"Untitled Pigeon"

“Untitled Pigeon” is a little nod to our forgotten companions. I’m a lover of this little bird, and feel like I could illustrate five more as they come in so many colours and patterns. They’re such a cool and intelligent bird, and after years of working alongside us, they’re really treated like pests now.

I created this piece with watercolours, pencil crayon, and archival inks on a 140lb coldpress paper. This paper is really lovely to experiment with watercolours on and I’ll be using it more often in the future. Part of being self taught is really that trial and error I find.

This began with a pencil outline, and then a layering of watercolours. I wanted to be sure to get those classic iridescent colours that shine through on pigeons. There’s layers of grey, contrasted with blues, greens and purples. Even a little lime.

I really worked from top to bottom as I added the ink. With bird illustrations, I almost always start with the beak and eye and then move down. It’s really how their feathers tend to layer, so it feels most natural.

One new technique I’ve been experimenting with, and tried in this illustration, is adding pencil crayon over watercolours. I used them in a few spots to enhance the vibrancy and add depth. Similar to what I like to do with a big pen, I found I enjoyed feathering the layers as a shadow. There’s more precision and control than there is with paint (for me anyhow) and I really liked adding it at this stage.

I love how this one turned out. It’s such a mix of experimentation and techniques. Some new tricks, and some old.