The W A S A Warble - Wildlife Art Society · The W A S A Warble Page 3 of 13 P O Box 284 Canterbury Victoria 3126

The W A S A Warble http://wildlifeartsociety.com/ https://www.facebook.com/wildlifeartsociety

Page 1 of 13 P O Box 284 Canterbury Victoria 3126 ABN 92 325 040 041

Parking at WASA meetings

We can park off the street at meetings without

fear of a parking fine. Thanks to Le Pine Funerals we may use their customer carpark, not the one for their work-related cars. It is in

Linsey St south of the library and the gate is not closed.

Meetings upstairs at

Box Hill Library

13 pages

May 2017 Issue 65

Next Members' Meeting May 16th - Tuesday evening

Upstairs in the meeting room at Box Hill Library 7pm for 7.30pm start: 1040 Whitehorse Rd, Box Hill

Linda Weil wildlife artist demonstration in pastel pencils with Graphitint washes

Linda Weil is a professional artist with 40+ years experience specialising in drawing Australian wildlife, botanical and

nature studies. She has worked as a professional illustrator for national magazines as well as teaching and exhibiting her drawings in a variety of galleries and exhibitions throughout Australia. Her engaging and detailed

drawings have won numerous awards.

Linda has authored / illustrated ‘How to Draw Lifelike Animals’ and co-authored ‘The Art of Drawing Animals for the international art publisher Walter Foster. She has been commissioned to produce work for Derwent

pencils and her drawings can found on the latest packaging for a variety of different Derwent products. Her drawings have been featured in the 2016 and 2017 Australian Geographic Art calendar. Linda teaches

regularly in Victoria and workshops interstate.

To learn more about Linda visit http://home.exetel.com.au/lindaweil



Dear WASA members, Please let me know during the month prior to issue if you would like any news included, such as exhibitions you are holding, art prizes you have won or interesting art books /videos /exhibitions or workshops you have come across or attended. Members are also welcome to submit articles or an advertisement for exhibitions and classes. My contact details are [email protected], (or you can click on my name below to send an email), and my mobile number is 0402 554909. Alison Clark

Don't forget to paint for our 'White to Wild' exhibition in July

Glenda Cornell is a WASA member in northern Victoria

Our next Paint and Sketch : First Saturday of the m onth

Saturday 6th May 2017 at Melbourne Zoo, 9am-ish

Come along for the next paint and sketch at Melbourne Zoo. When you arrive phone Kris on 0412 104 825 to find out where the others are, ( drinking coffee just inside front gate or perhaps at Velda's house auction that morning). No set finish time for us as it depends on weather and other commitments. Normal zoo admittance applies or free if you’re a FOTZ member.

If you would like company it’s wise to confirm attendance on the WASA Noticeboard or check with Kris on 0412 104 825.



UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS/EVENTS

Expressions of Interest Invited for an Alan Rawady Workshop Who is interested in doing a full day watercolour/gouache workshop under the guidance of Alan Rawady? Alan has decades of experience working in watercolour/gouache,/ inks and more – his knowledge is vast and he is an encouraging wise teacher. Early June is when we have to book the library room for Saturday 14th. October – so it would be excellent to know now if there are enough interested people to attend. RSVP asap

Please contact Kris Peter if you are interested: [email protected] or ph 0412104825

W A S A ' s N o v e m b e r e x h i b i t i o n i n G e e l o n g ' B y t h e W a t e r ' e n t r y

f o r m w i l l b e a v a i l a b l e s o o n .

Mel Hills is a Tasmanian WASA member



Now up on Vimeo for you to watch : demonstration and talk by Nadine Dudek

The film of Brett Jarrett's presentation will be av ailable soon.

Log in using [email protected]

and the password is cockatoo. If you can't see the list of WASA videos click the WASA logo in top right corner of the

webpage.

Please don't share these films with others – they are under WASA copyright and we

know you will respect this.

We have enough films up now to ask you to scroll through to the second page.

Click this link to visit Vimeo:

https://vimeo.com/wasavideo/videos



Drawing studio afternoon Saturday 3 rd June

Janet Matthews will be mentoring the drawing aftern oon and she will move around the room chatting with everyone about what they are doing and offering any tips or advice. Janet will have some notes on graphite techniques to share with those interested as well as some of her drawing tools to show. If you have any questions you'd like to discuss have them ready and she will do her best to answer and demonstrate techniques needed. It will be one–on-one conversations about your drawing, rather than a 'stand up in front and tell everyone' workshop drawing session.

