Jay Patel

The Penguin Family

2022

Aster da Fonseca Blackbirds Acrylic on Tape on Paper Year: 2022 Size: 11x14in Signed by hand COA provided Ref.: 924802-1368 collage acrylic paint tape nature landscape bird tree bea...

Aster da Fonseca Nest Builder Acrylic on Tape on Paper Year: 2022 Size: 12x9in Signed by hand COA provided Ref.: 924802-1374 collage acrylic paint ta...

Lu Ann Barrow (1934 - present) Austin Artist Image Size: 30 x 36 Frame Size: 32 x 38 Medium: Oil Mid Century "Penguins"

Original Print, hand made and hand printed by the artist. A penguin on a mission, a gentoo penguin striding along in the indomitable way a penguin does. Helen Fay is available online and in our gallery at Wychwood Art. Animals have always been at the heart of my work. I find the form, movement and behaviour of the creatures I draw a source of limitless fascination. I love the idea of them watching me, watching them as I draw. I hope my appreciation of the sentience and character of the animals I draw comes across in my work. Over my career I have drawn everything from primates to penguins, dogs, ostriches and even an echidna. These days dogs are my main focus, mostly because I adore dogs but also because they are such an integral part of life. I am delighted by the theory that humans and dogs co evolved, we wouldn’t be what we are without them and vice versa. I try to pare my images down to a balanced simplicity that directs attention to the subject of the picture. I try to balance the subject and the space it occupies, giving each equal importance. Light is hugely important to my work, I imagine my subject in three dimensions as I draw and the light describes the musculature and texture that gives the drawing it’s presence and grounds it in the picture. I aim to capture a pause, a moment where whatever I draw looks like it could wander off or leap up any minute. My influences include Japanese prints, Chinese and Japanese brush drawing and the European artists who were influenced by Japan. I am really excited by composition, by artists like Bonnard and Leon Spilliaert. I have long been a fan of Munch for his direct markmaking, colour and intensity and at the other end of the spectrum, Hammershoi for his limited palette, sense of space and calm. I am interested in black and white photography and film and have recently discovered and been amazed by the films of Yasujiro Ozu. The photographs of Andrei Tarkovsky are favourites too. Lastly, I would like to namecheck a great influence in natural history illustration...