Daily Paintworks Interview

I was very excited to be ask to be this weeks featured artist on Daily Paintworks.  The link to the interview is http://dpwnews.blogspot.com/2014/03/dpw-spotlight-interview-janet-graham.html.

It is a week long feature so  I will be posting a few larger paintings for auction during the week and I will blog about them when I list them.

Zebra Finch in Acrylics

I find these birds markings so interesting.  I decided to paint it in a larger format this time as I have already painted an ACEO version. I went for a more neutral background which I think works really well as the bird then stands out from the background.

Zebra Finches range from 10 - 12 cm in length and weigh around 12 grams.

Zebra Finch measures 6 x 6 inches and is painted on Raymar's Feather Light Smooth Portrait Cotton 1/16"  panel.

Many thanks to Jim Bendon for the reference photo.

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Lion ACEO in acrylics

I love the intensity of this lions eyes.    I started off with a Burnt Umber/ Raw Sienna background which worked rather as the base colour for the lions fur.

I am planning on painting some more lions. I  took some photos of  white lions including some very adorable cubs when visiting Tasmania last year. They are on my growing list of paintings to do - my list is up to around the 30 mark now and I keep adding to it but I will eventually get around to painting them. 

Lion measures 2.5 x 3.5 inches and is painted on 300gsm Smooth Arches Watercolour paper.

Many thanks to Gary Jones for the reference photo.

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Eastern Yellow Robin ACEO in acrylics

I love the position this robin is sitting on the branch. I played around a bit with mixing the grey feather colours - ended up using mixtures / combinations of Phthalo Blue / Ultramarine Blue / transparent yellow / Permanent Alizarin /  Burnt Umber + white  - the combinations  created some rather lovely  greys.

Eastern Yellow Robins are rather inquisitive and  confident around us  and have been known to take handouts of food from picnickers.

Eastern Yellow Robin measures 3.5 x 2.5 inches and is painted on 300gsm smooth Arches Watercolour paper.

Many thanks to James Niland for the reference photo.

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Bullfinch ACEO in acrylics

I have wanted to paint this bird for a while. I just love its colouring. I mixed Crimson, a touch of ultramarine blue, transparent yellow and white to created the rose / pinkish coloured feathers.  Really pleased with the final result.

The Bullfinch breeds across Europe and temperate Asia. They are around 14 - 16 cm in length and weigh between 27 - 38 grams.

Bullfinch measures 2.5 x 3.5 inches and is painted on 300gsm smooth Arches watercolour paper.

Many thanks to Kev Chapman for the reference photo.

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Purple Finch ACEO in acrylics

This one was a bit difficult to paint. To lighten  red is always a bit of a challenge but I got there in the end.

These bird breeding habitat is in Canada and North Eastern United States as well as along the US Pacific coast.  They measure around 15 cm in length and weight around 34 grams.

Purple Finch measures 2.5 x 3.5 inches and is painted on 300gsm smooth Arches watercolour paper.

Many thanks to Andy Reago and Chrissy McClarren for the reference photo.

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Vivid Niltava ACEO in acrylics

I am really pleased how this one turned out.  Love how the bird stands out from the tree trunk.  Used an old bristle brush to paint the texture of the tree - worked rather well. 

These birds are China, Taiwan, India, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.  They are a member of the Old World Flycatcher family and measure around 16cm.

Vivid Niltava measures 2.5 x 3.5 inches and is painted on 300gsm smooth Arches watercolour paper.

Many thanks to Ron Knight for the reference photo.

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