Tag Archives: artist

PleinAir Today

PleinAir Today

In the US, plein air events (painting in the open air) attract numerous fantastic artists and produce some of the best art I’ve seen. Although painting in the open air is exactly what I do when I’m field sketching, I don’t generally think of myself as a plein air artist because plein air is very much dominated by landscape artists. But I’ve decided I need to stop thinking this way. So I’m really pleased to be featured in PleinAir Today – the weekly email you see above (click the link to read the article).

Find out more about PleinAir Today, Plein Air Magazine and Outdoor Painter.

And, if you would like to hear more about my plein air painting (!) and conservation-themed artwork, join me as I speak at The Explorers Club in New York City on September 29. Reservations are required.

Until next time…
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
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Milking Time Field Sketch by Alison Nicholls © 2014

Milking Time Field Sketch by Alison Nicholls © 2014

Milking Time was the 2nd of 3 sketches, created in just a few minutes while the Maasai women milked the cows in the morning. I asked them not to pose but just to go about their usual milking routine, so my time was limited for each sketch. I confess I had no idea that they could milk a cow so quickly, but lack of time is a great motivator and the sketches really did flow from my pencil.

Before I began sketching I did attempt to milk one of the cows myself. As I expected, it shied away from me. After all, I do look & sound completely different to the Maasai people it knows. But the reaction of that cow did save me from being exposed as being completely incompetent in the milking department. I think I’ll stick to sketching…

Thanks go to the African People & Wildlife Fund in Tanzania for arranging this sketching opportunity for me. I was visiting APW for the 3rd time, learning more about their work with the communities of the Maasai Steppe. I’ve just sent copies of all my sketches back to Tanzania for the people who featured in them. To find out more about my visits to APW and to hear about my conservation-themed artwork, join me as I speak at The Explorers Club in New York City on September 29. Reservations are required.

Until next time…
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Family Diabetes Day at the Bronx Zoo with The Children's Hospital at Montefiore

Family Diabetes Day at the Bronx Zoo with The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore

I was delighted to join the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore for their Family Diabetes Day at the Bronx Zoo last week.
The weather was not particularly kind, with thunderstorms threatening, so we sketched indoors. Even so, it was great fun and the children had created a large pile of great sketches by the time the morning ended.

Thank you to Dr Rubina Heptulla for the invitation, to Jeniece Trast for all her help and to the friendly families and children who attended. I look forward to meeting more enthusiastic young artists next year!

IMAG0449

Learn more about the great work of The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore.

Until next time…
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Alison Nicholls

What if Artists Ran the World…

What if Artists really did Run the World? Here are some changes I think you might see. Please let me know what I missed!

1.Being caught with clean fingernails would be a social disgrace.

2.There would be a free supply of non-habit forming, healthy tablets (tasting like your favorite chocolate) to treat self-doubt.

3.Bubble-wrap, foamcore and duct-tape would be delivered free with the mail.

4.Art would be compulsory in school, as it always should be. (ooh..a serious one…)

5.Aprons would be the height of fashion.

6.American artists who donate their work to non-profits would be allowed to deduct the fair market price on their tax return, rather than just the cost of the materials used to make the art. (oh no, another serious one..)

7.Rejection letters from exhibitions and juried shows would be accompanied by a $50 voucher for your local art supplies store, to ease the pain.

8.People who send email scams to artists would be forced to work, without pay, in an artist’s studio for a year, doing unpleasant work like submitting tax returns and filing rejection letters (assuming the scammer hasn’t really shipped all their worldly goods and relocated to another country). (That is an inside joke for artists. If you’ve ever received a scam email you will know what I mean.) Under no circumstances would these scammers be allowed the wonderful tasting self-doubt tablets.

Ahhh, what a wonderful world it would be…

Until then I’ll just have to pay for my own art materials, experience debilitating self-doubt and continue scrubbing my fingernails before I go out in public!
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
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Once a month I will be showcasing the talents of colleagues in the art world, and I am very happy to introduce you to Tony Fredriksson. We have not met in person, but Tony is from South Africa and I found his amazing wood sculptures online. I’ve always had a soft spot for sculpture and Tony’s work immediately caught my eye. I hope you enjoy it! 

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Tony Fredriksson Humpback Whale

Tony with his son Shaun who helped him on the 6 week project. All the wood was collected from
the 15km shoreline around the island to produce the 14meter Humpback Whale.

