Gallery Feature: “Pacific Tree Frog”

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Art, commission, masking fluid, Pacific Tree Frog, Painting, wildlife artist, wildlife painting

There’s no better feeling for an artist than placing another commission piece in the “done” pile. And happily, that’s what I’ve just done.

More wildlife to feature today, this time in the guise of the Pacific Tree Frog.

As with most tree frogs, the Pacific Tree variety is very petite and cute. Measuring in at a whopping 3/4 to 2 inches long, they are one of the smallest amphibians on the North American West Coast.

Apart from its tiny stature, this tree frog has two distinctive features: a dark eye stripe (or as I like to call it, a bandit mask), and sticky rounded toe pads which help the frog grip and climb. Their toes have less webbing between them than some other frogs, which makes their toes look extra long.

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Gallery Feature: “Seagull”

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Art, commission, Feathered Fauna, Painting, seagull, wildlife artist, wildlife painting

Who knew that there were so many different kinds of seagulls!

This is what I learned when a friend commissioned me to paint her one last fall. (Mentioned in the August post Gallery Feature: “Northern Leopard Frog”)

Someone says “seagull” and you think you know what they look like. But trust me, you don’t. Even seagulls of the same variety can look very, very different.

When I began this commission back in September, I did what any good artist would do — started stalking the local seagulls, of course. Driving slowly through parking lots, walking down by the beach, etc. And then just sitting and observing the subtle and not-so-subtle differences between birds. And you know something? I actually came away from this project with a new appreciation for these lovely creatures.

Gallery Feature: Feathered Fauna “Red-Breasted Nuthatch”

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acrylic, Art, artist, Feathered Fauna, Painting, red-breasted nuthatch, Wendy Brydge, wildlife painting

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, then you know I’m a Northern girl. So when it comes to birds, I do see a good variety of breeds, but nothing too exotic.

The last Gallery Feature in my Feathered Fauna bird series was the Baltimore Oriole. They’re a beautiful, flashy bird, but alas, there are none in Northern Ontario.

So for my next painting, I decided to look a bit closer to home.

Enter the pint-size, pretentious pontiff of the Northern forest: The red-breasted nuthatch.

Gallery Feature: “Northern Leopard Frog”

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Art, commission, Feathered Fauna, northern leopard frog, Painting, wildlife artist, wildlife painting

I’ve been a commission artist now for 12 years. Right out of high school, I jumped head-long into the art world, and haven’t looked back since.

When you make a career out of creating art that people ask for (as opposed to an artist who paints pieces and then offers them for sale — “if you see something you like, please buy it”), you try to be proficient in everything. You also have to learn how to anticipate, observe, and gather information.

Made-to-order paintings are both exciting and nerve-wracking. As the artist, I enjoy the surprise of each new commission (what will I be asked to paint this time?), but I also worry that the client won’t share in my vision for the finished piece. Even when clients say they don’t know what they want, that’s usually not the case. You may not even be aware that you already have an image in your head, but trust me, it’s there, and part of my job is to coax it out of you.

Fun in the Fifth Dimension: My Twilight Zone Funko Pop! Figure Designs

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classic television, design, Eye of the Beholder, Funko, Funko Pop, Rod Serling, sketches, The Howling Man, Time Enough at Last, Twilight Zone, vinyl figures

If you haven’t heard of Funko Pop! figures, then perhaps you’ve been living under a rock. The popular Funko brand has a variety of toy lines, but without question, the 3.75″ Funko Pop! vinyl figures are the company’s bread and butter.

They’ve been around since 2010, but in the last year or so, Funko Pop! vinyls have exploded in popularity, becoming to 2016 what Beanie Babies were to 1997.

Their stylized huge-head-on-a-tiny-body design isn’t for everyone. Even I wasn’t crazy about the look at first. But their mass appeal comes from one simple fact: No matter what you like in the world of popular culture, there’s probably a Funko figure for you to buy.

My small collection of Funkos… soon to be enlarged with Negan and the Hot Topic exclusive Belle with Birds!

Gallery Feature: Feathered Fauna “Baltimore Oriole”

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apple blossoms, Art, artist, Baltimore Oriole, birds, Glen Loates, Painting

From the time I was old enough to understand what a paint brush was for, I loved the work of Glen Loates. This famous Canadian wildlife painter has a talent for creating animals that are so lifelike you can almost touch them, and yet, his work still manages to retain that “painted” feel.

