Birds 'n' Bots...working to a theme

 Mechanized Harvest

(12x16", Oil)             Price: $950.00     SOLD

 Well this is the first real epic in my continuing spree with birds and tin toy robots. This time I've included another favourite painting subject: mini pumpkins. I've been wanting to paint mini pumpkins again for a long time now and finally had a brainwave with the above idea. Red Robo Rover was always going to be in the line up somewhere, and the flying saucer guy was from a series of reference photos I took during a visit to a friend's house in San Francisco last year. He let me run, with camera, barefoot through his toy collection at will. After a having a wonderful time playing with the little blue robot, Mark sent him home with me. Rover and Blue have been inseparable and often hang around my easel. Other robots that I took reference photos of that I thought would be the final line up for this painting didn't quite make it but I'm getting new ideas for those as I go along. Meanwhile, I'm pleased with my whimsical version of a mechanized harvest. And of course, the bird is a Black Capped Chickadee...I've been growing very fond of these little birds.

The background was filled in with a large flat brush and a smaller Filbert, and blended a bit with a fluffy blending brush. Detail was added with progressively finer brushes as I worked my way through the robots and bird. Palette included: Burnt Sienna, Raw Sienna, French Ultramarine, Cadmium Orange Hue, Cadmium Lemon, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow Medium, Titanium White, Cobalt Blue, Cerulean Blue, Cadmium Red Light, and Sap Green.

Painting this took some time and some painstaking brush work in the details, but I'm rather proud how this turned out.

This is a shot of the easel when the painting is almost complete except for the bird and flying saucer and some highlights. Of course Rover and Blue are putting their two cents worth in as usual.

More to come tomorrow...Thanks for stopping by.
Cheers
Marianne