Resting Buffalo 9" x 15" pencil

Finished this small drawing of resting buffalo earlier today.It is based on an encounter with a herd of Buffalo who were taking a rest in the heat of the day in woodland in Chobe,Botswana.As soon as I was taking my reference shots of the group I knew it would become a drawing or even an oil painting at some point.i have so many wonderful images of Buffalo to work with and they are one of my favourite subjects and so I'm sure i'll be re-visiting them soon.

Botswana Buffalo drawing

This drawing in progress of a pair of old boy buffalo's chewing the cud is based on an encounter with a resting group of buffalo in chobe,Botswana.During the hottest part of the day they would lie down under the shade of trees and chew the cud until it cooled down enough for them to resume feeding into the evening.this is a small drawing in comparison to those ive produced of late at only 9" x 15" and another days work should see it completed.i love buffalo as a subject as they've got so much character and with those magnificent horns lots of textures to portray as well,perfect for graphite.i think,along with elephants, they will feature prominently in my works this year based on my trip to Botswana in September of last year.

Field trip to Farlington marshes,langstone harbour,portsmouth,uk

                                                                           Teal

                                                                             Teal

                                                                              plovers

                                                                           wigeon

                                                                      Brent geese

                                                                      Brent geese

                                                                          curlew

                                                                         wigeon

                                                  rabbits feeding and huddling from the cold

                                                                       brent goose

Sunday last saw a rare opportunity arise for me to escape the confines of the studio and take a field trip armed with my camera to an outstanding birding spot Farlington Marshes on the outskirts of Portsmouth,uk.At this time of year the marshes and surrounding fields are full of over-wintering brent geese and waterfowl escaping there arctic breeding grounds.I love watching the geese and listening to them as they move to and fro across the grass like two-legged lawn mowers,occasionally taking to the air in unison when alarmed by the presence of a bird of prey.It was a cold,blustery day as I set off to walk around the harbour wall which seperates the marsh from langstone harbour,i was glad I'd brought my wellies as it was very wet after heavy winter rainfall.as I stepped onto the concrete wall itself to skirt around the very muddy path I could see the tide was high and therefore most of the birds would have moved from feeding on the tidal mudflats into the marsh itself to roost until the tide receded and they could return to feed.this often makes it easier to see an abundance of birds as they gather in the lagoon in the centre of the marsh to roost and are a bit easier to spot than when they are on the mudflats.the first birds I came across were a bunch of Teal on the seaward side of the wall feeding along the high tide mark whilst on the fields of the marsh thousands of Brent geese were busily feeding on the grass alongside the beautiful Wigeon,a very handsome duck.despite the blustery conditions I managed(with the help of my partners shoulder) to get some very nice reference shots with my camera of the birds feeding.the lagoon itself was packed with birds,mainly redshank but also a smattering of the usual suspects,egrets,gulls,plovers,lapwings and of course mallard.A lone curlew,very well camouflaged in the last remaining piece of unsubmerged seagrass gave itself away with a call as I passed and I managed to get some lovely photos once I'd pinpointed its position.i slowly circum-navigated the marsh on the seawall until reaching a path which cuts through the middle of the marsh to the wardens hut and shelter opposite to which the reedbeds are a favourite haunt of bearded tits,although I didn't see any this trip.I always enjoy walking the marshes and promised myself I'd return a bit more frequently as its been a while since my last trip and I love the inspiration the area provides.

'The Big Cheese' 12.5" x 11.5"

My completed Jaguar portrait which ive titled The big cheese just because I think he looks every inch the confident aristocrat.Hope you've enjoyed watching him come together.

Beautiful british birds

I thought I'd post some images of fine art limited edition prints that are available to purchase via my website www.clivemeredithart.weebly.com
These beautiful colour  prints,two of which are printed onto canvas and then bonded to board before being hand-varnished to replicate the original oil painting are also available to purchase and view at my studio/gallery in Warsash,Hampshire,UK
If you would like to visit my studio which is open by appointment then just drop me a  line at clivedmeredith@gmail.com to arrange a visit

Jaguar study coming together

Ive been busily working away on my Jaguar drawing and as you can see the head is almost completed.The myriad of layers of graphite on the spots has all been applied and the fur detail is being worked up.When you take this big cats head in isolation like this you can really get an impression of the muscularity of the head and jaws,Jaguars possess the most powerful jaws of all the big cats,used to puncture the skulls of its prey.
next i'll be working on even more spots on the cats coat as I complete the chest and shoulders to give the whole thing perspective.

New Big cat portrait underway

Happy New Year to you all,i hope everyone enjoyed a lovely festive break and the hangovers have all receded!
Back in the studio after a weeks celebrating I'm easing myself into 2015 with a cat portrait.This is a magnificent male Jaguar that I photographed whilst in the Far East last year at a Big Cat sanctuary.I'm focussing on the head and shoulders in this image as I love jaguar heads because of there extreme muscularity and I liked the rather whimsical look the cat gave me as he lounged in shade during the heat of the day.As usual ive completed the cats ears first and now moved on to add in key features and started work on the spots.each spot consists of several layers of graphite to build up the tones and try to emphasise the shine on the coat.drawing the spots is extremely time-consuming and leaves me with aching fingers at the end of each studio session from the application of much pressure to the pencils.
for any of you with a little leftover Christmas spending money burning a hole in your pocket may I remind you of my website www.clivemeredithart.com where you will find an extensive range of original works and prints including some fabulous new arrivals!
My studio/gallery is now open to visitors by appointment here in Warsash and so if you'd like to pop along just drop me a line at clivedmeredith@gmail.com to arrange a visit.