Open Sky Woodart – Driftwood Sculpture by Tony Fredriksson

You can give an artist a piece of clay and within minutes they can produce something that you can recognize. As a 5 year old I made my own play world from plasticine and that was the best toy my parents ever gave me. I believe we are all given some gift in life and I was fortunate that mine was discovered at a young age and art became my chosen path.

After starting out in commercial art and all the disciplines of the printing trade, I ended up doing resin castings of animal sculptures and wore myself out. After producing close to 7000 limited edition sculptures, all hand painted, I ventured into driftwood sculpture for my first ever solo exhibition in 2010.

The Adventure – My theme was fish, as our family is fishing mad. The exhibition was close to being a total sell out and a hotel group commissioned me to make a life-size Whale skeleton on DesRoches Island in the Seychelles. The hotel group also purchased some of the fish sculptures to decorate the private villas on the island and took a liking to my working sketches and commissioned a number to decorate the rooms.

Just collecting the wood is an adventure in itself. My bakkie (pickup truck) always carries a shovel, saw and axe just incase I see some wood on the side of the road – which happens all the time.

Coelacanth by Tony Fredriksson

“Old Four Legs” – a sculpture of the famous Coelacanth, which was discovered near Port Elizabeth

Treasure Hunt – What I have found to be a rewarding part of this kind of sculpture is the exploration and discovery of the weathered pieces of wood. I get so excited when I unearth a special piece from the middle of a dead tree or digging out termite eaten pieces on a game farm, or recovering an old stump from the bottom of a dam on a fishing trip.

Inspiration – comes from the pieces themselves, some have passed through my hands dozens of times while I search for that one missing piece. Some sculptures I have abandoned ‘till I can find something on one of my journeys that will complete it. Some have changed shape completely from a cat to an otter a year later. I am learning every year about different woods and the creatures that shape them or the way the wood weathers in different places.

Hippo by Tony Fredriksson

The texture of the wood is important when deciding what one wants to portray. I have managed to find white wood that resembles ivory.

A History – Many of my friends now have second thoughts when they are about to toss a piece of hardwood onto the fire for a braai (BBQ), and wonder if they should rather give it to me. I have indeed had many pieces brought to me. One was washed up on the beach in Mozambique after it had traveled down a major river, and it ended up as the tip of the trunk on a swimming elephant. I am able to tell the public where each piece has come from as they all have their own history.

Swimming Elephant by Tony Fredriksson

A swimming elephant designed as a fountain feature or water feature for a rim-flow pool.

Endless Variety – On the farm where we live the tractor had eroded away some old roots. One piece inspired me to make a roast chicken. I then took it further and added numerous dishes of food, deserts and a tea set. Once you set your mind in a certain direction the possibilities of what you can sculpt are endless. I have enjoyed making abstract objects, anatomical studies, people, insects, birds and mammals. Many are so popular that I get repeat orders but each one remains an absolute one-off as the found pieces determine the outcome. The size, expression and posture have to be worked out from a dominant part of the subject.

Vultures by Tony Fredriksson

Three vultures all one-offs, just by coincidence they were brought by attorneys and lawyers.

The Source – I have been privileged to teach my own children art in junior school. All five grades would run to my class for every lesson, eager to discover something new that they could do. From baking a cake, building a wall or just playing with the food on your plate, we are all creative in some way. According to the Bible we are made in God’s image so we shouldn’t be surprised at how fulfilling the creative process is. I certainly feel I get some help from the Lord as some of the pieces seem to fit together miraculously, as if they belonged together.

Ballerina by Tony Fredriksson

This Ballerina was inspired by her torso, she to spent years underground till the road wore through and the old roots of a Silver Oak appeared.

You can find more of my work online:

Website: www.OpenSkyWoodArt.com
Facebook: Tony Fredriksson Driftwood Sculptures
Pinterest: Tony Fredriksson

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Thank you Tony!

Until next time…

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Leopard Field Sketch, 11x14" by Alison Nicholls © 2013

Leopard Field Sketch, 11×14″ by Alison Nicholls © 2013

During my last trip to Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana I saw numerous leopards. The only problem was that I wasn’t feeling great, having had a terrible cold for about a week, so sketching was not going incredibly well. But here is a sketch I managed to do in between sniffs!

