Tipsy Toucan

4x6 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Canson paper done last month or so in a series of birds that are postcard size. This fellow was leaning his head back so he looked tipsy to me. COPYRIGHT 2022 Kay Smith

April Parakeet

8.5x5.5 watercolor and Brusho crystals on paper in Masters Sketchbook just done as part of a weekend WetCanvas challenge. I enjoyed mixing several Brusho green colors together for the parakeet's bright feathers. COPYRIGHT 2022 Kay Smith

Proud Egret for National Draw a Bird Day ~ 8 April

4.75 x 6.75 watercolor on Saunders 140 lb cold press paper done this afternoon for #National Draw a Bird Day tomorrow.  I put an abstract background behind the proud egret's head for flashes of pink and green. Stay tuned for more.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Feisty Flamingo

14x11 watercolor on Yupo synthetic paper sketched with #1 rigger brush on Friday then painted yesterday quickly to let the colors run and meld together.  This bird is from one of my many flamingo photos and has been painted before but not on Yupo.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

WIP ~ Parrot Perch

A work in progress of a pair of blue and gold macaw parrots I'm entering in another WetCanvas online contest due Sunday.  Here on this 22x15 Fabriano 140 lb cold press paper, I've colored in the smaller bird using a direct painting method consisting of one application.  Stay tuned for tomorrow's reveal.
COPYRIGHT 2018 Kay Smith.

Yellow Crown Night Heron

4.25x6 acrylics and black India ink over failed work (see below). I pencil sketched the heron's head within minutes, then started with India ink doing only the black parts. Then I switched to acrylics to finish him within an hour for the WetCanvas weekend drawing event challenge.  Participants have only 2 hours to select an image and paint it; part of host Susan's challenge was to do a postcard size then mail it.  Now to see who might want this...

BEFORE version:

Images COPYRIGHT 2017 Kay Smith

Blue and Gold Macaw Parrot

8.5x11 watercolor over Sharpie extra fine point pen drawing on Crescent sketchbook done yesterday.  The photo I used was cropped to only show the bird's head and upper wings then painted quickly.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2015 Kay Smith.

Rose Breasted Cockatoo

8.5x5.5 watercolor and ink line (Pigma Micron 01) on paper which is today's work.  Also known as a galah, this type cockatoo has white and grey feathers over light pink to salmon pink breast and are common in Australia.  Females have red eyes and males dark brown.  This bird will be featured on WetCanvas Animal & Wildlife forum for June/photo courtesy Sonia.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2015 Kay Smith.

Lin's Hyacinth Macaw

8.5x5.5 watercolor and ink on Sheraton Hotel paper which is what you use if sketchbook isn't handy.  Drawn with black Tombow brush pen ink this fellow then was quickly painted yesterday in golden yellows and brazen blues.  This parrot was featured on WetCanvas Weekend Drawing Event; photo courtesy Lin Goodwin.  He lives in a parrot rescue sanctuary in the UK.  Look closely and you can see the hotel logo on the bird's forehead.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2015 Kay Smith.

Lin's Parrot

11x15 watercolor done today; this is Lin Goodwin's parrot.  Drawn with watercolor pencils on Canson 140 lb cold press paper this fellow was fun and so colorful.  This military macaw is featured on Animal & Wildlife forum on WetCanvas this month and we will reveal our work on Friday.  I'll also put it on Facebook in the 20 Birds in 20 Days challenge.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2015 Kay Smith.

Toucan

30x22 watercolor of a large toucan bird happily sitting on his tree branch, painted on 140 lb cold press paper.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith

Scarlet Macaw - torn paper collage

10x10 torn paper collage on wrapped canvas, my demo from yesterday's class.  I drew the parrot with black felt tip permanent marker after gessoing the canvas, then began tearing, not cutting, paper from quality magazines and adhering with matte medium.  Today I spent 2 more hours getting him done.  There's a frog, a paintbrush, a butterfly, bracelets, rooster, red jalapeno pepper, steamer pot, trivets, a green colander, apple, chair, etc., within the square composition.  Tomorrow I'll apply varnish medium to seal it and make it shiny.

Sulphur-crested Cockatoo

15x11 watercolor of a cockatoo on his branch, surveying his world.  This bird was one of my submissions to North Light Books for their Painter's Quick Reference series on Birds & Butterflies.

Cockatoo Karma

15x11 watercolor of white cockatoo named Karma that I painted today from black & white photo ref of my friend Valri in Florida. The bird was in a kitchen setting  so I took artistic license and changed that to a tropical scene and jazzed her up at the same time.  Paper is Canson 140 lb cold press, Daniel Smith paints, done wet on dry.