Woody Woodpecker

Not sure why he is called a red bellied woodpecker when it's his head that is red, but a thrill to see all the same. The contrast of colors in these birds always makes them fun to look at. Painted on 300# Bristol hot press; it's really great paper if you want to wipe out an area and correct or start over.

Need Flowers

We were very lucky to have a getaway to Florida to warm up a bit this month.  Talk about instant gratification! It was 0 degrees here and 80 degrees there! They have the most beautiful orchids everywhere just thriving in that climate. 

 The centers were a starting point with Alizarin Crimson, cad yellow pale and winsor violet, then painted some of the negative spaces around the petals. I think I could have left it this way, unfinished and somewhat charming.

But I went on to finish-they were a pale yellow color and I was quite enjoying the painting time on a nice warm porch with ocean breezes. Sigh....back to cold weather but the flower images help cheer things up!