Showing all 5 results
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Capturing the Essence: Techniques for Bird Artists
Artist/Author: William T Cooper$67.00 Add to cartIn this stunningly beautiful book, bird artist William T. Cooper explores and demonstrates all aspects of drawing and painting birds. Renowned for his gorgeous and accurate wildlife renderings, Cooper here explains in detail how to create a true impression of a bird’s appearance. The author describes his own experiences among birds in the wild, discusses bird anatomy, and lays out the essential principles of realistic painting. He guides both seasoned artists and enthusiastic beginners through all the techniques and processes involved in depicting birds anywhere in the world. In the first part of the book, Cooper covers materials, bird anatomy, methods of working from captive birds (in zoos, for example), and methods for working in the field. He places special emphasis on the artist’s understanding of the subject and how this knowledge can be transformed into drawings and paintings. The second part of the book deals with watercolors, acrylics, and oil paints, explaining for each medium the step-by-step processes leading from beginning sketches to finished work.
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An Eye for Nature: The Life and Art of William T. Cooper
Artist/Author: Olsen, Penny, Foreword by David Attenborough$50.00 Add to cartIn the work of artist William T.Cooper, platypuses swim in green underwater worlds, waves throw up blankets of spray, embers glow in the aftermath of a bushfire, a Thylacine emerges from the shadows, sniffing the air. But it is his paintings of birds which set Cooper apart—his raucous cockatoos, colourful parrots, animated turacos and flamboyantly displaying birds of paradise. Often placed in meticulously studied landscapes, these intricate bird portraits reveal Cooper’s close observation not only of his subjects’ appearance, but their habits, poses and behaviour. In this biography, Penny Olsen traces the path of Cooper’s life and art—from his childhood spent in the bush, to his teenage years as an apprentice taxidermist at Carey Bay Zoo and, later, to his work as a window dresser and landscape artist. She documents his fruitful partnership with wife and collaborator Wendy Cooper and his extensive travels in Australia and abroad in pursuit of his subjects.
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The Vision and Passion of William T. Cooper: A Retrospective
Artist/Author: Cooper, Wendy (Editor)$30.00 Add to cartA catalogue of images published in association with the exhibition The Vision of William T. Cooper: A Retrospective presented at the Tableland Regional Gallery in Atherton, from 1st September – 26th November 2017.
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Remarkable Birds
Artist/Author: Avery, Mark$55.00 Add to cartIn this beautifully presented volume, over 60 birds are introduced, organized thematically into eight sections, covering all aspects of our relationship with birds. ‘Songbirds’ celebrates the greatest bird virtuosi, such as the Nightingale, while ‘Birds of Prey’ include majestic hunters such as the Harpy Eagle, which catches prey as large as monkeys and sloths. ‘Feathered Travellers’ describes astounding journeys made by birds – even some tiny Hummingbirds migrate huge distances. ‘The Love Life of Birds’ can rival any soap opera and involves the most brilliant displays, notably the Birds of Paradise, with their extravagant feathers and dances. ‘Avian Cities’ explores species such as the Flamingo that live in spectacular large colonies. ‘Useful to Us’ examines the ways we find birds of value, such as the Turkey, but also the Canary. ‘Threatened and Extinct’ describes some no longer living and others that are currently on the brink. Birds have also had great mystical significance, both for good and evil, and ‘Revered and Adored’ considers such species as the Sacred Ibis, believed by the ancient Egyptians to represent the god Thoth.
For anyone interested in the natural world and the wonderful variety of birds around us, this beautifully illustrated book is a visual treat that will inspire, inform and delight. -
Women artists: images of nature.
Artist/Author: Hart, Andrea.$30.00 Add to cartThroughout the centuries women have made significant contributions to natural history art, science and education. This stunning collection celebrates the work and lives of women artists spanning the last four centuries and is illustrated with a selection of exquisite artworks from the unrivalled collections held in the Library of the Natural History Museum. The book features specially selected artworks by women from the seventeenth century onwards. The artists share a fascination and enthusiasm for the natural world and together their work combines to cover a broad range of different techniques and subject matters. There are fine butterfly drawings by accomplished natural history illustrator Margaret Fountaine, vivid illustrations of Indian natural, cultural and social history by Olivia Tonge, and detailed bird images by Elizabeth Gould, who married highly regarded ornithologist John Gould and produced over 600 illustrations for her husband’s publications. Featuring celebrated artworks and rarely-seen gems, this book serves up a visual feast of the never ending wonders of the natural world and the significant role that women have played in observing and documenting it.
