Cats, Dogs, Birds, Pets and Other Animals
Bird’s Little Acre – en plein air watercolor painting of geese on the water by Frank Costantino
A Jacksonville haven for winged creatures was alive with the squawking, fluttering, and flapping of many birds and waterfowl.
Blue Cat on Orange & Green Field – color drawing of sleeping cat by Frank Costantino
A contour drawing of our cat’s curled gesture became the basis for playing with & exploring contrasting color fields. The cat’s fur suggested the background of curvilinear,layered textures and implied movement.
Bootsie- Chalky – drawing of a cat sleeping
Bootsie’s repose was captured in expressive tonal marks with sepia chalk, one of an artist’s oldest and simplest mediums.
Canada’s Goose – watercolor wildlife painting of Canadian Goose
Sketched from the many residents of Roger Williams Zoo in RI, this majestic bird was the vehicle for practicing composition, negative space, and free, efficient gestural strokes; for both feathers and water.
Doris- Lounge Lizard – watercolor painting of a cat
A commissioned work from the owner’s photo of his beloved cat, stretched across a window sill, this translation of the range of values and color patterns evince an almost ethereal sense of feline mystery.
Feline Lie-In – color drawing of cats
Adopting indelible mediums for sketching, the pen & ink line is most unforgiving, and hence trains the eye and hand. The color pencil added an air of mystique to the composition, while connecting the two studies together.
If a Cat Dreamt – watercolor painting of a cat
Our Siamese cat curled in a seemingly impossible position became the simple form to foil an active field of gold marks, that might suggest dreaming. The textured ground was inspired by Gustav Klimt’s work.
Mim Bluer – drawing of a cat
In an evocative meditative pose, our gray-striped coon cat always seemed to be in a tranquil state; as conveyed by the choice of pencil color. She lived a long time, over 100 human years, but her calming effect endures via the sketch.
Orphan Swallow – watercolor painting of bird
Attracted by its constant twittering and fluttering activity across the grass, this little creature seemed to have been abandoned. I followed it across the park lawn of Queen’s Gate Park in Brisbane, and sketched its contours as it finally settled at the base of a huge palm, having found a column of ants for its meal.
Rooster – watercolor painting of rooster in Key West
During a seminar to paint buildings in Key West, my attention was otherwise absorbed by the free-ranging roosters and hens typical to the keys. The intense study (and chasing) of the creature informed my view, and resulted in this very quick color impression executed with a huge brush on a small panel.
Studied Response – Roxcy’s Hooper – watercolor painting of dog
During my workshop, a student brought along their well-behaved dog – a rust-colored Springer Spaniel – which became the live model for a demo. “Hooper” sat at the easel, and was remarkably stationary for the quick pencil composition and the beginning color washes.
Taking Notice – watercolor painting of cats
Watchfully aware of each other, my cat was still just long enough for me to capture its crouched gesture and nearly cross-eyed expression. The range of charcoal values was carefully employed to suggest the companion cat, and enhance the effect of depth and focus with light and soft color.
Miss Ruth’s Stable – en plein air watercolor landscape painting
Mineral Spring Farm Claiborne, MD A seldom experienced place for the artist, this small horse barn on farm estate in Claiborne, MD became a careful exercise in restraint for conveying the many nuances of white siding, shadows and shading and fencing. The...
