Web-Only: I finished the Great Blue Heron illustration

I learned so much making this illustration about the heron and my materials.

I lingered inside making this piece because I was enjoying myself so much. I studied photos and videos (to see how the bird moves) as well as my experience of them in the wild. I’ve been lucky to have had a few heron sightings in my life. Then I made a sketch, but it was in the inking and painting stage that I stayed, drawing out my work sessions until I had to finally admit it was done. I got lost in the different textures of the feathers, the graceful swoops of neck and body – there is just something about the oval shape that is so satisfying, and this piece contains many. Nature is so perfect in shape, texture, and color.

xoSusannah