Chickadees Galore

The season is changing outside here in Las Vegas but it has been slow coming with November temperatures still in the upper 80's but in my studio there is snow all around.  Winter and the holidays has arrived in full force. With December approaching I am finding that every gallery I affiliate with has decided that a holiday themed show is the thing to do and I have 4 of them I'm busy trying to create for not to mention my recently completed ornament that is on it's way to Washington D.C. to be hung on the National Christmas Tree.  I've been one very busy artist!  This ornament features the Mountain Bluebird, which is the state bird of Nevada.






After finishing the ornament, I focused on creating more unique Christmas designs including a painting.  As you can see this week has clearly been a Chickadee kind of week.  I finished this 12 x 12 acrylic snow scene and what fun I had painting it.  I'm calling this one "Chickadees in the Snow" and I'm thinking of hanging it in the Boulder City Art Gallery for December.












Then I decided to add a couple of more sketches that featured a similar pair of birds and those adorable red berries by having them appear to be stringing garland or decorating their nest.  I thought it was a cute idea and the "Stringing Garland" piece looks really great on a greeting card.







Speaking of greeting cards, I have also been working on improving the look of my cards by adding a border around the 4 x 6 print with a slightly larger rectangle of Christmas designed card stock.  I bought a pad of 60 sheets at the Michaels Store  just to see how I could spice up the design on my cards and I think they have turned out really nice.  I'm looking forward to filling card orders and making these available at a number of local area galleries and hope to take some out to the store in Pahrump.




A final design created this past week is more in a cartoon style but those little Chickadees are still going strong.  This one I have called "Decorate to Impress".

If you enjoy my work please leave me a comment below and check out my website at JulieTownsendStudio.com or follow me on Instagram or like my Facebook Page.

 

Seeing Double....Not Quite

So my last blog post from Saturday, I shared about this particular sketch I was working on that included  two bluebirds and a nest.  I included this photo that showed examples of how I would scan and then print out copies of incompletely sketches so that I could have a opportunity to experiment with different backgrounds and colors.  Yesterday, I went on printed one more copy out of my artwork but this time I printed it on my nice Bristol, acid free art paper and used the good printer.  I then finished the pen work on the incomplete nest on both the original and the copy.  Last night I began coloring them in using my colored pencils.

Original Artwork- "Nesting Bluebirds"

One original with realistic tiny blue eggs in the nest and a second original with 2 small red hearts.  My plan for the second piece that has hearts in the nest is to be able to use it as a gift for weddings and anniversaries.  I can customize it by lightly adding initials or names to each heart to make each piece of art personal and unique.  I will also hand embellish each piece to maximize the contrast and color.

What a great artcard or small print to give someone as a gift to mark that special day.

Original Artwork- "Love Birds"

June is almost upon us and June has always been considered the wedding month so there are plenty of weddings and anniversaries for all of us to remember.  If you are interested in ordering a matted original customized artwork from me, just send me an email message.

My prices for all my art cards are $5 each, 5 x 7 (matted to 8 x 10) are $25 and 8 x 10 (matted to 11 x 14) are $45 + shipping.  Message me if you are interested in putting in an order.

This past month I have been trying to write a little poem for each of my pieces of artwork and so I started playing around with a couple of verses about bluebirds.  Here is one of the rough drafts so far.  

Good Morning Mr. Bluebird

             By

     Julie Townsend

You are a wee little bird all soft and fluffy

I'm in love with your bright orange belly all puffy 

And your azure blue feathers are far from stuffy

Sitting there singing in my tree all huffy

I could sit in this chair and watch you all day

Please, oh please don't fly away

For just a little longer won't you stay

Because watching you is pure joy I say

Two Little Birdies Sitting in a Tree

Work in Progress -"Pair of Nesting Bluebirds"

Most of this week I have been focused on sketching a pair of blue and a little bird nest in a tree branch.  I thought that this concept might make a good gift for a wedding or anniversary.  In my first sketch I have left it incomplete at this point because I could either include eggs in the nest or I thought putting two hearts in the nest might work well for the gift idea.

