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| Many collectors have expressed interest in Jan's creative process, so this area will feature photos of a current painting in progress from inception to completion. It will be updated usually twice a week. Check back often! |
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As I mentioned in the last painting on "What's on the Easel Now", I have spent my lifetime studying nature and wildlife. This is my 25th anniversary of being a professional wildlife artist. During all this time I have been amassing photographs, sketches, field paintings - and most importantly ideas. Below is a photo of me about 22 years ago photographing a bison in Yellowstone. Bison are sort of "boring" animals to paint. Most photographs that you take of them they are just facing left, or facing right (usually eating) - so it's a challenge to try to come up with a "different and new" idea. We have a wildlife refuge near us and James and I took a break one day when the weather was just to beautiful to stay inside. We came across a herd of bison laying in the sun and as I looked at them through my camera I was struck with the idea of doing a square painting with one bison up close filling the painting. I did the same type of idea with "RESTING RHINO" that is in my FORBES exhibit, so I think it was in my head as I looked at this scene. Following is the painting that came from that day. |
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| SORRY! I got so caught up in starting the painting I completely forgot to take photos of doing the background sage and bison! But in this photo those are done, and the foreground bison is blocked in a dark brown. |
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| The drawing has now been transferred to the painting surface using the white artist transfer paper. |
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| I have now "drawn" in the hair coat with off white paint. I like to do this to create a "depth" to the fur. Bison have an especially thick woolly coat that this technique works very well on. |
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| I have done a brown unifying wash over the entire buffalo. Notice that the "under drawing" of off white paint still shows through. |
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| Detail has now begun to be added to the bison fur and his nose and horns are done. |
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| Here is the completed painting - entitled "BEDDED BISON" 12 x 12. This will be at the SETTLERS WEST Gallery Summer Show May 10. |
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