Making Progress

I feel that I have made a breakthrough on this painting. I have changed two of the ducks into wood ducks and added quite a bit of water detail into the background to make the image a little deeper and a little more interesting. Also, to add a bit more life into the piece I turned the middle wood ducks head a bit and have it calling. The mallard in the older version was sitting straight sideways and the painting looked a little mechanical and too contrived. There seems to be more life now. To compare the development of the painting you can scroll down and see the prior version. Now to get back to work on it...
http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

Duck Stamp Ideas

Here are some ideas for the upcoming 2008 Nevada Duck Stamp contest that will feature the Northern Pintail. These are thumbnail sketches which are normally the first step in developing an idea. The first one is only about 2"x3" while the second one is only about 1 inch square. The purpose of these loosely sketched drawings is to look at an idea and to play with the lights and darks.
http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

What's Going on in the Studio

Below are three paintings that I have been working on recently. I normally have many paintings going at once and, right now, there are currently nine in my studio. To see all nine you can visit 'The Easel' page of my website.

The first painting is of a snow leopard hiding back amongst some rocks. I have actually been working on this painting off and on for an astounding 7 years! It is the largest painting I have ever done measuring 30"x48". Recently, I saw a television special on snow leopards that rekindled my inspiration. Will it be the final push? I don't know, but I am pretty sure it won't be another 7 years until it is finished.

This next painting is about a week old and it needs more details, especially in the background. I am really taken by the lighting and am trying to push it to an extreme to help this male Redhead 'pop' out three dimensionally. I am doing that by incorporating more color than I normally use into the shadows.

This mallard group has been posted before. I have struggled with the layout of the ducks and I think I am going to wipe out one of the males and add a beautifully plumaged wood duck male to it. There just needs to be a bit more color in it, which may play nicely off the blue-headed drake at the bottom of the painting. http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

Birds in Art Catalogue

Yesterday afternoon, the 2007 Birds in Art catalogue came in the mail. This is very exciting because I wasn't able to make the trip back to the opening this year. So, I eagerly turned each page as a feast for the eyes awaited on each one. Upon waking this morning and feeling inspired, I poured over it again and then started painting. If you are interested in ordering a catalogue, which is produced as a beautiful soft cover book, or in seeing which artists are participating in this year's exhibition, you can visit the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum's website.

http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

South Platte Sunrise

The commissioned piece that I have been working on for the past few months is finished! An earlier post below showed a near completed painting, but the one below is finished and if you click on it a larger version can be viewed. This large painting, which measures 30"x40", was a lot of fun to paint because I would find myself daydreaming about duck hunting while working on it. The new season is near, and for those who may not know, I am a duck hunting fanatic. The passion for hunting is how I got into wildlife painting and creating scenes like this are my favorite thing to do when the season is not in progress.http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

More Plein Air Paintings...

Here are a few more plein air paintings (these things are a blast to paint) from this past summer. It is weird to think that Fall is near. Anyway, the first painting is from north of Port Hardy in British Columbia...

This next one is of Suttle Lake near Santiam Pass in Oregon...

And this last one is from the Metolius River which is near Suttle Lake on the eastern slope of the Cascades...
http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

Commissioned Painting

I haven't been on the blog much lately and for good reason. I have been working on finishing up a large 30"x40" commissioned painting (below) for a gentleman from Colorado. This sunrise scene is of his property on the South Platte River and will soon include a flock of ducks, more water detail and more foreground grasses to enhance the depth a bit more. It was inspired by my painting "First Flight" that is included in this year's Ducks Unlimited National Art Package. This second image is a detail of the upper right hand corner of the above scene . It shows the the cottonwoods and early morning mist in the background, as well as the detail included in the willows along the river.

http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

Federal Duck Stamp Entry

Here is my entry into the 2007 Federal Duck Stamp Contest which happens to be for the 75th anniversary stamp. Because of the anniversary I went for a nostalgic, old fashioned looking image that hints at the earlier, original federal duck stamps. The painting is somewhat of a risk because I have never seen an entry that looks quite like this. That means that the judges will either really like it or vote it out immediately. This year will be tougher competition than normal so hopefully the difference from the other entries will help it to stand out.
http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

Suttle Lake

This past weekend my family and I along with extended family went on a camping trip to Suttle Lake, which is located near Central Oregon near Santiam Pass. On this trip, I was able to gather a bunch of reference material for some future paintings. Two species of note were Common Mergansers (above) and Barn Swallows. With the swallows, I was able to get up close and get some great shots of four fledging birds on their nest (pictured to the right). Their mother was continually feeding them captured insects. Also, I was able to complete some more plein air paintings which will soon be added to my website. The first one that is going on the site is of Link Creek - the inlet to the lake.
http://www.mathiosstudios.net/

New Web Page

A new page has been created on mathiosstudios.net that highlights my plein air paintings. I have completed many of these paintings over the years, but only had a few available to put up on the website. Because I create them somewhat frequently more will be added as they are produced. Basically, I paint 8"x10" studies in an impressionistic style to get a good feel of an area. The colors seems to be more accurate in one of these paintings than they are with my photography. They are also a good, fun exercise as they are usually completed within an hour or two. The detail of a studio painting is lacking but the character of a landscape is usually captured. To visit this webpage you can follow this link... http://www.mathiosstudios.net/originals.html