"Winter Wonderland" (oil on stretched canvas; 24" x 30")

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I have been working on this painting for a few months.  It was initially a plain snowscape.  It was boring, so I decided to have fun by turning it into a zoological painting by adding the kinds of animals that are likely to appear in a suburban park.

After a light snowfall, the sun is out. So are the animals in the neighborhood. I see a white dog and her bouncy puppy, a red fox watching them, a stag and a young deer, a white rabbit and a brown one which must have spotted the fox, a robin and a great horned owl. I could have gone crazy by adding a coyote, more birds and dogs and deer, but my husband said there were already enough animals. Ha! 

"Robin Bath" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

sold

I was taking a walk when I saw a scruffy-looking robin at a shallow brook the day after a heavy rain.  Charming!

"Spring Robin" (oil on linen; 7" x 7") sold

sold

We have a couple of robins who live in our property.  They behave as if they own it during the nesting season.  One year they nested in a holly bush in front of our front door.  Oy! Whenever we approached it, there was a rush of flight, a loud squawk warning us to back off, etc.  We were glad when the baby birds flew off and we got our house back.  The bird in "Spring Robin" is not our male robin.  Its posture happens to remind me of the Intimidator.

"Cardinal on Maple" (oil on linen; 10" x 12") sold

"Cardinal on Maple"
sold

"Robin in the Evergreen Bough" (oil, 8" x 10")
sold

"Blue Jay at Bird Bath" (oil, 8" x 10")
sold

"Early Spring Robin" (oil, 8" x 10")
sold

"Cardinal in the Snow" (oil, 8" x 10")
sold

"Winter Bird" (oil, 8" x 12")
sold

"Duck Pond" (oil, 8" x 10")
sold

Last fall I decided to do some bird paintings.  To date, I have seven under my belt.  "Cardinal on Maple" is my latest attempt at bird paintings.  As you know, I am an impressionist painter, not a super realistic animal painter.  So if you are an avid bird watcher and I got some avian anatomies wrong, please bear with my errors. 

I am more of an opportunistic bird watcher, if there is such a thing. The other day I spotted a male cardinal perched on green shrubs outside of my laundry room. I grabbed a camera and began to click away. This bird made a terrific model, turning its head to show profile, then facing forward for the front view, and so on. This went on for a while until it decided to retire from a modeling career.  I didn't dare to open the window for better shots (one knows better than that when dealing with a wildlife).  After photoshopping the best shot, I came up with the picture below.  Passable, yes, but the environment in which the bird was sitting left much to be desired.  I did some Internet research and found a picture of a scrawny-looking cardinal on a lush maple tree.

My photo

Reference photo for the maple tree

I got to work and painted "Cardinal on Maple" with joyous rapidity.  My gratitude goes to the anonymous photographer and the cardinal who lives in and is fiercely protective of my property.

"Spring Robin" (oil on linen; 4" x 5") sold

sold



When you see robins busily building nests, you know the spring has finally arrived--a welcome sight especially if you live in a place with a cold winter such as Minnesota.  I lived there for six years, so I know what I am talking about.  The picture was taken by a naturalist neighbor down the street.