My trusty #2 squirrel quill for those who aren't familiar with this type of brush, which I used for my painted frogs
These are my w/c sketches done with the quill. I numbered them in the order painted.
This one's got the look of desire...a desire for lunch!
He's got the look of love
The bullfrogI've had frogs on the brain for days now. My oldest son requested I paint a few for him and I realized I've only painted one. Nothing makes me think 'frog' more than the good old bullfrog. To me, they're as American as apple pie only not as tasty. I went looking online and was amazed at how many websites there are devoted entirely to frogs and the people that love them!
I did a few pencil sketches trying to come up with a concept, theme....whatever. My first thought was to put a frog on the Moon. Afterall, I put cats on the Moon. Why not frogs? I shot that idea down and decided to try a few other ideas which I've posted above.
Today I was admiring Lian Quan Zhen's work(I have the link on my blog list)and decided to try my hand at a more loose, sumi e-style approach. I worked with my #2 squirrel quill brush which was a little large for the job but I think as I went along I began to improve. I've got another concept in mind now but I'm waiting for the gesso to dry so it will be a few days before I'll be posting my results if (big IF)I'm successful.
5 comments:
I find frogs very interesting. After a lot of rain recently, the road to the house is full of them in the evening.
The watercolour ones you've done are full of life and movement. I like them a lot.
Its good to sketch out a variety of compositions before deciding on something.
These are great I love your frogs, I have hundreds of pictures I have taken over the last few years of frogs but have only ever painted one.
I love frogs, too. I have no idea why I've only managed to paint one.
I did several thumbnails, many I didn't post, trying to figure out how to go about creating an interesting scene featuring frogs. It'll be interesting to see if I achieved what I was after.
I wish I had a lot of photo references to choose from too, Krista. I don't think I have the patience right now to wait by a pond in hopes one will happen by and stay still long enough to have it's picture taken. I love frogs and tadpoles. Always have. They're great subjects for a painting. We both should paint them more often.:)
Billie you did really achieve a look of desire on that frog and one of content on the Bullfrog. These will make a wonderful series like the cat ones.
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