tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62870515469455276722011-11-08T01:24:19.570-08:00Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.comBlogger261100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-83507834832704962532011-11-05T03:01:00.000-07:002011-11-05T03:05:02.338-07:00

A quick sketch for Illustration Friday this week. Topic is 'Stripes', so what better than an animal with a naturally striped boa, ready to accent any mood! I love ring-tailed lemurs...who doesn't? I can't believe I haven't done any artwork since July! I realized recently how important it is to keep being creative. You see, I realized long ago how important it is for my sanity to exercise my

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-24922847599626883172011-07-19T12:33:00.000-07:002011-07-19T12:33:27.283-07:00

After my last post, I had to put up this picture of the canvas Morgan painted today. I have callously put an arrow to direct your attention to what he has told me is a copy of "mummy's flower". I think he's captured it personally - spiraling spadix and all! The rest is a variety of things...but the boy knows how to use the whole canvas, that's for sure!

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-74229617492843198292011-07-15T07:18:00.000-07:002011-07-16T08:02:54.659-07:00

Anthurium scherzerianum in acrylic on canvas. Since trying to paint with a three year old under foot, I've found that I've had to change my process considerably. If my son is playing away happily by himself and there is nothing else pressing, I get out my paints. Of course, soon as he sees me he wants to be involved - so out come his paints. At first he had his own brushes, his own paints and

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-50232184444441031882011-06-13T02:28:00.000-07:002011-06-13T23:33:52.631-07:00

Just finished this painting today. It was inspired by a cover photo on an old Australian Geographic, which just screamed out WATERCOLOUR! The giant Australian cuttlefish (Sepia apama) is a master of disguise. The skin of cuttlefish is made up of  layers of different cell types - chromatophores, iridophores, and leucophores - that give it an infinite array of colours. Chromatophores are literally

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-61096696386994444532011-06-03T12:32:00.000-07:002011-06-03T12:33:16.412-07:00

From our back garden; Aquilegia vulgaris, commonly known as columbine. I don't have much to say about this other than it felt good (and challenging) to work with watercolours again. Also, I have an all new respect for botanical artists!

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-41459726020801966922011-06-01T05:12:00.000-07:002011-06-02T02:16:13.346-07:00

This week's IF word is Asleep. It made me immediately think of the many, many hours I watched our son sleep in an incubator in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. We were in the hospital for two months as he was only 970 grams when he was born. I kept a journal and wrote in it almost daily. I also sketched. This is one of the sketches from that notebook.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-24428738973616179502010-11-13T20:23:00.000-08:002010-11-13T20:23:29.532-08:00

This week's Illustration Friday topic is burning. What with packing up a house to move to the UK, a sick 3-year old for the last week, a husband overseas for 3 weeks and wrapping up the final days of my job...burn out came to mind initially, however that wasn't terribly inspiring. Frankly, I can't hear the word burning without thinking of the horrific fires here in Australia in 2009. The media

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-14307008862030175122010-10-13T21:34:00.000-07:002010-10-13T21:34:58.130-07:00

This week's Illustration Friday theme is transportation. What better way to get around than on a marine creature that has been transporting itself for 450 million years. Nautilus are incredibly resilient animals that don't usually get much attention. Of course, the catch is that they propel themselves backwards, so they may hit the odd thing and they may not take the most direct route! This

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-11060962529931382782010-09-19T21:44:00.000-07:002010-09-19T21:45:08.107-07:00

This week's Illustration Friday theme....ACROBAT. Not sure whether I got the point across or whether it just looks like some lady wrestling with the linen?!

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-74673460099202661232010-09-16T20:48:00.000-07:002010-09-16T21:55:01.387-07:00

A very quick watercolour for Illustration Friday's word of the week PROVERB. I chose the proverb A rolling stone gathers no moss because it is something my grandmother always used to say to me. Of course, these days my interpretation is much different. I figure, moss grows quickly, so why not roll while you can!

