Drawing Birds

By Andrew Forkner

This book is an expert guide to producing beautiful lifelike drawings of birds in their natural habitat. Artists of all interests will find a lot to inspire them in this detailed, practical and beautiful guide on drawing birds. The book includes sections on materials, basic techniques and reference gathering, as well as how to draw the key features of birds such as beaks, eyes, claws, wings and feathers. A special section focuses on birds in flight, and this is followed by chapters on the main bird groups including: Waders and water birds, Wildfowl, Birds of prey, Owls, Garden and woodland birds, Seabirds and Game birds. Each chapter covers the techniques specific to the group as well as numerous examples and a full step-by-step demonstration. The absence of colour means that Andrew uses other aspects such as pattern, shading and shape to give his paintings life and interest. Written for artists who wish to apply their skills to drawing birds, as well as experienced artists who want to improve their drawing skills, this is an expert guide to producing exquisitely rendered, lifelike drawings of birds in their natural habitats and nothing could be more inspirational than Andrew’s accurately observed and truly beautiful drawings.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: May 1, 2018
• ISBN: 9781781264997

Book preview

Introduction

‘I wish I could do that.’

This is a statement that I hear repeatedly from people I meet during my demonstrations, talks and exhibitions. There are undoubtedly many people who have the desire to draw, but don’t attempt it. This is often as a result of two overwhelming factors. Either they lack the confidence to try, or they are convinced that the ability to draw comes solely from some inherited ‘talent’, which they are convinced they do not possess.

My response to these people is always to point out that, in my opinion, they do actually already possess the one important requirement in order to learn to draw: the desire to do it! There is a saying that is most apt for this particular situation, which goes, ‘Genius, that power that dazzles mortal eyes, is oft but perseverance in disguise.’¹

All artists of whatever ability have to work hard to perfect their craft, so the fact that it may not necessarily come easily should not be taken as an indication that we ‘can’t do it’. You will be amazed at just what can be achieved by a little perseverance and hard work. However, in order to make the whole process as enjoyable as possible, it is important that we concentrate on subjects that really inspire us and it is for this reason that I have chosen birds as the focus for this book.

Many mammals can be secretive and elusive, often making encounters rare and fleeting, but all of us will encounter birds on a daily basis, whether in the form of visitors such as a blackbird or blue tit searching for food in our gardens, or ducks, geese and swans on the lake in the local park. Birds are everywhere and if we take the time to look more closely at these wonderful creatures, it will quickly become evident that they present us with an exciting and varied range of subject matter for our artwork.

Drawing birds successfully, as with any other subject, does not just require an understanding of the techniques and tools involved, but also a sound knowledge of the subject itself; so, as well as focusing on the important technical aspects of the creative process in this book, I have also included sections on the birds themselves. We will look at their important anatomical features and at birds in flight. There are also step-by-step demonstrations featuring a bird from each of the main representative groups.

The idea of drawing birds may at first seem a little daunting, but they are a subject that rewards practice and perseverance, so I hope that you find the information in this book helpful and encouraging.

Barn swallows

¹ Henry Willard Austin, American journalist and poet (1852—1912).

The history of drawing birds

For centuries man has been fascinated by animals, both wild and domesticated, and has sought to produce artistic representations of the creatures that inspire him. In early history our cave-dwelling ancestors covered their cave walls with depictions of the animals that they encountered, but these images are usually of mammals and it is very rare to see birds featured among these paintings.

Ancient Egyptian representation of an ibis

In ancient Egypt, images of birds were a little more common, both in their hieroglyphs and their art, with two of their deities – the gods Horus and Thoth – actually depicted with the head of a bird. Horus was depicted as a falcon, while Thoth had the head of a sacred ibis.

However, moving forward in time, as formal art began to be created to adorn the walls of grand houses and palaces and to illustrate books, birds were still not much in evidence. They could be found in some artistic work, but usually as dead game birds in stilllife compositions, or as decorative additions to paintings featuring people and mammals. Rarely, if ever, were living birds the main subject in their own right.

By the time we reach the late 15th century, birds had instead become the focus of scientific study, as people began to explore the avian ability to defy gravity. The most notable of these investigators was Leonardo da Vinci, whose study of birds’ wings and feathers gave rise to many of his revolutionary ideas. Some of these subsequently resulted in man’s successful, if somewhat crude, attempts to take to the air.

In the 16th century the artist Albrecht Dürer, who is particularly known for his drawings and prints, did create some studies of birds, but he more usually chose to focus on illustrations of the human form and on a series of drawings featuring fantastic imaginary creatures. It was not really until the 19th century that artists finally began to appreciate the artistic potential of depicting birds and an explosion of bird art began to take place.

During the 1800s, interest in the natural world was stimulated by the voyages of the English naturalist and geologist Charles Darwin. On these expeditions Darwin was accompanied by an artist called Conrad Martens, whose job it was to record, in pencil and watercolour, the diversity of wildlife that they encountered, thus raising public awareness of the beauty of the natural world. That awareness was then further increased by the work of two ornithologists, who both happened to be skilled artists. The two men in question were