Birds from life

I think I have photographed all of the studies I painted last quarter - finally! They are photographed but not entirely edited. Here are posts of the few that are complete. The actual pieces are quite small - no more than 12 inches in any direction; and they are rather gritty. The series is an exercise in quick observation and risk. I chose to make either a dark or a light painting and spent little more than an hour attacking the articulation of the form of the bird and the surrounding space. I intend to keep on with these as a way to push my ability to manipulate the paint. I think the winter break is going to help me get further in my painting of the atmosphere around the birds. I feel refreshed.