This week I drew a Red-bellied Pitta, a bird found in Asia and some parts of Australia. There are many types of Pitta’s, and most of them have red bellies. They are rarely spotted, and often stick close to the forest floor in dense shrubbery on the hunt for beetles and other insects. They are fairly silent birds, only whistling during mating season. I find they look a bit cheeky.
I chose to use one of my more colourful mediums, the Caran d’Ache Neocolour crayons. These crayons are water soluble, making them suitable for a range of projects. I have used these with young children before, as the process of drawing and then blending with water is often satisfying and adheres to a more process based art making. I didn’t use any water on this piece, as I like the texture from the painting, and as I blended a lot using separate colours, I didn’t want it to become too muddy. This tool is very accessible for students, and the colours are so rich. I was able to buy a set second hand at thrift craft downtown, which is one of my favourite resources as I have been able to try many new things for much cheaper as I was not buying them new. As I became more familiar with the tool, I collected a few extra colours from Opus, they are available to buy individually. I’m glad I chose a brighter subject this week as I feel a bit sluggish at this point in the semester and can use all the help I can get when cheering myself up.
I’m planning on giving this one to my old boss that I have been missing lately, as she became a good friend while I worked for her. I learned a lot of creative problem solving from her and she was a reference for me to get into the program. I have to take a book back to her studio anyways so I thought I’d tuck a card in there too.
