Well.. here are some shots from the weekend at the Chesapeke Challenge...

first photo is all the NEA class birds that I was prelidged to take to the Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art... you can see my student were all over the place.. but shorebirds were the theme this year...

 

The next photo is Yellow-Fronted Woodpecker that I finished and entered into the contest... I was lucky enough to finish first and this bird will be in the museum for six months...

so now that we are home.. it is back to work..

Well... Thanks for the long weekend... got a few projects done....just kept painting and throwing them on the pile...
now if you believe that....
This is part of our collection.. we are remolding our basement and we cleared the shelves....so the birds look alittle unorganized ....
now back to work....

Well... here is the latest carving that I finished... any guesses... you will have to look in other than around here... It is a Yellow-Fronted Woodpecker... from South America...
Rich sent me a photo and a drawing of this bird a few years ago... pulled this out of the file and thought I would try... the bird is hanging sideways on the tree and I got to use colors that I don't get out too often...  fun project...
Now I'm off to Canada to fish and take vacation...and don't be fooled I will carve while I'm there...

Well...Here are some photos of the Crow that I'm carving... these are the feeders... one is wood and one is cork... just have to finish the others and learn how to hunt Crows and I'll be great...                 fun project..

Well... the year is just moving along... here is a mini Canvasback that I completed for the Columbia Flyway Decoy Show...
They have a contest were they pick the bird you make it enter it.. and then they trade birds... so I get a Can back but it won't be mine...
neat idea...
Been carving up a storm with all the NEA (national endowment for the arts) projects going on... got 7 students and they are all making something different...
Now... I have to go clean my paint room so they can paint with me this week...

Well.. Here is a piece of "folken" art that I finished last week... this was a wedding present...If you have not figured it out...it is a Barn Owl..
Carved from three pieces of wood.. painted  and then stained with a wax over the whole bird...
I painted this bird simple to get a patina for that older look...
Fun project.. lots of work.. also had to do more research on owls...

Well... just finished another shop night... here is a photo of a Pintail that we did in the seminar last weekend.. that was a fun project... good group... I think small classes are the way to go...
All the guys seem to have a good time and we got done early...
The other photo is the cut out of a Crow with it's wing out... cork body ..wood head...
So, got lots of material to move...I'm hoping this is going to be the one that draws the Crows into the spread...