Tag: australian artist
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art workshop for canberra tree week
On Wednesday 2 May, I will be introducing the “STEP into plein air” event on behalf of NatureArt Lab, as part of Canberra Tree Week at the National Arboretum. My artist talk is followed by a three-hour art workshop held among beautiful local endangered trees and flowering plants of the Southern Tablelands Ecosystems Park (STEP),…
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jerrabomberra art workshop
Tomorrow I will be hosting a one-day art workshop at Jerrabomberra Wetlands for members of the Wildlife and Botanical Artists (WABA) society. Earlier this year, I was invited to give a presentation to WABA members in the beautiful surroundings of Canberra’s Australian National Botanic Gardens. I spoke about my approach to art, techniques for gaining inspiration,…
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life, love & demise sold at birdlife exhibition
Feeling happy that another painting has found a forever home! My painting of Hooded Plovers has sold at BirdLife Australia’s “Birds + Us” exhibition. This painting was inspired by the courageous determination of beach-nesting birds and the fragility of their survival. I have donated the entire sale price to the Threatened Bird Network (TBN). I’m…
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sketching pixie
Sketching a tree is fairly straightforward. Other subjects can be more difficult. Pixie was a very obliging subject, dozing in the late summer afternoon following a hard day’s work hauling a gypsy wagon along country roads in farmland near Bendigo, Victoria. I haven’t turned these sketches into a painting but I might one day. Sometimes the…
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reading tolstoy
Reading Tolstoy Size 11 cm x 6 cm Acrylic on Arches paper SOLD Exquisitely framed prints available On a cool winter’s eve, the subject of this portrait sat quietly under a lamp, reading. The scene represents the serenity and timelessness of a deep appreciation of the arts, literature and philosophy. The title of this miniature portrait…
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elwood
Elwood Size 35.5 cm x 45.5 cm (14 in x 18 in) Acrylic on canvas SOLD By all accounts, Elwood was a lovely dog. This painting was commissioned by clients who provided photographs of their beloved pet. Combining several references, I painted Elwood with his favourite toy in a characteristic pose of playful alertness. Toys,…
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techno toddler, fashionista
My art table today, where I’m working on two miniatures for this year’s Sydney Royal. They are acrylic on Hahnemuhle paper, postcard size to stay under the 100cm-square worked area limit. I’m using the same colour palette for both paintings but chose to emphasise cool colours for the boy with a tonally heavy background to draw…
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zebra finches
Brisk Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia guttata) Size 20 cm x 15 cm Oil on canvas board SOLD This small painting was inspired by an afternoon birdwatching near Orange, New South Wales. A noisy flock of Zebra Finches had gathered in trees near a railway line. These birds are gregarious and form a lifelong bond between pairs. On this particular day,…
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flock bronzewing
Desert Flight Flock Bronzewing (Phaps histrionica) Size 51 cm x 20 cm Acrylic on canvas SOLD Outback Australia is the definition of vast. Within its impressive range, the Mitchell Grasslands are amazing. Characterised by open grassy plains with few rivers and gorges, the Mitchell Grass Downs bioregion extends from central Queensland into the Northern Territory and is part…
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red-backed fairy-wrens
Harmony in Green Red-backed Fairy-wrens (Malurus melanocephalus) Size 91.4 cm x 91.4 cm (36 in x 36 in) Acrylic on canvas SOLD This painting was inspired by birdwatching in far north Queensland, where verdant hills and rainforest canopy enfold a patchwork of pasture, cane fields and banana plantations. A family group of Red-backed Fairy-wrens had taken up…
Dr Megan Spiers 