Western Meadowlark Painting

"Western Meadowlark," prints and the original are available for sale on Etsy

I thought I'd share a bit about my process for painting my latest bird, the Western Meadowlark.  This bird is the official state bird for Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, and Wyoming (that sure is a popular bird)!  It is a beautiful bird that is know for its distinct voice, so I decided to paint this bird with its mouth open as if it were squawking or singing.

Before I sketch each state bird and start the painting process, I like to research the bird first by looking at photographs and reading about it.  My wonderful brother gave me a beautifully illustrated book of North American birds for Christmas called The Crossley ID Guide-Eastern Birds, so I used that book as a starting point to get familiar with the Western Meadowlark.  

From there, I began the painting process, and here are a few pictures that I snapped while painting.  

Once I finished all the detail work, I couldn't decide if I should leave the background white or paint it.  I obviously decided on a bright blue background, which I think really makes the whole painting pop!  Here's a sample of the color I used, one of my favorite colors called Cerulean Blue Hue.

I hope that you like this latest bird of mine, it was an enjoyable process painting it with all of its feathery details.  Nevertheless, I could use your input on if you prefer these bird paintings with colorful or white backgrounds.  You can check out some of my other state bird paintings at my Etsy Shop if you'd like to compare the different looks!  I'd love to hear your thoughts for future reference, thanks!

Happy Tuesday!

Jennifer