I find leopards one of the more difficult cats to sketch. They don’t have the bulky muzzle of the lion or the more delicate, angular head of the cheetah, both of which allow you to instantly identify the cat from a sketch. Often, with a leopard, adding the spots makes all the difference (as you would expect). The trouble is that often I only have time to sketch the outline of the cat before it moves off, which means no time to add spots. So when I see a sleeping leopard I’m very happy. My photographer husband was less happy because this leopard had a single thin branch crossing her face and ruining his photos. That’s where artistic license comes in very handy – you’ll notice there is no branch in my sketch!

Until next time…
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
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Alison Nicholls gives tuition during the 2013 Africa Geographic Art Safari in South Africa

Alison Nicholls gives tuition during the 2013 Africa Geographic Art Safari in South Africa

Recently Southern African Tourism Update asked me to comment upon Art Safaris in Africa and my views on the advantages of such trips. You can read the article below, but I think the photo above sums it up perfectly. What could be better than coming home with your own completely unique sketchbook from your travels?!

Read the article here.

Read more about my Africa Geographic Art Safaris.

Until next time!

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Join me on March 15th 2014 at the Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild in Larchmont, New York as I teach a Children’s Sketch Workshop. I will use my photos and video from Africa as I demonstrate and teach how to sketch wildlife using simple shapes. The workshop is open to children Grade 5 and older. Please call or email the gallery to reserve a place.

March 15, 2014

10am – 11.30am

Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild,126 Larchmont Avenue, Larchmont, NY 10538

Call 914 834-1117 or email mag2120@verizon.net

I hope you can join me!

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

At last a storm has passed us by! As a result, my reception and talk this evening will go ahead as planned.

Hope to see you there!

Maasai acrylics on canvas by Alison NIcholls

Maasai acrylics on canvas by Alison NIcholls

Please join me on March 3rd at 7pm at the Bronxville Women’s Club to hear about my visits to the African People & Wildlife Fund (APW) in Tanzania. I have visited APW twice (with another visit planned this year), in order to sketch on site and learn about their work with the mostly Maasai community of Loibor Siret on the Maasai Steppe.

During the talk, I will show my field sketches, studio paintings and video as I discuss my work as an artist in Africa and explain how my visits to African conservation projects have inspired the creation of a body of conservation-themed art. This talk is in conjunction with my exhibition, Lions, Livestock & Living Walls, which will be on display for the month of March at the Bronxville Women’s Club. APW and BWC will both receive 20% of sale proceeds from the exhibition.

The Bronxville Women’s Club is located at 135 Midland Avenue, Bronxville, NY 10708. All are welcome.

I hope to see you there!
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Once a month I will be showcasing the talents of colleagues in the art world, and I am very happy to introduce you to Mitchell Visoky, a friend, and also President of the Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild in Larchmont, New York. Mitchell has worked in a variety of media, but his work is always recognizable for it’s great sense of design and his use of color, line and texture. I hope you enjoy it! 

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Mitchell Visoky

Mitchell Visoky

I am pleased to be able to share my artwork on Alison’s Blog.

With degrees in art and art education from Buffalo State College and the College of New Rochelle, I taught elementary art for twenty-eight years in Croton, New York and prior to that, at several schools in upstate New York. Teaching provided me with the opportunity to explore the breadth of my skills and the love of various media.

After retiring from teaching in 2008, I decided to create art on a full-time basis. I moved my home studio to a studio space in Port Chester, New York and continued to study monotype printing and mixed media at the Center for Contemporary Printmaking in Norwalk, Connecticut.

My work with monotypes focus on the formal elements of color, shape, line, texture and composition with a connection to the environment in both a man-made and natural context. You can see this work on my website.

Habitat I

Habitat I
Encaustic, charcoal, oil stick
12”x12”

Habitat II

Habitat II
Encaustic, charcoal, oil stick
12”x12”

I believe that continuing ones education is important to develop and grow as an artist and I regularly take classes in a variety of media in order to learn new skills, enhance my work and avoid stagnation. One of these workshops was exploring the medium of encaustic (pigmented wax). The melted wax was captivating. To me, the layering of colors and then excavating them is a process full of adventure and endless possibilities. I utilize my monotype techniques and intentions to enhance my encaustic work.

