Paintbrushes, brushing paint...just as they should!

Woohoooo! Paint brushes ready and waiting; Artist ready to paint!!!

This week I've started a new painting of another bird of prey - this one is a 'Gyrlin' which is a hybrid cross between a Gyr Falcon and a Merlin. I was attracted to the beautiful shapes this bird made in flight...probably not clearly visible to the human eye, but using my camera, I managed to freeze the action. This bird is pretty much black and white, so I'll have to think about how I'm going to paint the background. Do I keep the whole painting monochrome or should I splash some vibrant or subtle colour in??? Time will tell... Looking at the image here, it looks like a graphite drawing, but in actual fact, I've used acrylic paint on cream coloured paper. I like to work on different surfaces to see how each one feels. This paper was very absorbent, and sucked the paint in thirstily.

Gyrlin - Acrylic on Paper

As well as the Gyrlin, I've re-worked my most recent sunset, which will be a background for Starling Murmurations. Its getting nearer to how I want it to look but still needs some tweaking. This painting is Acrylic on Canvas - this surface is much more forgiving when using acrylics as it is shiny and allows the paint to be manipulated much more then the absorbent paper.

Sunset Reflection - Acrylic on Canvas

I'm approaching the 'finishing line' on my Sparrowhawk painting...This is probably the 4th or 5th layer now, and its coming together nicely. Today, I accentuated the shading & tones of the wing feathers. I'm at the point now where I'll prop it up and 'look at it' for a few days to see if any necessary adjustments jump out at me...it might be finished, it might not... Initially, it was the sharpness of this bird's eye that grabbed me about this picture - I need to make sure that is what shows in my painting. Here it is...

Sparrowhawk - Acrylic on Canvas Board

 I've also been working on the two Starling portraits. The birds themselves, I'm happy with - its the backgrounds that needed attention...and still do! They're much better now, but both still need developing...

Starling. Acrylic on Canvas

Punk Starling - Acrylic on Canvas Board

As well as all this painting, I've managed to get out and about with my camera this week...and as usual, some unexpected snapshots have presented me with inspiration for new paintings...I've been 'playing' with some photos in the computer and as a taster of what could become a painting, here's something I concocted earlier...Enjoy!

Compostie photograph...starlings heading to roost.

Mandi ;)