Duck Stamp

This piece was created for the Junior Duck Stamp competition. I chose to draw nene, the state bird of Hawaii, due to my connection to the state. I had seen these birds growing up and knew they were a vulnerable species. I chose a background that was interesting and would make it clear that the birds do not inhabit the continental United States.

I began by finding two references (one for each bird, plus the background). I then started to sketch the birds using colored pencils. At first this was a disappointing process, since the colored pencil did not come off as very saturated on watercolor paper, and I was working with a limited variety of pencils. The first goose on the left was a bit of an experiment, but the goose on the right was drawn with more knowledge and caution. I painted the background with a mix of watercolor and gouache, since I had different shades of each available. I began by creating the leaves and grass with green, before adding more layers to make the background have some shadow and shape. The water was done with brown watercolor. and I filled in the gaps in the grass with black gouache. My final addition was blue to the leaves, to create more darks and shadow.

This project felt like a giant experiment, and many of my initial plans changed. I planned on going over the nene with paint, but I did not have the right shades to do this, and so I had to leave them in colored pencil. Additionally, the value of the colored pencil was not great, and left the birds looking ghostly. I had initially planned on a much more realistic background, but my brush was too big to create precise details and the color I had initially put on the page looked unrealistic. I chose to continue moving in this direction and created a background that contrasted the more precisely drawn birds. I honestly like how this looks, with the birds looking pale in front of a more colorful and vibrant backdrop. I feel that it makes them stand out in an unusual way. However, looking at the illustration from a distance, the birds are lost, and I added to the drawing to make them bolder with ink.