My primary focus now is on using encaustic with mixed media. The 2 images above and the 2 below are part of a series entitled Habitat. Each image has been altered slightly giving them their own unique quality. The intent behind these works was to remove the context of the landscape (house & objects) from the ground.

Habitat III

Habitat III
Encaustic, charcoal, oil stick
12”x12”

Squared Up

Squared Up
Encaustic, paper, oil stick
16”x16”

Applying various types of paper with layers of encaustic and oil stick gives me the freedom to explore a wide range of possibilities. By dividing the composition into different sections, each section is able to engage in a dialogue with the others.

My most recent work has been with portraiture. This interest developed while exploring old self-portrait photographs. An avocational photographer, I was at first, hesitant to use these images in my work and was additionally concerned with revealing my identity. I decided to pursue the image in a more universal manner allowing me to continue my series work.

Mystery Men

Mystery Men
Encaustic, charcoal, oil stick, toner transfer
16- 6”x6” panels, 28”x28”

This piece is composed of sixteen 6” x 6” images. Each piece features encaustic but with different media added including pastel, charcoal, oil stick or toner transfer.

Obscuring the details of my features gave me the confidence needed to pursue this new direction. Throughout the process I reflected on issues of identity and privacy. References to science fiction, old black and white movies and photography, and the concept of privacy on the Internet eventually found their way into these works.

Mystery Man I

Mystery Man I
Encaustic, charcoal, oil stick, toner transfer
24”x24”

If you would like to see more of my work click on the link to my website: www.visokyart.com

You can also contact me at: visokym@aol.com

Thank you to Alison for giving me the space and time to share my artwork with you on her Blog.

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Thank you Mitchell!

Until next time…

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Join me on March 15th 2014 at the Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild in Larchmont, New York as I teach a Children’s Sketch Workshop. I will use my photos and video from Africa as I demonstrate and teach how to sketch wildlife using simple shapes. The workshop is open to children Grade 5 and older. Please call or email the gallery to reserve a place.

March 15, 2014

10am – 11.30am

Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild,126 Larchmont Avenue, Larchmont, NY 10538

Call 914 834-1117 or email mag2120@verizon.net

I hope you can join me!

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
Find me on Facebook
Nicholls Wildlife Art

At last a storm has passed us by! As a result, my reception and talk this evening will go ahead as planned.

Hope to see you there!

The Herd, acrylic 24x20" by Alison Nicholls

The Herd, acrylic 24×20″ by Alison Nicholls

Please join me on March 3rd at 7pm at the Bronxville Women’s Club to hear about my visits to the African People & Wildlife Fund (APW) in Tanzania. I have visited APW twice (with another visit planned this year), in order to sketch on site and learn about their work with the mostly Maasai community of Loibor Siret on the Maasai Steppe.

During the talk, I will show my field sketches, studio paintings and video as I discuss my work as an artist in Africa and explain how my visits to African conservation projects have inspired the creation of a body of conservation-themed art. This talk is in conjunction with my exhibition, Lions, Livestock & Living Walls, which will be on display for the month of March at the Bronxville Women’s Club. APW and BWC will both receive 20% of sale proceeds from the exhibition.

The Bronxville Women’s Club is located at 135 Midland Avenue, Bronxville, NY 10708. All are welcome.

I hope to see you there!
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
Find me on Facebook
Nicholls Wildlife Art

Elephant!, acrylic 20x30" by Alison Nicholls

Elephant!, acrylic 20×30″ by Alison Nicholls

Elephant!

Acrylic 20×30” by Alison Nicholls

Elephants provoke strong opinions. Tourists want to see them on safari and usually encounter calm, relaxed elephants in protected national parks, viewing them from the relative safety of a vehicle. However, rural-dwelling Africans are more likely to encounter elephants on foot, outside protected areas, in places and situations where elephants are more wary of, or aggressive towards, people. Children who have to pass elephant herds on their walk to school, or families whose crops are trampled and eaten by hungry elephants may feel fear and distrust rather than admiration and wonder when they see elephants.