BYO art materials BYO specimen/s to share (nests, feathers, shells etc) BYO table light may be worthwhile ? We are able to borrow from Birdlife Australia a few unmounted bird specimens. We will also have available interesting feathers, TFM wings, a weedy seadragon specimen, a Blue Ulysses butterfly specimen, shells, and anything else we can think of. Location : upstairs meeting room of Box Hill Library at 1040 Whitehorse Rd, Box Hill. When : Saturday 3rd. June, 12.30 – 4.30pm Food ? yes, afternoon tea provided Cost : $ 10 WASA members, $15 non-WASA members Email to [email protected] if you'd like to book a spot – welcome to BYO friend too



Of Penguins, Whales and Polar Bears meeting 18th April 2017

by Ralph Keller

It is always with much anticipation that I look forward to a meeting where an accomplished, successful wildlife painter talks about his or her work. Last month with Brett Jarrett we had the pleasure of listening to such a person. Brett has practiced wildlife art for many years. He progressed from watercolour via gouache and acrylics to oil painting. He creates great paintings, many of which have won valuable awards at prestigious art shows in Australia and overseas.

Brett is an artist captivated by the polar regions of our world. He has spent a considerable time in these cold areas, with much of his work now directed towards depicting the fascinating mammals and birds that call these extreme habitats home. However, his presentation to us - via electronic images on the big screen - started not with cold water creatures, but with several charming portraits of dogs - a Collie, two Kelpies, a Spaniel and the friendly face of a Labrador. Here are Brett's points and suggestions on painting such portraits: - Give shape to an animal's head or body by strong use of light and shade. Use backlighting occasionally for a more interesting look. - Keep the background simple and let some of the animal's fur blend into it to soften the outlines. - Showing the head in a position where you can see both eyes tends to make for a better composition. - The eye itself, of course, is always of prime importance. Work on it to achieve the liquid look which makes an eye come alive. The highlight is vital but is never just one or two simple dots (photo flashes create this unnatural effect). Realistically, the eye should reflect some of what it looks into. Contd……. Then we came to Brett's main sequence on cold ocean animals - Penguins in the Antarctic, Polar Bears from the northern regions and whales and dolphins from both hemispheres. As a tour guide on cold water cruises he spent much time in these latitudes and had plenty of opportunities to observe and photograph

Oil paintings by Brett Jarrett Black Caviar, Koala



the fascinating animals there. His first striking painting example showed a flock of Adelie Penguins 'porpoising' in blue Antarctic waters. You could clearly visualise the speed of the sleek, wet bodies 'flying'

through the icy waters. A visit to one of the Emperor breeding colonies allowed the gathering of reference photos of these impressive penguins, birds which raise their young in the depth of the Antarctic winter in what must surely be the most extreme conditions imaginable. One absolutely delightful painting of Brett's showed three Emperor chicks - they would have to be the most appealing of young birds - inspecting an egg on the ice. The other end of the world, the Arctic, inspired Brett to produce some eye-catching works of the majestic Polar Bear - another animal making a living in an incredibly hostile environment, in this case at the top of our planet. Marine mammals form another important part of Brett's artwork. He has received commissions to paint many plates of these ocean creatures for guide books. We also had the pleasure of seeing two great examples of his dolphin paintings. One was of a pod of Common Dolphins cleaving the water at speed and showing the characteristic yellow flank markings - a rather unusual colour amongst marine mammals. The other was of a group of Hourglass Dolphins, so named because the equally striking white markings resemble the shape of this old timing device. Brett's recommendations on this segment:

- If you find yourself in a situation to photograph these elusive ocean animals, have your camera gear always ready to seize every fleeting opportunity. - Where possible collect reference material on body features and markings from dead or stranded animals. - Use unusual lighting conditions to add visual interest. Here again, Brett emphasized the value of backlighting to give maximum difference between light and shade, thus emphasising the animal's shapes. - In group paintings of marine animals at sea, it is important to create depth in your composition by painting some animals closer,

sharper and more dominant whilst others are shown less distinct - either further away or swimming deeper down. As a versatile painter, Brett finished his presentation with a selection of horse portraits being two massive Clydesdales to a study of the great racehorse Black Caviar in full gallop. contd…. In addition to the digital images Brett also brought along a selection of his framed paintings : * the head portrait of a Polar bear - you felt like burying your hands in the thick white fur (perhaps not wise



though!) * a cute young koala riding on its mother's back, showing the bemused and slightly vacant expression typical of the species.

* an equally delightful cheetah cub * the elegant head only of the champion racer Black Caviar * a panel showing a large selection of whale and dolphin species for inclusion in a field guide (frankly, I can never look at one of these multiple species plates without thinking: "Fancy stuffing up the last animal to be painted on the panel") Brett Jarrett lives and works at Narrawong in s-w Victoria and he has just opened his own Bay of Whales Gallery/studio to showcase his work, from which he also sells greeting cards.

Brett's paintings can also be viewed on his website www.brettjarrettwildlifeart.com On behalf of WASA and the audience - thank you Brett for a great evening, entertaining, highly interesting and also very inspiring.

