PEREGRINE FALCON

 

Since moving closer to the city, we have seen Peregrines around here quite often. As I have mentioned in a few of my earlier blog posts, they have mostly been seen flying past and occasionally roosting on the top of our building. After doing a bit of research, I found out that they breed nearby in the city and apparently, have done so for many years. There is even a website dedicated to them with 4 live webcams allowing excellent views of the birds which is especially important during nesting and the raising of their young. They can also be seen in and around the nearby rooftops. Anyway, a few weeks ago, I was lying in bed one morning and as it began to get light, I heard a Peregrine calling close by outside so I thought I had better get up and see if it was still about. Being that this bird is one of my favorite raptors, imagine my joy then when I discovered an adult female resting on our balcony and I immediately began doing sketches of her.

 

I assumed it was the resident falcon named Bridget and she remained for a few hours. Since then she has fortunately visited quite often, usually in the morning for a few hours, occasionally in the afternoon. Since we have been keeping the blinds closed to help block out the morning sun, we can still move around inside without disturbing her. At the closest point, she is only about 2 meters from the window although I usually watch her from slightly further away. If I slowly move the blind aside I can peer through the gap and draw for as long as I like. Mostly she remains completely calm, looking around, preening occasionally and even taking short naps! Of course, all this has meant that I have been able to get some fantastic reference material and have done quite a few sketches and drawings in my sketchbook, some of which are shown here. I’m sure I’ll get around to doing some color studies of her soon, but for now I am really enjoying her visits. I always feel a pang of regret when she leaves - it is as if the world has become a slightly lonelier place. All pencil studies done in my sketchbook, sizes are about 12 x 9 in (30 x 23cm) and 8 x 9 in (20 x 23cm).

TALLGRASS FIELD

 

The idea for this painting was simple, find an interesting view deep in a field somewhere. Fortunately there were quite a few places like this near where we used to live so I took my easel and set up looking slightly towards the east with a few trees nearby to keep me company. Since this one was quite small, the painting didn't take that long and after a period of reflection, I was quite pleased with the result. I had planned on doing a number of similar paintings like this one but like so many of my ideas, those plans fell by the wayside. I do have a few other paintings similar to this and now after having taken a fresh look at this one, will probably get to them and finish them off sometime soon. Size is 8 x 10 in (20 x 25 cm), oil on canvas.

THE ICELANDER - STUDY

 

This smaller study was for me unusually problematic inasmuch that it almost didn’t even get started. Almost all of my paintings begin with a detailed drawing, sometimes in my sketchbook, at other times on a separate sheet of watercolor paper. This I have found to be the best way for me when painting in watercolors or acrylics. Anyway, I had met this gentleman some time ago in Iceland and although we didn’t share a common language, I felt some deeper sense of affinity with him. His features and character made a great impact on me almost from the first time I met him and I asked if he would pose for me. Fortunately he said yes so I began to gather reference right there and then. My sketchbook studies done in pencil back then were a great disappointment and nothing seemed to work the way that I had hoped. So his portrait idea was shelved but over the years, I re-examined my drawings that I had done and more recently tried again. Unfortunately, it seemed that I still couldn’t get what I wanted although I used a better quality paper this time and tried drawing him from a few different angles. Eventually after becoming very frustrated, I decided that it just wasn’t going to work as a drawing and what I really needed to do was something in color! I grabbed a small sheet of paper that was lying around and after once again drawing out the head, began laying in washes and thin glazes. For some reason, I decided to use acrylic this time, perhaps because I felt that if there were any mistakes, I could mix up some opaque paint and cover them – something I hate doing! Fortunately I didn’t need to do that and after working on and off for a few days, I was eventually quite pleased with the results. Since I didn’t stretch the paper beforehand, the many thin washes buckled the paper quite severely which didn’t make my job any easier. And while I didn’t bring this painting to the level of finish I usually do, I still think it works well as a study and I certainly learnt a lot while doing it. Hopefully this and all my pencil studies will lead to a larger and slightly more refined work. Size is 9 x 12 in (23 x 30 cm), acrylic on paper.

LAKE REFLECTIONS

 

I started this northern lake painting with the idea of capturing the reflections of the sky in the water. I remember it was a warm day with passing clouds that continued to break up as the day went on so I had to work quickly with my initial color sketch putting down the basics of the scene and deciding how I would manage all the different areas. I liked the way that the cloud reflections were broken up in places by the lake plants and was glad that I decided to include them too. I just lightly indicated the sky above the horizon as I wanted this one to be more about the lake and the surrounding trees, most of which acted as a backdrop to the scene. I think the size of this one was 16 x 20 in (41 x 51 cm), oil on canvas.

AFTERNOON SKY, BLACKWATER

 

This is one of my older paintings so I'm not sure if I have posted it here before. Anyway, it was getting later in the day during an extended painting session at Blackwater when I saw these clouds drifting in over the water so I did a quick study there and then. Later back in the studio, I created this smallish painting working on the sky first since that was the whole reason for the painting. I tried to capture the effect of a still bright but lowering sun and its effects on the clouds. I especially liked how this created a highlight all around the edges of the upper clouds and since I was looking into the light, I kept the landscape relatively subdued. Size is 9 x 12 in (23 x 30 cm), oil on canvas.

EVENING SUNDOWN SERIES

 

This was probably the fist evening sundown scene I painted many years ago. I wanted to try and capture the light and feel of a particular day just as the light was fading from the sky. I set the scene nearby above a somewhat distant horizon along with the streaked clouds seen at that time. Surprisingly there was a little mist which I included in this study. This further helped create a little more depth. The foreground was a mass of young white pine trees and I kept the details there simplified so as not to detract from the sky. Surprisingly, I am still working on this series and currently have a few new ones on the go at the moment. Size is 9 x 12 in (23 x 30 cm), oil on canvas.

HARRIERS AT BLACKWATER

 

Whenever out in the field, I am always open to whatever sights, sounds or opportunities I experience. In this case I was painting a study looking across the water when two Northern Harriers appeared. Usually they are seen singly on migration or in winter so I was happy to see them flying in front of me. Later I decided to incorporate them into a painting. This oil is one of my medium-sized paintings and out of this, and the study I was working on at the time, came a much larger work. I think the size of this one was 18 x 24 in (46 x 61 cm), oil on canvas.