Elephant! resulted from a conversation I had with Maasai men in Tanzania, while I visited the African People & Wildlife Fund (APW) for my 2nd Conservation Sketching Expedition. The men looked through my sketchbook, seeing sketches of people, cattle and homesteads, but their first question to me was ‘are you afraid of elephants?’. The question made me think more about their encounters with elephants and resulted in this painting, which illustrates two contrasting views. The large head on the left of center is an elephant cow, painted in a relaxed pose, with her long, gently curved trunk leading to smaller images of the herd and a safari vehicle containing tourists. The washes of color used on this side of the painting have soft edges and there is a circular flow, down the elephant’s trunk, around the herd and towards the vehicle. In contrast the large elephant head on the right is an agitated bull. His ears are raised and his trunk curled, while his upturned tusks point towards 2 more bulls in similar poses, and a man attempting to keep the elephants away from his maize crop and home. On this side of the painting there are stronger reds and hard-edged washes, while the smaller elephants are angular and facing opposite directions.

Many of Africa’s elephants live or spend time outside protected reserves, alongside a growing human population, and as competition increases between people and wildlife over access to natural resources, human-wildlife conflict increases too. It is African people who will ultimately decide the fate of Africa’s wildlife and determine whether to accept the hazards of living beside Earth’s largest land mammal, so finding solutions that allow people & wildlife to share natural resources amicably is a high priority. Part of APW’s mission statement is to “support the collective management of natural resources for the mutual benefit of people and wildlife” and with the majority of their staff being residents of the local area, they are well placed to assist the community with plans to alleviate poverty, conserve biodiversity and reduce human-wildlife conflict – outcomes which will benefit both people and elephants.

The original acrylic painting of Elephant! is available for sale, priced at US$3200. If it is sold privately I will donate 30% of the sale price to APW. If it sells during an exhibition where the venue collects a commission (usually between 10-40%), APW will still receive a minimum of 10%. Limited edition giclées are also available with a 20% donation to APW from the sale of each piece.

Learn more about the African People & Wildlife Fund.

See my Field Sketches from Tanzania.

Until next time…

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
Find me on Facebook
Nicholls Wildlife Art

Once a month I will be showcasing the talents of colleagues in the art world and I am very happy to introduce you to Christine Aaron, a friend and Vice President of the Mamaroneck Artists’ Guild in Larchmont, New York. Christine uses a variety of different media and techniques, often using tree imagery and layering to show the passage of time. I’m sure you will find, as I do, that her work is both intriguing and insightful!

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Hello! I am happy to be able to share a bit about myself and my work on Alison’s blog!
Christine Aaron
I entered the art world on the later side, having first practiced social work for many years. After my first foray with a few watercolor classes nearly 19 years ago, I found myself increasingly challenged by and interested in exploring through the vehicle of art. After  years of wearing many hats, I left my job and became an artist full time. I find that my background in social work directly affects the themes I am exploring in my work, and love that art is able to challenge me on both an intellectual and emotional level.

My current work focuses on themes of memory, perception and the inevitable passage of time. In my most recent body of work, I use tree imagery as symbolic of human memory and experience. Trees mark time; they serve as a metaphor for the cycle of life, symbols of dormancy, growth, strength and renewal. They record these life cycles in their rings. These marks remain hidden from view, much the way that humans retain the physical, mental and emotional marks of personal experience.

Christine Aaron

The themes I investigate directly affect the mediums with which I choose to work. I employ a variety of mediums, and really enjoy exploring the possibilities within each. I choose media where traces of the process remain in the work, as well as those that allow me to layer, obscure and reveal the imagery.

In the piece below I used printmaking and encaustic because they allow me to develop the piece through layering, much the way human memory and perceptions are formed. I use indirect methods of image making, and embed, construct, deconstruct and layer imagery, approximating the way humans revisit, recreate and reevaluate their own memories and experiences.

Christine Aaron

The piece below is on aged mirror. I love the way the piece shifts and changes before the viewer’s eyes as the viewer’s position shifts. It’s hard to see in a 2D image but the surface has a mysterious and mercurial sensibility.

Christine Aaron

Yet another material I enjoy manipulating, are metal substrates. Currently I am using copper and steel, as both allow me to patinate and oxidize the surfaces so that time itself becomes a part of the final composition of the piece. There is an immediacy and an unpredictability to working on these surfaces that allows for a conversation between the imagery, the mediums and the surfaces.