One thing that I really think is important and I have learned this lesson the hard way.  I know scan my sketches when I have finished the pen and ink work and before I begin to apply any color or consider background treatments.  I don't want to ruin my original and regret a decision later which will result in my having to start all over again.

Trying out different mediums and treatments-One is Watercolor and the other is Colored Pencils

The first copy I did was on a piece of letter size card stock.   I took that copy and applied an abstract watercolor background and finished off the nest by hearts.  The second one is again copied on card stock but I printed it as a 5 x 7 which made it smaller than the first.  This one I used Prismacolor Premium Pencils and added a ink background of small circles.  I really liked the colored pencil one but I felt I had made the nest too dark.  So when I do get ready to finish the original sketch I have a much better I idea of how I want to handle it.

Bird Nest with Eggs- Pen and Ink only

I started a similar sketch just this morning while enjoying my coffee.  I just find bird nests to be so fascinating and the detail pen work is a real challenge.  I really like how this one is turning out even if there are no birds to be found in my composition.  

I had some struggles with the first nest sketch of the week.  It wasn't until after I had it drawn it all out I began to realize that most bluebirds build their nest in holes it seems.  Here I have them building their nest on a branch.  This is what comes from depending on reference photos and not have live subjects to study.  While the Mountain Bluebird is the Nevada state bird, they must only be in the mountains up north as I have never seen one down here in Southern Nevada.  The Mountain Bluebird also doesn't have the orange belly feathers that we see in my most recognizable bluebird species.  They are still magnificently blue and therefore beautiful but just not as stunning as the ones with orange feathers.

So this nest is just a nest with two tiny blue eggs. That of course leads to the question, "What type of bird lays blue eggs?"  Well surprisingly there are a number of species.  Of course the robin is well known along with the bluebird but there are also starlings and mockingbirds and cowbirds to name a few. 

Either way, no matter why exact species of birds nest this is that I'm drawing, I hope you enjoying my sketches this week half as much as I didn't drawing them. 

My original sketches are 8 x 10 draw on Strathmore Bristol acid free art paper and are matted to a standard 11 x 14 for easy framing.  I will also have matted prints in various sizes available.  I will be adding these drawings to a collection of greeting cards that feature birds if you are interested they are available on my country store gallery on my website at JulieTownsendStudio.com

"Bird Nest with Blue Eggs"- Pen and Ink w/Colored Pencil

Think Big- Poem and the Illustration

Think Big

This is probably the first real example of a colored pencil sketch I did in the early part of this year.  The original drawing is 8 x 10 and is drawn on 300 series Strathmore Bristol Art Paper.  I used my Prismacolor colored pencils along with their pens for the details.  

This morning I decided to write a little poem for the piece that I call "Think Big".  It's still a bit rough but I was able to jot down the majority of my thoughts while enjoying my morning coffee.  Let me know what you think.  I would love to hear from you.

If you are interested in this original image, prints, cards or art magnets you will find more information on my website at Julie Townsend Studio along with all my other works.  

THINK BIG

What a cute little chap

Short, stubby and with your fine black cap

“What is it you have there?” 

It is quite big and you are so small in compare

I must ask again “What treasure have you found?”

It looks like a ball of string in red just lying on the ground

Forget the stick, twigs and grass

With that yarn your nest will be first class

Beaks will flap and feathers will ruffle

With this you’re sure to cause quite a scuffle

This will make you the talk of the flock

And your little Chickadee girl bird will be in shock

Sometimes in life you just have to forget the mundane

Go for the gusto even at the risk of being thought insane

It’s worth the effort to derive a plan

From the ground to your branch is quite a span

It will take some hard work and a great deal of thought

But the rewards in the long run will be worth the plot

My advice to you is to drop the twig

Go for the creative and just THINK BIG!

GO BIG!

Little Bird nest we found in our back yard 

Just recently my husband was doing some much needed yard work in our back yard.  This included the difficult task of trimming a rather large mesquite tree that we planted a few years back.  Mesquites are popular native desert tree but they can be a maintenance monster.  Complete with giant thorns and the tendency to grow such a thick canopy that they often become top heavy and are easily toppled by our frequent high winds.