More of Brett's paintings



JUDGE'S COMMENTS: WASA at MIFGS March/April 20 17 Below are the judge's comments and awards given to works in show. These artists win points

towards the WASA Artist of the Year 2017. I found these entries to be of a very high standard and therefore it was difficult to reach final decisions. I took into account the differing styles and media (some of which I'm not very familiar with) and the differing levels of expertise among the artists. Many of the works I considered very good and when this happens it can boil down to personal taste. I look at composition, balance, truthfulness to subject, technique, use of and appropriateness of media, pleasing result, framing and so forth when judging. Some works were let down by simple compositional problems such as a branch going out of a corner of the picture, or being too dominant and detracting from the subject. However, the most common problem I see is that the artist has made the outside edge of the subject too sharp and thus has lessened the effect of roundness. For example, round sides of a bird's body should be softened at that edge. This enhances the effect of its 'going around" the body. The human eye cannot focus on an edge that is disappearing around a sphere. Therefore if you make it a bit blurry it will appear more round or 3-D. Most paintings have good variety of leaf shape, colour and of tree limbs etc, to add interest to a picture. Most renditions of subjects are truthful and well done. Having said all that, may I say "well done!" to you all; the show looks great. Commendations : Jane Dingwell for 'Musical Warblings, Magpie' (sold to a NZ lady) which has beautiful texture in the tree, and the magpie is very good. The problem is the trunk going out of the picture at top left corner. Maybe soften that and put a couple of close leaves coming down from above? Ros Dudek for 'Magnolias' flowers well worked, good composition, I could suggest ditch the little bit of flower at lower left. Kay Ellis for 'Chestnut-Breasted Mannikins'. Great foliage treatment and shadows. Maybe shadow beneath tummy on right. Janet Flinn for 'Bright as a Button' (sold) good composition and foliage. Birds good, a bit stiff? Rachael Hammond for 'Phascolarctos cinereus' (sold) a finely drawn Koala on a branch, good composition, branch could have softer edges for more roundness. Rosemary Morgan for 'Munch, Munch, Tomatoes for Lunch' Good rendition of juvenile King Parrot, perhaps more foliage at base would anchor him more. Kris Peter for 'Ballet Bark' (sold) very good texture in bark and turn-over effects. Josephine Anne Smith for 'Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo' fine detail in very small format. Marianne Schlager for 'Foraging Firetails' interesting loose effect with splashes etc.

Contd……

Jane Dingwell 'Musical Warblings, Magpie'

Ros Dudek 'Magnolias' Kris Peter 'Ballet Bark'

Rachael Hammond 'Phascolarctos cinereus'



Highly Commended : MIFGS 2017 Pauline Dewar for 'Amarita muscaria'. I know a bit about embroidery and it is hard! This

work is a gem. Lots of different stitches and threads have been used to create different effects, such as loose fluffy ones at base to show fibres and mossy stuff, then a finely modelled stuffed, and wrinkled 'stem'. This is topped by loose curved frills to show the gills. Then the top of the toadstool is depicted using woolly reddish and brown weavings with little beads all over it to show the spots! Nadine Dudek for 'Hanging Around ( sold) - a beautifully simple rendering of a little bird hanging in the twigs of a gum tree. Leaves are varied and colourful and the bird exquisite but for a hard edge on tummy. (Sorry Nadine – I wish I could do it!)

David Reynolds ' Green Tree Frog'

Major Nods 2017 at MIFGS Third (below left & on p.5) I have given to Janet Matthews for 'Hmm Excellent Nibbles, Y-T Black Cockatoos'. (sold) These birds are hiding behind and amongst gum leaves. The colour is all in the leaves except for the yellow cheeks of the subjects. The birds are in black and white. Good composition and rendering of feathers.

Thanks to our MIFGS judge Velda Palazzi for your time, patience and expertise.

Nadine Dudek 'Hanging Around'

William Ritchie 'Tree Hugger'

Alan Rawady for 'Banksia Three' the composition shines. Interesting horizontal bands are offset by a great mass of foliage that is predominantly diagonal. Background is left simply white. David Reynolds for 'Green Tree Frog' a tiny picture with very fine detail. William Ritchie for 'Tree Hugger' which is a large painting of a splendid koala hugging a tree trunk. Koala is very well painted - perhaps too neat. The bark bits in the tree fork are super.

Second (above centre) goes to Carol Gorenko for 'Fluttering By' (sold) in scratchboard. The 3-d effect created by the graded background is wonderful

Alan Rawady 'Banksia Three'

First (above right) goes to Vida Pearson for 'Banksia integrifolia' (sold) a hand-painted linocut with a beautiful balanced composition in which the use of black leaves takes the viewer's eye right through the painting. Well done Vida.



