"This is the book that started it all" —Patrick O'Brien, MICA
James Gurney
This weblog by Dinotopia creator James Gurney is for illustrators, plein-air painters, sketchers, comic artists, animators, art students, and writers. You'll find practical studio tips, insights into the making of the Dinotopia books, and first-hand reports from art schools and museums.
You can write me at: James Gurney PO Box 693 Rhinebeck, NY 12572
or by email: gurneyjourney (at) gmail.com Sorry, I can't give personal art advice or portfolio reviews. If you can, it's best to ask art questions in the blog comments.
Permissions
All images and text are copyright 2020 James Gurney and/or their respective owners. Dinotopia is a registered trademark of James Gurney. For use of text or images in traditional print media or for any commercial licensing rights, please email me for permission.
However, you can quote images or text without asking permission on your educational or non-commercial blog, website, or Facebook page as long as you give me credit and provide a link back. Students and teachers can also quote images or text for their non-commercial school activity. It's also OK to do an artistic copy of my paintings as a study exercise without asking permission.
Great post. Wonderful when the birds recover and fly off. I've done colored pencil drawings of some who didn't. It's never a house sparrow or cowbird -- whose passing I wouldn't mourn -- but usually mourning doves, a couple grosbeaks, and once a cedar waxwing. Sad. Did Mr. Kooks get a look?
I knew a cat once who occasionally brought me a live hummingbird as "tribute." Once or twice my girlfriend at the time (it was actually her cat) would hold them in her hands for an hour or two and the poor little guys would come out of shock and fly away. Sometimes not. After this happened several times I scolded the cat, who loved me dearly. After that she killed them first. I know she was paying me great honor, but I'd rather see hummers doing what they do, mostly drinking fuschia nectar and keeping other hummers away from their stash.
a passive wildlife subject- we must sieze the opportunity when it comes... I tried to draw a chipmunk i caught in a trap this weekend...less that cooperative, needless to say.
Hello Mr. Gurney... I'm sorry, this is totally unrelated, but I was seeing a re-run of Gilmore Girls earlier, and there was this hay maze in the town plaza. Kids had flags of different colors that reached above the top line of the maze. Somehow the colorful frame reminded me of Dinotopia. The picture I'm linking to isn't the best one, sadly, but it's all I could find http://www.3click.tv/mp4//Gilmore%20Girls/season7/metadata/319302.jpg
Perhaps the maze idea might interest you for future works.
We have these huge windows at the SW side of our house. It used to happen quite frequently that birds would kill themselves flying against our windows, something the kids always were shocked about.
So after a couple of victims, we added these children's drawings in transparant adhesive material. You can find them in any store where they sell school materials for kids.
You're making a good point by drawing that poor bird. Anything can be a good subject. Especially when unexpected.
Birds, especially small birds (passerine), are such a beautiful subject to draw, so full of life... almost impossible to draw from life, however - I have to use photos, unfortunately.
Some people here have mentioned birds quite unknown in Europe...
10 comments:
Great post. Wonderful when the birds recover and fly off. I've done colored pencil drawings of some who didn't. It's never a house sparrow or cowbird -- whose passing I wouldn't mourn -- but usually mourning doves, a couple grosbeaks, and once a cedar waxwing. Sad. Did Mr. Kooks get a look?
I knew a cat once who occasionally brought me a live hummingbird as "tribute." Once or twice my girlfriend at the time (it was actually her cat) would hold them in her hands for an hour or two and the poor little guys would come out of shock and fly away. Sometimes not. After this happened several times I scolded the cat, who loved me dearly. After that she killed them first.
I know she was paying me great honor, but I'd rather see hummers doing what they do, mostly drinking fuschia nectar and keeping other hummers away from their stash.
a passive wildlife subject- we must sieze the opportunity when it comes...
I tried to draw a chipmunk i caught in a trap this weekend...less that cooperative, needless to say.
Now that's a free model!
Great story and a nice practice!!
I like how you just focus on the shapes in order to quickly sketch it.
Hello Mr. Gurney... I'm sorry, this is totally unrelated, but I was seeing a re-run of Gilmore Girls earlier, and there was this hay maze in the town plaza. Kids had flags of different colors that reached above the top line of the maze. Somehow the colorful frame reminded me of Dinotopia. The picture I'm linking to isn't the best one, sadly, but it's all I could find http://www.3click.tv/mp4//Gilmore%20Girls/season7/metadata/319302.jpg
Perhaps the maze idea might interest you for future works.
All the best!
To Jeff Jordan:
Putting a collar with a bell on the cat might stop it from catching birds, or should at least make catches less frequent.
The thrush had a minor concussion, perhaps?
We have these huge windows at the SW side of our house. It used to happen quite frequently that birds would kill themselves flying against our windows, something the kids always were shocked about.
So after a couple of victims, we added these children's drawings in transparant adhesive material. You can find them in any store where they sell school materials for kids.
You're making a good point by drawing that poor bird. Anything can be a good subject. Especially when unexpected.
Birds, especially small birds (passerine), are such a beautiful subject to draw, so full of life... almost impossible to draw from life, however - I have to use photos, unfortunately.
Some people here have mentioned birds quite unknown in Europe...
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