Part 5 / Pteranodon Hatchling Finish

(Continuing the Pteranodon series) Here's the final painting of the young Pteranodon, incorporating Dr. Bennett's corrections. 

The pterosaur has just hatched from a soft-shelled egg, and is resting on a bed of crushed ferns. The painting is in oil, using the paint thinly and mostly transparently. The oil stayed wet enough to allow a shallow-focus treatment of the distance, something that often appears in wildlife photos. 

Since Ranger Rick is mainly a photo magazine, I deliberately used photographic effects (even though I had no photo to look at for reference) because I wanted the art to blend with the rest of the magazine.

When we passed through the Washington, DC area a few weeks ago, we stopped by the National Wildlife Federation headquarters to pick up the painting and to show the editors "Pterry" the Pteranodon maquette that I used for reference.

We shared the painting and the maquette at some of the art schools we visited on our recent southeast tour, including SCAD Atlanta, (photo by Rick Lovell). 

I'll be doing reports from the various art schools in future blog posts.

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Please come to my lecture and booksigning at the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London, Connecticut, on Saturday October 13 at 2:00. 

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Ranger Rick October issue

Part 1: Pteranodons / Thumbnails

Part 2: Pteranodons / Maquette

Part 3: Pteranodons / Step by Step

Part 4: Pteranodons / Hatchling Sketches