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-62961470793350822342010-09-02T02:48:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:02:02.581-07:00

This is my latest endeavour. I was looking through an art book and came across a beautiful butterfly on canvas. It was incredibly life-like, with the veins of the wings raised and even slight imperfections at the edges. Of course, when I read the text I soon realized that it was, in fact, life...glued to the canvas. So, I was inspired to give it a go but without using a real butterfly. I used

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-83162819898283346302010-08-30T03:15:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:18:09.325-07:00

We saw at least four breeding pairs of azure kingfisher along the Noosa River. It was low light conditions, I had a frustrated two year old hanging off my arm and we were in a canoe. Not ideal conditions and the picture is a little soft as a result. However, it does illustrate the incredible colour of these little beauties.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-593689232299677912010-08-30T03:12:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:15:25.683-07:00

This was taken at the end of our four day paddle up the Noosa River. Morgan was napping and lighting was high contrast; I couldn't resist.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-29354361549994099022010-08-30T03:08:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:12:28.142-07:00

Can't explain why this shot grabbed me really. Obviously it was nice light, but it was the two leaf types that I wanted to capture.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-30821366582498046462010-08-28T03:07:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:07:38.795-07:00

This photo was taken on a recent trip to the Noosa River, about two hours drive north of Brisbane, Australia. After we had pitched the tent, we climbed back into the canoe looking for the perfect picture. The water was glass and the sun was low. We came around the bend and here it was.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-60431386702522519232010-06-30T02:59:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:00:10.152-07:00

Another ocean-themed kids painting for Morgan's wall. Who can resist a cuttlefish?

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-48786131110136819892010-06-16T20:00:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:02:30.405-07:00

Just finished this piece last night and I'm really happy with it. These are Banggai Cardinalfish (Pterapogon kauderni), a small tropical fish found in Indonesia. They are very popular in the aquarium industry. So much so, that they are now a threatened species. They can be bred in captivity, so if you are purchasing, be sure to ask whether they have been sourced from the wild or bred in

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-4238648841156237282009-12-15T03:18:00.000-08:002010-09-02T03:22:33.652-07:00

A red-legged booby chick at East Diamond Islet, remote in the Coral Sea.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-80472049498315968692008-11-02T01:17:00.001-07:002010-09-02T02:34:08.637-07:00

Illustration Friday - for the October 31st theme "Vacant". Are your current living quarters feeling a little cramped? See something better, but just aren't sure they are vacant? I just had to do the hermit crab...what a perfect example of something always looking for vacancies!

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-67284921755056509752008-11-02T01:09:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:02:54.880-07:00

This is an african sky which I painted for my sister, Jennifer. I originally had planned women dancing in the foreground, but decided against it. It was such a study in clouds for me that I became obsessed with the sky and thought the dancers would just take away from it. The title "Relief" is because I see the presence of clouds as an indicator of rains to come, and of course "relief" for

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-44588758906429247012008-10-30T18:48:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:03:09.615-07:00

I actually painted this a few years ago now and gave it to my dad and his wife for Christmas. It acquired a small puncture in transit, but it isn't really noticeable. It's now very nicely displayed in their house (and no, not on the back of the laundry room door). I was there this past August and I was walking along the beach outside their house early in the morning and was drawn to something

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-6731503303489443212008-10-30T04:27:00.000-07:002010-09-02T02:36:34.019-07:00

The second of my "Octopus' Garden" series. I'm trying to experiment with textures in the background, but I haven't quite got it yet.

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-43635106048829348082008-10-23T18:40:00.000-07:002010-09-02T02:40:29.981-07:00

Inspired by a friends illustrations for children's books, I recently attempted a more whimsical painting. My son, Morgan, has only very recently moved into his own bedroom, so what better way to make it inviting than to colour the walls with appealing pictures. My husband plays a tickling jelly fish game with him and hence the idea. I envision this as the first painting in a series of marine

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-88936462773010618992008-10-23T18:20:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:03:28.051-07:00

I had been painting for a number of months and completed several different pieces all with brightly coloured flowers as my subject. I heard about a course that a friend, Celeste Varley, was offering on Pender Island, entitled "Learning to Fly". So, having no training in art whatsoever, I thought this might be fun. I entered into the course thinking I might pick up some advice on techniques,

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-50866401755696465542008-10-23T18:13:00.001-07:002010-09-02T03:03:41.511-07:00

As a child I was always drawing, colouring, sketching, modelling...you name it. Even as a teenager I still found time to be creative. However, somewhere in my '20s I lost sight of it and it wasn't until I turned 30 that I rediscovered art in my life. I was in the garden one day and was inspired by the lilies so I picked up a canvas, I picked up some acrylics and I went for it. I didn't

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6287051546945527672.post-75523689517820455552008-10-19T19:33:00.000-07:002010-09-02T03:03:55.251-07:00

I recently completed this lioness. It was a fairly pivotal piece as it was different from anything I had painted to date. I hadn't attempted to capture an animal on canvas before, scared of my subject not having life. The title has two meanings: 1) the subject most certainly has the target "in focus" and 2) it was painted at a time in my life where I felt things were coming into focus for

Nicolahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05419572647501587952noreply@blogger.com5