... yes... yes... yes... Game birds are exceptions when permits and other laws are abided by, also is collection for research purposes or rehabilitation (all of these for which there are special permits). If you find an injured bird please contact a rehabilitation center. A couple of local organizations include Willamette Wildlife Rehabilitation and the Cascades Raptor Center.

Okay, I'm off my soapbox, for now...

My point was to introduce some bird work that I did more than ten years ago (as proof that my bird infatuation now is not a phase, and will not pass quickly. *grin*)

Fischer's Love Bird - 1999

pastel

From a photo I took at the Fort Worth Zoo

Scarlet Macaw - 1999

graphite

Nymphicus hollandicus: Cockatiel -2000

graphite

Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo - 1999

watercolor pencils

Barred Owl - 1999

watercolor

(Before I knew it was a barred owl, and before I knew how to tell barreds apart from spotted owls)

A Dog, A Cat, and An Owl

It was hard narrowing my OCAC portfolio selection to just twenty images. Yeah, just twenty. So, I'd like to share some pieces of mine that did not make the cut, but that I love just as much.

"Bear"

Pen and ink

This piece is a bit older than I would have liked, which was one of the reasons it was removed from the selection. Remember Rapidograph? Yeah, they drove me nuts too. But I managed to pull this out of them before I flung those pens to the curb. I love this piece. Bear was my childhood dog. She passed away while I was in high school and the memories are bitter-sweet. She was such an amazing dog, so sweet, so loving. Tony and I are looking forward to the day we can bring home a puppy for our son to grow up with. It will be a couple of years at this point however, we need to get a yard first. *grin*



"Harley"

acrylic on canvas

This piece I painted for my parents for Christmas last year. Harley (because he was a "low-rider") left this earth last fall, too young. He was the most interesting cat I'd ever met. Of course he was special though, he was a munchkin.

"Young Barn Owl"

Acrylic, fabric and wire on canvas

I love this piece, however, my instructor (whom's opinion I sought) mentioned that it was difficutl to tell from the photo what exactly was happening with this piece. This was the first piece I created with one of my images from the Cascades Raptor Center (CRC). This young barn owl was one of eight that were in rehab at the center awaiting release. I had the pleasure of trying to catch this group from a large flight cage to weigh each one. Quite a unique experience, I will tell you that! When I first saw this photo after I got home I thought, "there it is, there's my muse" I had to do something. I created this piece as mix-media because I love putting materials together. In this case I sewed a pile of little leaves, wrapped wire around them, covered the wire and created small branches. The owl is pieced with a variety of patterned cottons. I glued and then sewed the owl and branch sections to the canvas (that I'd already begun to paint) and then painted the details on top of the fabric sections. Here are some additional images to help you see what is happeninng in this piece:



Caricatures at the Douglas County Fair

Here is a small selection of caricautures that I drew while at the Douglas County Fair last week. I wish I had taken more pictures.

Included here are some new themes that we have added to our list including the knight and the bubble bath. The girl on the pig was one of four 4H members that I drew with their prize winning critter over the course of the week. I drew two girls on their horses and one with her rabbit. Too cute!

Also included here is a shot of our booth Tuesday morning with our amazingly massive and eye-catching new banner!

Caricatures This Weekend

We lucked out this past Saturday and had our best location yet. It certainly helped that the weather was bearable this time around! Here are a couple of caricatures I did this Saturday. I actually drew two separate couples in the wedding theme. Why I didn't take a picture of the first one, I'm not sure. It was so much fun though. They had requested that the groom-to-be be wearing a kilt! I love customizing the pictures to make them a little more personal.