Christine Aaron

Christine Aaron

In preparing for my recent solo exhibit at the Silvermine Gallery in New Canaan Ct this last September, I embarked on my first installation and more sculptural pieces. I wanted the viewer to actually be able to move through the work, and become part of another world. I included audio for the first time (a variable audible, overlapping, multitrack recording of people sharing personal, significant memories, layered with ambient sounds of wind and rain through trees). I also worked on tree slices, stumps, and found wood. These pieces were a solid counterpart to the ethereal nature of the sheer panels that gently moved as viewers walked through them. It was exciting to bring this idea to life and I am hoping to create a larger installation of this work at another venue in the future.

Christine Aaron

Christine Aaron

Thank you so much for letting my share my work with you!

If you’d like to see more, the following links will be helpful:
Website: www.christineaaron.com
Interview: http://lynettehaggard.blogspot.com/2013_10_01_archive.html
Video of Installation with Audio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io1Zj8Y6y5w
Catalog with essay: http://christineaaron.com/artistInfo/christi3/biblio/1.pdf?1478

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Thank you Christine!

Until next time…

Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

January 23, 2014, 7pm

Remember to join me on January 23 as I talk about my Conservation-Themed Art and Africa!

On The Edge acrylic 24x30" by Alison Nicholls

On The Edge acrylic 24×30″ by Alison Nicholls

As part of the Green Speaker Series, I will be interviewed by international documentary photographer Daryl Hawk and will then talk about my conservation-inspired Art. You will see field sketches, studio paintings and video as I discuss my work as an artist in Africa and will explain how I turn a complex conservation issue into a finished painting. I will also discuss the work of the Painted Dog Conservation project in Zimbabwe and the African People & Wildlife Fund in Tanzania. All are welcome.

Advance Registration Preferred

Alison Nicholls & Daryl Hawk

Alison Nicholls & Daryl Hawk

Wilton Library, 137 Old Ridgefield Road Wilton, CT 06897. This Green Speaker talk is co-sponsored by Wilton Go Green and Wilton Library.

I hope to see you there!
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
Find me on Facebook
Nicholls Wildlife Art

January 23, 2014, 7pm

Come and join me on a cold January evening to talk about Africa!

Alison Nicholls & Daryl Hawk

Alison Nicholls & Daryl Hawk

As part of the Green Speaker Series, I will be interviewed by international documentary photographer Daryl Hawk and will then talk about my conservation-inspired Art. You will see field sketches, studio paintings and video as I discuss my work as an artist in Africa and will explain how I turn a complex conservation issue into a finished painting. I will also discuss the work of the Painted Dog Conservation project in Zimbabwe and the African People & Wildlife Fund in Tanzania. All are welcome.

Advance Registration Preferred

Wilton Library, 137 Old Ridgefield Road Wilton, CT 06897. This Green Speaker talk is co-sponsored by Wilton Go Green and Wilton Library.

I hope to see you there!
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale
Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
Find me on Facebook
Nicholls Wildlife Art

 

African Wild Dogs Find Good Home in India - by Artist Alison Nicholls

On The Edge, acrylic 24×30″ by Alison Nicholls

Recently I showed you On The Edge, my painting based on the doctoral thesis of Dr Esther van der Meer. Her thesis examines why Painted Dogs (African wild dogs) are choosing to move out of the relative safety of Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe and live instead in the buffer zone around the park where they have frequent fatal encounters with people. Read further details here.

I received a wonderful response to this painting and I’m very pleased to tell you that it now has a new home with a collector in India who has an interest in Africa and conservation. I donate a percentage from every sale towards conservation, so the Painted Dog Conservation project will be receiving US$1225 to help make the buffer zone around Hwange National Park safer for Painted Dogs!

On The Edge is also available as a limited edition reproduction. Please contact me for details.
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale.

Until next time…
Alison

Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation

Visit my Website
Join my Mailing List
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Nicholls Wildlife Art

Sue-Grand-Teton

Once a month I will be showcasing the talents of colleagues in the art world and I am very happy to introduce you to Sue deLearie Adair, a good friend and fellow New York State resident. Sue mostly concentrates on little and local members of the animal world, portrayed in amazing greys or splashes of color, or a bit of both. She uses a variety of media and in this post she gives us an interesting guide as to how she chooses the best medium for her next piece. Regardless of which she chooses, you can see that her detailed knowledge and enjoyment of her subject shines through!        

