SUNSET ON RIVER, Watercolor Painting Landscape

The beauty of a small town is peace.  It's a place that people love to come to for a quiet holidays.  Like birds need rest for their wings.  I need rest for my soul!  I had lots of enjoyment capturing the moment that is essential.

Wonderful Sunset Watercolor Painting Landscape of Whitianga, Coromandel, New Zealand 29.5 x 42 cm

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Royal Penguin,watercolor painting birds

To see how warm the climate is I went to the garden center late autumn this year and bought seedlings of flowers that thrive in the heat of spring or summer.  Now we are in the mid of winter, I have flowering poppies, pansies, lobelia, verbena and further in my own garden, flowering scarlet bougainvillea, impatient, rosemary, pine apple sage.. the lot.  Our climate has changed.  Antarctic is getting warmer .. every day!  there are researches into the deep sea of the south pacific on the effect of global warming..  I thought of the very special creature that hold my thought as I pick up the brush and let my mind wander...  The Royal Penguin!

The Ocean is Fun! Wonderful Antarctic Sea Bird Painting, 
Watercolor on paper 10"x12"

The royal penguin (Eudyptes schlegeli) is a species of penguin, which can be found on the sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island and adjacent islands. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the royal penguin as vulnerable.  The scientific name commemorates the German zoologist Hermann Schlegel.

Royal penguins as a species are classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN, with high risk of endangerment in the wild.  Historically they were hunted for their oil; between 1870 and 1919 the government of Tasmania issuing licences for hunting them, with an average of 150,000 penguins (both royal and king) being taken each year. At the peak of the industry in 1905, the plant established on Macquarie Island was processing 2000 penguins at a time, with each penguin yielding about half a litre of oil.  Since the end of penguin hunting on Macquarie the numbers have climbed to 850,000 pairs. Before hunting started, there were three million penguins on the island (both royal and king)

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CHINSTRAP PENGUIN, Watercolor Painting Birds

I got a helmet!

Charming Antarctic Sea Bird Painting, Watercolor on paper
10"x12"

The chinstrap penguin (Pygoscelis antarctica) is a species of penguin which is found in the South Sandwich Islands, Antarctica, Deception Island, the South Orkneys, South Shetland, South Georgia, Bouvet Island and Balleny. Their name derives from the narrow black band under their heads which makes it appear as if they are wearing black helmets, making them one of the most easily identified types of penguin. Other names for them are "ringed penguins", "bearded penguins", and "stonecracker penguins" due to their harsh call.  In 2004, two male chinstrap penguins named Roy and Silo in Central Park Zoo, New York City, formed a pair-bond and took turns trying to "hatch" a rock; this was substituted by a keeper for a fertile egg, and the pair subsequently hatched and raised the chick. Penguins, by their nature, hatch eggs and are social creatures. A children's book, And Tango Makes Three, was written based on this event.

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EMPEROR PENGUIN, Watercolor Painting Birds

An Emperor with disappearing empire

Art for Earth, Watercolour painting, Emperor Penguin

The more I learnt about the birds the more I love them.  They show me the amazement and secret of nature That once they disappear their secret (our knowledge) will be lost forever. They are wonderful treasure.  By chance, I tumble on the subject of painting birds.  Through painting I learnt to connect with them.

The emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is endemic to Antarctica.  The ice sheet becomes smaller and so is his kingdom. His ability to adapt to cold is remarkable.  The emperor penguin breeds in the coldest environment of any bird species; air temperatures may reach -40 °C (-40 °F), and wind speeds may reach 144 km/h (89 mph). Water temperature is a frigid -1.8 °C (28.8 °F), which is much lower than the emperor penguin's average body temperature of 39 °C (102 °F). Emperor penguin adapts comfortably to pressure and low oxygen pressure of up to 40 times that of the surface, which in most other terrestrial organisms would cause barotraumas. The bones of the penguin are solid rather than air-filled, which eliminates the risk of mechanical barotraumas.

Emperor penguin is really famous.  It appeared in movies, Life in the Freezer, Planet Earth, Frozen Planet,. Happy Feet, Surf's Up and More than 30 countries have depicted the bird on their stamps.  Bringing attention to the fact that these birds are under threats from global warming and depletion of food sources by overfishing.

Yellow Eyed Penguin,Watercolor Painting Birds

GLOBAL WARMING ON ANTARCTICA!

Something to think about!  the effect of climate change is more than I thought.. may the human spirit triumph!
I painted a series of Penguins for that thought!
Here is the Yellow Eye Penguin with the rising sea behind her!

Walk the beach with me!  Feel the wet sand between the toes!  Feel the breeze and the lullaby from the sea!

Magnificent Antarctic Sea Bird Painting, Watercolor on paper
10"x12"

Watercolor often put me into a frantic mode.  I got to work quickly, instinctively and impulsively.  That made watercolor painting exciting.  Soon after I finished, I sat backed and had a good look at the painting.  I knew the birds get me to think about their survival.  They get me to think about global warming that has affected us all.  How fragile we all are

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Creating Watercolor Impulse

My journey into watercolor painting was unplanned.  On and off as things happened.  In modern world, the manual and labor work of painting process is rather intense and awkward compared to that using a camera.  It means the painter has to get more involve and the result is (especially with watercolor) is unpredictable.  I get used to unplanned, on and off things.. I get used to the unpredictability!..  I think this is my chance to lean toward the enjoyment of painting watercolor impulsively!  I intentionally extend the range of subjects, techniques, colours, tools, locations, situations (painting while cooking, chatting, dreaming...indoors, outdoors..in a car, rain, dry, sunny, dull day..)  Painting with impulse is fun.  It reminds me of the feeling of being young and carefree!  It definitely made me a happier painter.  The only problem I got is to get better at it.  The only solution is I got to keep at it.  Hope this explains the relationship between one's life, chosen painting approach and the way things are perceived and expressed in the painting process!
Hope this writing will inspire someone in the same boat!  Happy painting!   Phong

MAGELLANIC PENGUIN,watercolor painting birds

GLOBAL WARMING ON ANTARCTICA
The sun is out again.  More days of grey clouds and rain .  The G20 conference in Australia ending with President Obama's speech on Global warming...

It's like winter here.  At last the sun is out of the clouds shining.  After days of grey clouds and rain  I had a few minutes with the sun.  Quickly I photo a few of my paintings and try to post.  Here is one of them 

Wonderful Antarctic Sea Bird Painting, Watercolor on paper 10"x12"

Hear the ocean, see the ocean and play with the ocean is my dream.  Penguins get into my sleep.  I can't swim in icy water but I love the crisp, clear water I love the roar of the ocean.  The place that I could never be but here it is. A great nature wonder!  I leave the rest to your imagination..

To get more time for painting I rely on the fabulous ArtPal.com for printing and delivery of my work. 

If you have any queries relating to the painting, please leave me a message via the contact form gadget on the top right corner of the blog.  Thank you for your interest.