All my paintings are memorable to me in some or other way. Some, because they were terribly challenging. Some, because of when I completed them - lockdown certainly left an impact! Some, because I just loved every moment from start to finish. Some, because of the story behind why I chose the reference material...
I can't really remember the progress of painting Expectation, my Brown-hooded Kingfisher, back in 2016... Granted, I was pretty tired, having spent months and months preparing for my very first solo exhibition at the gorgeous National William Humphrey's Art Gallery in my home town of Kimberley.
What I remember very, very clearly, though, was signing the completed painting. I literally held my breath. When I finished, I just burst into tears! Elated, exhausted tears. You see, Expectation was the last of 26 original paintings that I completed for the exhibition. Twennnnnntyyyy siiiiixxxxxxxxxx!!!!!!!!
Expectation did not sell at the exhibition. But it was just waiting for the right person to come along. It actually travelled all the way to Germany, where it shares a loving home with quite a few of my artworks - all birds!
It just goes to show, every dog has its day. And every bird has its aviary!
This is what I not-so-lovingly refer to as "The Ugly Phase"... I have a whole collection of photos like this one!
Last touch: My signature and the date. Yeeeey!!!
The striking reference photo for Expectation was taken by pro wildlife photographer, William Steel, and shared with permission.
Although the original has already found its forever home, I still have a limited amount of fine art prints available in my online shop.
