The boys and I found this nest under a tree on a walk one day. It has a similar structure to one that re-appears every year in the elderberry tree in front of our house. The birds like it there bc of the berries and adjacent Japanese plum tree. After unsuccessfully trying to put the nest back in the tree, we decided to carry it home and do a drawing of it. I developed the drawing into a painting.
There are many layers of cross hatching created with brushes and paint separated with a series of transparent glazes, then more crosshatching. with drying time in-between each layer As I was finishing I started feeling like I was doing an etching. The the finishing brush I was using had a tip about the size of a pencil point.
General to Specific…large shapes to smalll….I will always hear the echo of my father’s voice instructing me as I paint. The detail is all built on a strong simple series of light and dark shapes done using a big brush. Those last little layers of teeny brushstrokes. are structured by a loose, large strokes. General to specific……
