Saturday, April 4, 2009

Works In Progress - Common Egret

This is a pastel painting of a Common Egret that I just finished.
The first picture was taken was it was a little over half way done.



The second picture is the finished piece. I've never pictured a bird before and wanted to see if I could represent the feathers in a believable fashion.


For the model I used a photograph that I took last summer at the Oceanside Marine Preserve here on Long Island. The preserve is the summer home to a great variety of birds who prefer living in salt water marshes and along the water's edge. A pair of Osprey returns each Spring to raise their brood of 2 or 3 chicks.
The finished piece is 9 X 12 inches (23 X 30.5 cm).

6 comments:

Unknown said...
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Unknown said...

Just beautiful Martha! Stunning portrait of a lovely bird!

Jean Levert Hood said...

Excellent, Martha!! I love painting herons. They are such an interesting and graceful bird.

Drawn to The Sea said...

I love the soft texture you captured. Do you work teeny or large? I can't tell.

Kathleen said...

Lovely!

Clay Images said...

Wonderful work, very sensitive!

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
Henry Davis Thoreau