He and his many chain saws played lumber jack and laid waste to the branches and very soon our back yard was covered with the handiwork of his labors.  It was there among the branches that he noticed a birds nest remarkably unharmed as it lay there covered in debris.  I thought this little nest would be a nice addition to our Christmas tree so I took it and laid it on the branches.

I took note of some of the materials that this unknown bird had worked so hard to gather and weave to create a home for her family.  There were leaves and twigs which would be expected as building material but I also found what appeared to be pieces of twine added to the collection.  It made me think about a scene in a movie that was a favorite that I would watch with my kids as they were small.  "Sarah Plain and Tall"  Actress, Glen Close while playing the main character of Sarah had just cut the hair of young Caleb and she gathers his hair and tosses it around the yard so the birds can make nests from his curls.  I too was the family barber and always remembered that scene when I would sweep my boys very beautiful blonde hair out into the yard.  I would think about what pretty nests the birds will soon have in my trees.

The twine in the nest made me think about if a bird might use a piece of colorful string for nesting material.  They probably wouldn't be attracted to red string as it might draw too much attention to their nest but I thought that using this idea would make a great subject for a new sketch that I wanted to share with you.

I drew a little chickadee that was busy gathering grass and twigs for a nest when he comes across a large ball of red string.  Often in life we are faced with decisions that may seem out of character and we often choose the safe route.  That is definitely a description of how I have most often made decisions.  I am an accountant after all.  As an artist though, I find myself in the same place as this little bird and I'm ready to start casting off the safe and predictable in 2016 and push myself to a new level with my art and this blog...I think it's time to  drop the twigs and grass and THINK BIG!

Think Big

Blessings Often Come in Tiny Packages

This week I was inspired to create this little 8 x 10 acrylic painting of a nesting hummingbird based on a photo taken by my Las Vegas/Tecopa artist friend, Nancy Good.  She had a great deal of drama this past year at her home when a neighboring property owner decided to do her a favor and cut down all their mature trees on one side of the property while they were out of town. What a great and thoughtful neighbor she has.  Between the loss of property and all the legal wrangling of a criminal and civil case that followed could really drag her spirits down if she would let it.  The fact that she found a nesting hummingbird on one of her remaining trees gave her great encouragement and that blessed me.  I was so moved by the story and since I adore these tiny little creatures I just had try to paint her photo.

I learned that the hummingbird nest is usually built in the forked branches of trees but this particular little bird decided this pine cone was a suitable building site.  The tiny cup shaped nest, no more than 2 inches in diameter, is made of many of the normal building materials that you would think of when it comes to bird nests, twigs, leaves, moss and hair were all on the list.  I was surprised to find that spiderwebs seem to be a key ingredient in the construction of this hummingbird nursery. Built entirely by the mother hummer,  the spiderwebs provide the glue to hold it all together and the elasticity to allow the nest to expand as the chicks hatch and grow.   Seems that the entire responsibility of "Nursery Duty" also fall her small little wings.

To purchase the original painting or order prints of "Nursery Duty" you can go to my website at JulieTownsendStudio.com.

"Nursery Duty"- 8x10 Original Acrylic 

The Family Tree

For years, I have worked countless hours researching my genealogy along with that of my husband.  It has been a passionate hobby of mine.  Somehow, in my mind, the act of discovering a name or a date brought meaning to the lives of these forgotten generations.  In reality it doesn't take long and the memory of your life is easily wiped from the face of the earth.  In James 4:13-15 we are told "What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."  A cemetery marker, a census record or a vague certificate filed in court house is usually all that is left.  Yet somehow when I discover them it brings their life back into focus and while their are few that have great accomplishments, they make me who I am and their blood flows through my veins and the veins of my children.  This makes it important for me to document as much details as I can about their lives and share their stories with everyone that will listen.

My newest painting really has little to do with this subject except for the name that I have chosen..."The Family Tree".  This pair of cardinals have taken on the awesome responsibility of being a parent.  They have picked a strong and safe location to build their nest, high up in the branches of this oak tree.  Doing what parents of all kinds have done for generations, providing safety for their young and perpetuating their kind.  I hope that as you enjoy this painting that you will think about your own legacy.  It is never too late to say a kind word or make a memory.

$300.00