My favourite pieces were always the ones devoid of backgrounds. There’s something so striking about a beautifully rendered bird, moose or beaver depicted with just enough flora to ground the painting — without burying it in a shallow, two-dimensional grave.

Glen Loates

As a kid pouring over my Glen Loates books, I thought, “I wish I could paint like that.”

The Making of a Monster: My Bride of Frankenstein Painting

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Art, artist, Bride of Frankenstein, Elsa Lanchester, Halloween, Mary Shelley, Painting

Last year marked the 80th anniversary of Universal Pictures’ Frankenstein sequel, “The Bride of Frankenstein”.

The film stars Elsa Lanchester as Mary Shelley in the opening sequence, and as the Monster’s mate — the Bride — at the end.

As the Bride, Lanchester is seen onscreen for a mere 4 minutes of a 75 minute film, but with such a memorable, show-stopping look, she was forever immortalized as the Queen of Monsters in those few 240 seconds.

As an artist, I’ve spent years painting still-life, portraits, and wildlife. One thing I had never painted was anything pop culture related. How crazy is that? I’m constantly mooning over the monster art of artists like Basil Gogos and Jason Edmiston, yet I’d never done any of that myself. So last October, I set out to create a Bride of Frankenstein-inspired piece to commemorate the film’s 80th anniversary. I featured the finished painting in my Halloween night blog post, “A Toast to Gods and Monsters“.

In that post, I said that I would do a follow-up that chronicled the progression of the painting. So here’s your one and only warning: A whole slew of geeky, potentially boring art-speak follows. If you’re not keen on listening to me wax poetic about the who, what, when, where, why and hows of painting, then feel free to skip over the art jargon and scroll ahead to look at the pretty pictures. I won’t judge you. Much.

Gallery Feature: “Self-Portrait of the Artist at Twenty-Five”

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Art, artist, christianity, death, Dracula, Edgar Allan Poe, explanation, Literature, Painting, Portrait, self-portrait, symbolism

Wendy Brydge – “Self-Portrait of the Artist at Twenty-Five” – 2014

Every painting begins with an idea.

Rod Serling once said, “The instinct of creativity must be followed by the act, the physical act of putting it down for a sense of permanence. Once you get that prod, that emotional jar, that “I have witnessed something.” Or “I have felt something.” Or “I have seen something.” Or, through observation, “I have been moved by an event.” I think the answer is, “Get it down. Get it down quickly. Write it down.”

That right there is the best advice any artist — be they writer or painter — will ever receive. When you get that magical *spark* in your mind, that little glimmer of inspiration? You grab it, hold tight, and run with it as far as it will take you.

Ideas build on ideas. But inspiration can be fleeting. Maybe you see an image in your head as you’re drifting off to sleep at night. Or perhaps you read something interesting, or hear something unusual, and it makes you want to process and use that information somehow. When that happens, I urge you to do as the talented Mr. Serling said: GET IT DOWN. Any and all of it. Before it’s gone.

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Woman

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Abraham and Isaac, Armageddon, Art, artist, Bible, christianity, Daniel in the Lions' Den, God, Jesus, Painting, religion, Shadrach Meshach and Abednego, symbolism

Preliminary sketch for self portrait, 2008

When I was younger, pencil was my preferred medium. I liked to sketch. And I wasn’t all that interested in painting. In fact, let me be honest – I abhorred the idea of being a “painter”.

One day during my early years in high school, I decided to stop at the local art shop and make a few inquiries about how to get my work sold there in the future. I left extremely discouraged because the owner basically told me that pencil sketches weren’t really a saleable medium. That most people wanted colour on their walls.

This was quite the predicament. I had painted a few things before, but it wasn’t what I wanted to do. I wanted to sketch. In pencil.

So what’s a 15-year-old girl to do when all of her carefully thought out career plans seemingly evaporate before her eyes?

The Artist’s Studio

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Art, artist, Bible, Edgar Allan Poe, explanation, Painting, portfolio, quotes, studio

♦     ♦     ♦     ♦     ♦     ♦     ♦

Every artist needs a space. A space to call their own. A place that inspires creativity and is conducive to productivity. Every artist needs a studio.

Gather and hoard your inspirations as you live, then recapture them as needed in the studio.

~ Nita Engle