WASA WERRIBEE ZOO APRIL 2017 PAINT AND SKETCH by Alison Clark It was a fine, sunny day for the paint and sketch at Werribee Zoo, and WASA members saw the new lion cubs, (Kibibi, Aziza, Zaberi and Ndidi), hippos and gorillas, then came along on a safari tour to see antelopes (including the biggest in the world, the eland), giraffes, plains zebra and Southern White rhinos. Remember every time you visit one of the zoos you are helping to fight extinction as well as observing and sketching great subjects!

Lioness Nairibi on the bonnet of the jeep. Hippos Lotus, Tulip and mother Primrose.

Alan Rawady's lioness WASA members after the tour with their safari guide (me!)



CALENDAR 2017

May 6 Paint & sketch - Melbourne Zoo

16 Meeting : demonstration Linda Weil pastel pencil with graphitint washes 7pm

June 3 Drawing Naturally with Janet Matthews at Box Hill meeting room bird specimens from Birdlife Australia, BYO specimens to share & your art materials (nests, feathers, shells etc)

12.30-4.30

10 Scratchboard workshop registration due - fully booked, wait list names accepted

20 Meeting : Same subject - different media – 4 WASA artists demonstrate wclr & gouache, pastel pencil, digital and charcoal 7pm

30 Entries close for our exhibition 'By the Water' at AGRA in Camberwell

July 1 Workshop : scratchboard with Patrick Hedges at Box Hill Library meeting room

10.30-4.30

2 Probably a visit to Healesville Sanctuary with Patrick

11 Preview evening of 'By the Water at AGRA in Camberwell

12-23

'By the Water' exhibition at AGRA Galleries in Camberwell

Wed-Fri and weekend afternoons

18

Meeting : In the Artist’s Studio featuring two WASA artists How computer software can help your painting – Photoshop with Rachael Hammond new trends in framing - Tony Weston

7pm

13-31 WOW Online Exhibition of 'By the Water' 2017

Aug 5 Paint & sketch - Melbourne Zoo ( photo shoot of WASA people drawing ) 10am

15 Meeting : digital painting with Rachael Hammond and making resin 3d artworks by Barnes Company 7pm

Sept 2 Paint & sketch - Moonlit Sanctuary 10am

19 Meeting : Care of materials, types of brushes and their uses, new products Mark Griffiths Of Senior Art Supplies

7pm

Oct 7 Paint & sketch - Healesville Sanctuary 9.30am

Entries close for our exhibition 'By the Water' at Geelong

17 Meeting : Appraisal of our Art – by Regina Hona and a WASA artist 7pm

1st-Nov 30th

WASA exhibition 'By the Water' at Geelong Art Society

Nov 4 Paint & sketch - Melbourne Zoo 9.30am

7 WASA exhibition – closed on Cup Day

21 Meeting : Members' critique and group discussion of top-ranking artists' work

combined with working out the composition from the images on screen 7pm

30 WASA exhibition closes in Geelong



DISCLAIMER: Support of all WASA members is very welcome however the editor and WASA Council reserve the right to edit or

refuse publication of any submission. Views expressed in the articles are not necessarily those of WASA.

To access the library area of the main WASA website the username is cockatoo. We encourage new members to be aware of this feature, which has helpful reference material.

Also see the WASA Noticeboard, mentioned below.

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WASA on Facebook

Remember to ‘like’ the Facebook page and please share it with friends. We're up to 497 Likes https://www.facebook.com/wildlifeartsociety

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WASA Noticeboard on Facebook

You may post pictures/comment about your artwork and discuss with other WASA-ites both your own and their

artworks or anything else of interest.

Click here to view WASA Noticeboard in Facebook

Facebook resizes images to fit and we recommend you make the image files quite small and less than 150Kb.

WELCOME TO NEW WASA MEMBER:

Judy Cohn, Victoria

WASA 2017 Councillors contact details

Reluctant President

Kris Peter [email protected] ph 03.9833.3431 & 0412.104.825

Treasurer Jenine Bell

[email protected]

Exhibition Director Karin McKee [email protected]

Facebook & Noticeboard Nadine Dudek

nadinedudekart @gmail.com Ph 0416 966 290

Kate Goodman

[email protected]

Rachael Hammond [email protected]

Helpers

Alison Clark – editor Warble

Ralph Keller – articles for Warble, David Reynolds – master film-maker

Dario Zanesco Q’land – website advice/help

Visit the news page on the WAMA website to keep up with progress in

this project for wildlife art in Australia. http://www.wama.net.au/news.html

Tony Weston’s Masterframe Melbourne framing services [email protected] telephone 0408 316 313 Melbourne

Documents

The W A S A Warble - Wildlife Art Society · The W A S A Warble Page 3 of 13 P O Box 284 Canterbury Victoria 3126