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Which Medium Should I Use?
For me it is always easy to decide what subject to draw or paint—I like the little things in nature—frogs and toads, chipmunks and butterflies, and especially birds! I have been an avid birder for almost thirty years and have traveled across North America and abroad in search of birds. A dozen years ago I finally started putting my love of birds on paper in the form of drawings and paintings. But, while subject matter is easy, each time I come up with a composition I still have to decide what medium/media to use to create it. I produce graphite pencil drawings, mixed media drawings and paintings and etchings, so, what to use?
Black-and-White
Graphite Pencil is my favorite medium so if a composition would work as a black-and-white drawing that is usually what I use! Subjects that are black-and-white themselves almost always end up as graphite pencil drawings. For example, the pair of Razorbills you see below in “Renewing Their Bond”. They are black-and-white birds standing on mostly gray rocks. When I decided to eliminate the blue background (ocean) to go with a more graphic composition, graphite pencil was a natural for this piece—no color needed!
 Renewing Their Bond web
“Renewing Their Bond”, graphite pencil, 10”x10”, 2012
Subjects with a large amount of contrast, texture and/or patterns also work well as graphite pencil drawings, regardless of the colors involved. In “Scrap Pile Sparrow” a White-crowned Sparrow is portrayed. This species is a medley of browns and grays with a black-and-white striped crown and by pushing the contrast in the body feathers and adding a graduated background the bird looks great in black-and-white!
 Scrap Pile Sparrow web
“Scrap Pile Sparrow”, graphite pencil, 6”x4”, 2013
Color—A little bit of Color
In 2009 and again in 2013 I took week-long solar plate etching workshops and planned my pieces to include a small amount of color. So for these pieces I looked for subjects that were predominately one color, which became the etching ink color, and added the other colors afterwards with watercolor and colored pencil. I printed brown bunnies, reddish-brown chipmunks, and black birds such as “Junco”, a Dark-eyed Junco.
 Junco AP 1 web
                       “Junco”, Etching with Watercolor and Colored Pencil, 4”x4”, 2009
I liked the effect of having just a bit of color and started to experiment with mixed media drawings using graphite and colored pencils together. Some of these drawings have just a bit of color; others look pretty much fully colored such as “High Plains Plover” which depicts a Mountain Plover in its native grassland habitat. I used wheat colored etching paper for the piece and a variety of subtly toned colored pencils. I then used graphite pencil on top of the colored pencil to add definition and detail.
 High Plains Plover web
“High Plains Plover”, Colored and Graphite Pencils, 7.5”x10”, 2012
Color—Lots of Color!
If I like a composition and subject that is fairly low contrast but has interesting colors, then full color it must be! For me this means a mixed media painting. I start with a watercolor background and under-painting and use colored and graphite pencils to add detail. I started using graphite pencil in my paintings to shade, soften, sharpen and add really fine details a couple of years ago because of a pencil sharpener “crisis”. The sharpeners I had been using for years were discontinued (each lasted only about 6 months but made a really nice point on colored pencils without breaking them too often). It took several purchases and many months to find a good replacement, but some of the reject sharpeners handled graphite pencils well enough, so I tried adding them to my paintings—and I liked it! The more I can do with my trusty graphite pencils, the happier I am!
“Mango Shower” is a simple composition of a Green-breasted Mango hummingbird bathing in a rain shower. I liked the subdued tone of the scene and the beautiful colors of the birds tail so it became a mixed media painting. Using watercolor in these paintings also allows me to create interesting background effects, sometimes by using granulated watercolors and in this case by dropping water onto the wet, green wash. Not only would this look have been difficult to do using entirely dry media, but the effect would be rather dull. I created a black-and-white version of the painting in Photoshop to let you see the difference.
 Mango Shower pair
“Mango Shower”, 4.75”x6.75”, Watercolor, Colored and Graphite Pencils, 2013
My last piece, “Blue-wings at the Swamp”, is a composition that I could have created using just graphite pencils. The birds have plenty of contrast and interesting patterns in their plumage and the values range from black to white. But how could I resist that bright spring green!? I decided this would just be more beautiful in color and created this painting. Using watercolor had an added bonus—most of the water is done with a watercolor wash. Creating that even tone in pencil would have been extremely time consuming!
 Blue-wings at the Swamp web
“Blue-wings at the Swamp”, 7.5”x10.5”, Watercolor, Colored and Graphite Pencils, 2012
So choosing my medium all comes down to two things: 1) what I think will look best in the finished piece and 2) maximizing the amount of graphite pencil I can use to get the job done without spending forever on the background! Oh, and 3) who wants to see a butterfly or warbler in black-and-white anyway?
Thanks for reading!
Sue
Lots of Pattern and Contrast—Still Better in Color!
 Magnolia Warbler web
“Magnolia Warbler”, 5”x4.5”, Watercolor, Colored and Graphite Pencils, 2013
Thank you Sue!

