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National Exhibition of Wildlife Art (1 Viewer)

nickderry

nickderry

C'est pas ma faute, je suis anglais.
Not just a blatant plug for the three I sent in, there are some excellent things in this exhibition - Threlfall's Willow Warbler made me want to go and set fire to my Wood Warblers, there's some lovely stuff from Thelma Sykes and Esther Tyson, some of Gillmor's linocuts and a whole range of stuff from artists I've never heard of. Though it is a little difficult to wade through all the decapitated cheetahs and day-glo kingfishers, it's well worth a look.

http://www.newa-uk.com/index.php
 
Many thanks, Nick, for publising this exhibition & the webpage (which has an online gallery). Congratulations too on your fine work. Having looked through all the superb artwork on the site, I suspect that my painting that I'm about to collect after being mounted will be my last for a long time! (It's taken me 2/3 years to get back into it after the last disaster! It's just too depressing to try when you realise just how many talented bird/wildlife artists are out there! John

John
 
Agree about Threlfall's stuff, Thelma Sykes never disappoints and niether does Gillmore. Personally I've seen nicer works by Esther Tyson (last year's SWALA) and the ones in this ex are a little confusing for me. I'm not overly keen on floating heads either, although there's a lot of work gone into some of them and, from a purely mercenary point of view, I can understand the allure. Nice to see your stuff in there too, I've never gone for NEWA either, perhaps I'll give it a go next year. And John, don't you dare give it up! Keep going and plough your own furrow as they say. What's the worst that can happen? You'll still be enjoying it and that's the point really is'nt it.

Mike
 
John, I agree with Mike, never be put off by other artists, never put down your own work - do it and enjoy it! If it gives you pleasure, that's the main thing. I look at other artists and yearn to be able to do similar things.
 
I was on the Wirral this morning looking at the wind blown Storm petrels in the mouth of the mersey.( I am sure a painting will come out of it)You wonder how these tiny birds survive out in the elements when the golfers at Birkdale can only just about stand.
Anyway I visited the NEWA exhibition, which is not far from here this afternoon. It was great to see your 3 entries Nick. They look even better in real life. The grebes being my favourite of the three. Congratulations on the special award.
I also thought Colin Woolf's watercolours were pretty amazing and Alan harris's blackwits also. Well worth a look .
Steve
 
Glad you enjoyed it Steve, you may have bumped into my parents while you were there. Mothers are like that, oh well, while they were looking at that I was enjoying a bee eater, though some storm petrels would have been very welcome - if a little lost round here!
 
Dear Mike & Nick - Thanks for the encouragement .... but I did give for the last few years - totally lost confidence really. The good news is that I actually a) finished a painting recently and b) have drawn a sketch for another one. Those wishing to know just far I have to travel might consider looking at the KOS (Kent Ornithological Society) 'Gallery' on the society's webpage ..... John
 
Thanks for the heads up Nick. I might try and get over there for a look at the weekend.

John, had a look at your work on KOS. I'm just a beginner myself, but I thought your paintings had a really strong and vibrant style to them. As Mike & Nick said, just keep on enjoying it. I've also found this art sub-forum to be a great place for advice and encouragement.

All the best,
Des.
 
John, I had a look for your pics, but couldn't find my way around the site. Any chance of posting a link, would love to see.
 
Yep, found the paintings John. Thoroughly splendid, indeed. 'Bout time you started participating a little more in the art forum, methinks!
And Nick, just been on the NEWA site (found it at last) and delighted to see you sold all three!!!! - (I remember Mike having a similar purple-patch a few months ago) - nice job.
The exhibition has a lot to engage the viewer and a lot of visual entertainment too (but I won't go into the one glaringly obvious error in representation, 'cept to say, this type of work, where the artist has either never seen the subject or can't be bothered to research it properly, just makes me squirm).
 
I thought I'd left a comment about John's paintings, well at least I meant to. They're thorughly charming, with a great feel for the habitat of the bird - I adore the 3-toed woodpecker, yes, John should start posting here more, lovely stuff!
 
No, I didn't mind you adding the link, Des. I'd kinda lost track of this thread so thanks. Nick & Tim thanks for the encouragement & praise - funny but from your own work I'd imagined you to be chaps of taste and discernment! :) Thanks in particular for your very kind words about the 3-toed Woodpecker painting, Nick. It was a much wanted bird which, having caught up with it in Slovenia, I just had to have a go at painting. I tend to go in and out of phases regarding drawing/painting. My current 'out' phase lasting longer than usual (i.e. several years). A matter of time & energy as well as confidence - I'm currently helping to sub-edit a series of guidebooks, putting together the KOS Newsletter and working (two jobs - mainly teaching in school but also field work for the RSPB) so painting has been squeezed out. I must try to do more though,

John
 
I went over to the NEWA exhibition on Saturday. There's some fabulous work on display.

