Winter Birds of Lake George

[RedTerra]

This is another work I finished this month: 24 x36" Artisan on handbuilt wood panel. What appealed to me in this scene was the beaks and feet everywhere, and the variety of waterbirds together. Homeowners on the lake tend to feed them in winter, and there is always open water due to the dam.
RedTerra

[mawdwyn]

Love it :) I can almost feel the icy cold air!

Callie

[ExpressiveAngie]

such a unique painting! love it!

[couturej]

Fantastic painting! As everyone else said... love it! How do you prepare your wood panel to paint on?:)

[Stoy Jones]

This is a wonderful painting! I'm constantly studying the detail, especially the ducks at the lower left. You have a good feel for their markings and texture. Nicely done!

[RedTerra]

Thanks so much, everyone!
As to preparing my panels, for this one I used cabinet-grade birch, cradled it with pine 1x2"s (which I attached around the backside perimeter with wood glue and used wood fasteners at the corner joins). I apply a gelatin size to the front and back of the panel and let that dry for 24hrs. Next I apply a series of gesso layers. On this painting I had applied the gesso with a brush, and a lot of sanding between layers, but I have learned that a low-nap roller applies the gesso much more smoothly and evenly, which reduced the amount of sanding between layers.
RedTerra

[couturej]

Thank you for the information on preparing you panels! :)

[Shirl Parker]

A lovely scene.

[marie_d]

Nice work, has a cool crisp look to it, you can almost feel the coldness of the snow.