Scout with Songbirds (out for exhibition) Drawing

This piece, created in 2018, is called "Scout with Songbirds." I created the black and white areas in the figure and the background using a scratchboard drawing technique. The sides of the panel are stained a warm black and protected with a layer of polyurethane so that the wood grain shows through. The piece is signed on the back, wired and ready to hang. I create dreamy portraits based on found historical photographs. Using tattoo needles and an x-acto blade, I etch into thin layers of black ink that I have painted onto white clay panels. Traditionally, this drawing technique is known as scratchboard, or scraperboard. I slowly build delicate layers of marks, gradually adding more and more light and life to the image, until suddenly, a character and a story seem to emerge out of the black. It's a surprise every time. I then layer these black and white drawings with colorful birds, flowers and insects that I paint using acrylic and acrylic gouache. My images, and the stories that they tell, are intuitively derived. They seem to pop into my head, usually a bit hazy at first, until I begin to sketch them out and develop them on paper. I look to old photographs from the 1800s--early 1900s, and my collected wildlife images for source material. Once a sketch resonates deeply and viscerally with me, I transfer it to a panel and begin to bring it to life in a final direct etching. As I work, the concepts behind the image reveal themselves. Themes and ideas that come up again and again in my drawings include references to American and European folk tales, the history and mythology of the American West, and human connections to nature.

Drawing:Ink on Wood

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:16 W x 20 H x 2 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.