Congrats Nick, as Steve said your paintings looked even better "in the flesh". All sold and an award also! I think you'd have to put that down as a success.

Rounded off the afternoon with a trip down to Inner Marsh Farm which was nice, even though I missed out on a Wood Sandpiper which was supposed to be there.
 
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Hello I'm a wildlife artist and specialize in African Animals and North American animals.
I am a bird lover, feed birds regularly, and observe them in the wild.
I have also painted many beautiful birds, but have been unable to find a market for them.
But they do beautify my home. In this office I have 2 colorful portraits of a scarlet Macaw and a toucan, which I do enjoy.
Is there any secret to marketing bird paintings?

Thanks, Jacquie
 
JacquieVaux said:
Hello I'm a wildlife artist and specialize in African Animals and North American animals.
I am a bird lover, feed birds regularly, and observe them in the wild.
I have also painted many beautiful birds, but have been unable to find a market for them.
But they do beautify my home. In this office I have 2 colorful portraits of a scarlet Macaw and a toucan, which I do enjoy.
Is there any secret to marketing bird paintings?

Thanks, Jacquie
Click to expand...

Hi Jacquie, welcome to birdforum - hope you'll stick around and share some of your work with us - we're a very friendly bunch here.

If you come across a secret to marketing bird paintings, be sure to let us know - I imagine (and hope) it all eventually boils down to immense perseverance, a lot of luck and a bit of talent.
 
If you come across a secret to marketing bird paintings, be sure to let us know - I imagine (and hope) it all eventually boils down to immense perseverance, a lot of luck and a bit of talent.
Click to expand...

and this is advice from a top award winning bird artist who's work is some of the most original in the bird world....

Wildlife work is already down the list of what people buy ( around 8 of 10) so if you split it smaller into sub genres .... well you can figure it out.....;)

Welcome.... look forward to seeing your work
 
Hi Jacquie, welcome to the best bit of BF. Nick's right, we're a friendly bunch and always like to see new members joining in.

I've given up trying to find a formula for marketing bird art, simply because I don't think there is one! People are strange and one will stump up wads of cash for a painting that they must have, where the next potential customer would look at the same painting and dismiss it without a second glance.

My work sells through a gallery which specialises in birds. It's taken the owner many years to build up a database of clients and I'm lucky in that several of them like what I do and have bought more than one of mine. (That makes them collectors as far as I'm concerned!) I'm very grateful that these clients appreciate my work and I try to maintain their interest by constantly striving to improve what I do and grow creatively.

Many of the subjects that I love to paint are charismatic birds and commercially a 'good bet', things like owls and kingfishers or example, but that is just a happy coincidence really. The main thing is to paint the subjects that you are passionate about, whether they are seen as 'commercial' or not, that way the passion shows through and it's infectious.

There is someone for every painting and a painting for every someone, bringing the two together is mostly a matter of luck!

Mike
 
Hi Jacquie
Welcome to Birdforum - ArtForum!!!
I think as artists we all have to ask ourself why we are doing this and if the answer is wealth or fame, then there are many easier and less traumatic ways to achieving them. But if it's an irresistable desire, an aching need to encapsulate visions of nature which we have been privileged to encounter, then I think, the road as an artist isn't so much a choice as an inevitablity.
Mike mentions that one word - passion. There is so much wildlife art which is technically brilliant but lacks any sense of connection between the artist and the subject and it shows. Whereas the tinyest doodle can convey such a feeling of sharing a special moment. The work of Eric Ennion and John Busby, also the sketchbook work of Charles Tunnicliffe and the finished paintings of Lars Jonsson can all, at their best, take the viewer, through imagery, into 'their' world. That's a wonderful talent to have, but it's borne of experience with nature.
Having said all that, there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to make a living from doing what we enjoy and I suppose we all, to a greater or lesser extent, would like to do so.
From a presonal perspective, I found that joining the artists here on Birdforum has had a great effect on my work, and how I perceive my work. Feedback from like-minded folk is massively important and, in turn, can give the artist the confidence to enter shows and competitions (all important in building your own self-esteem and your place in the market). Hopefully you will find similar benefits from doing so.
Please post some of your work - it's what makes this forum the great place it is.
 
Many pearls of wisdom here. I'm happy to see so many offering their thoughts on this. I have to agree mostly with Tim - I think that there is an inevitability about it. You do it because you're passionate about it. Then as Mike says there 'is someone for every painting and a painting for every someone' and bringing the two together is mainly a matter of luck.

For myself I feel fortunate that I decided to start drawing and painting birds about four years ago and then ran across this forum, and the work of the artists Tim mentions. Seeing such like-minded passion has been wonderful. I think more than marketing you need to feel that you're not just working on your own in order to keep persevering. Then sometime after that, if you're lucky, you might be able to find an audience for your work. But if you're passionate then the lack of a market is somewhat less bothersome. Not that passion pays the bills!
 
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