Watercolor Birds Inspired by Old Masters

I like to experiment with new techniques when there’s a deadline looming. It raises the stakes, and there's added pressure to create something successful out of the experiment. When a painting begins to go south I don’t have the luxury of setting it aside. I’m forced to work through challenges and learn some of my best lessons in the process.

I recently conducted one of these experiments in preparation for a small works show in New Hampshire. I had a goal to stretch outside of my color comfort zone, and turned to the old masters for inspiration—Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent, Edgar Payne, etc. The colors in a painting by John Lavery immediately reminded me of a Red-winged Blackbird and rose mallow. That led me to choose a different historical painting as the initial inspiration for each of the watercolors in my small works series.​ Instead of using a bird as the foundation for each design, I let the colors  define the composition. 

The birds below are the result of this experiment, and each is paired with the original painting that inspired it.

"Red-winged Blackbird and Rose Mallow"

"Red-winged Blackbird and Autumn Olive"

"American Goldfinch and Mistflower"

"Autumn Eastern Towhee"

"Sewing in the Shade" by John Lavery

"Spanish Landscape" by John Singer Sargent

"Sunset" by Winslow Homer

Landscape by Edgar Payne