Until next time…
Alison
Art Inspired by Africa and Conservation

The Artists Statement – A Hilarious Video by Charlotte Young

For those who are not artists, here’s a little background. Artists generally need to have a Biography (personal background), a Resumé (training, exhibition history etc) and an Artists Statement (why, how, what you create).

Given the diverse nature of the arts and artists, these items very hugely from person to person, as they should. But anyone who attends art events will be familiar with the Artists Statement which seems to be written to make the artist and their work appear incredibly intellectual, often to the point that no normal person could possibly interpret what they are doing or what they aim to achieve.

I am currently creating a new Artists Statement so when I discovered this hilarious video from Charlotte Young I had to share it.

When I finish my Artists Statement I will watch this video again and, with any luck, will notice no similarities between this and my own!

Until next time…
Alison

Wildlife and Conservation Artist
A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale.
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Wolf Conservation Center features Alison Nicholls as Artist of the Month

Wolves Field sketch, Yellowstone National Park by Alison Nicholls

Wolves Field sketch, Yellowstone National Park by Alison Nicholls

For the month of November 2013, I am the Wolf Conservation Center’s (WCC) Artist of the Month. The program is a collaboration between WCC and artists they admire who share their philosophy about the importance of wolves and the protection of their environment. My series of Yellowstone Field Sketches (originals and limited editions), including wolves, are available for  sale and I will donate 30% to WCC from the sale of any of these pieces.

Until the end of 2013 I am also offering free shipping within the lower 48 states of the United States.

See my Yellowstone Sketches.

Learn more about the Wolf Conservation Center.

Until next time…
Alison

Alison Nicholls

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A Beautiful African Elephant Photo and Why I Won't be Painting It - by Artist Alison Nicholls

Elephant, Botswana photo by Nigel Nicholls

My husband Nigel was going through his photos from our recent Africa trip. I saw this one he took in Botswana and immediately voted it one of his best shots! Maybe because this photo follows many of the same principles I use in my paintings. It has the same calm, tranquil atmosphere showing an undisturbed animal with a peaceful expression. It has the same limited palette of color I often use too. And I just love the detail of the intricate shadows. In short – its beautiful.

So will I be painting this? Absolutely not!

Because it is wonderful just as it is, as a photograph.

You see I remember when this was taken, as a herd of 50 or so elephants moved quickly through a dry dusty riverbed on their way to water. Elephants of both sexes and all ages passed both sides of our vehicle. They were moving fairly fast and coming straight at us, which gives limited sketching time, so I took some video footage (for a video I am making about my work). My favorite part of the video is not that the elephants are so close but that you can hear them walking. I’ll post the video footage on Friday so you can see what I mean.

Will I paint from the video footage? Absolutely not!

Because it is wonderful just as it is, as a video.

Instead my painting will come from my visual memories of that scene and from the small and very brief sketches I was able to do. Those will be my inspiration. I won’t capture the minute detail of shadows falling across an elephant’s forehead but I will hopefully capture what it meant, to me, to be surrounded by the sights, sounds and smells of a moving herd of elephants.

Will I paint that? Absolutely!

Lets hope it is as wonderful as the photo and video!

Until next time…

Alison

Wildlife and Conservation Artist

A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale.

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Lines of a Lioness – Original Acrylic by Artist Alison Nicholls

Image

Lines of a Lioness                                                               acrylic 13×13″ by Alison Nicholls

 

I love to sketch lionesses. They have such lithe, athletic lines. So I decided to use lines in my painting too. Multiple lines of blue create the outline of her neck and shoulders, mirrored by stronger lines of blue in the sky.

During my recent trip to southern Africa I was lucky enough to see and sketch more lionesses. I have some lovely simple line drawings which may turn into paintings full of lines too!

Lines of a Lioness is available for sale. Please visit my Original Paintings website page for details.

A donation is made towards conservation in Africa from every sale.

Until next time…

Alison

Alison Nicholls

Wildlife and Conservation Artist

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Nicholls Wildlife Art