Sunday 17 January 2016

Day 17 - Pink and Grey Galah


 
                                                         Acrylic on board 16cm x 16cm
                                                            Palette knife and brush
 
I'm enjoying using the 30/30 challenge to experiment with various styles. I have always loved the look of old-fashioned prints with their black outlines, and I love artwork that emulates that style. I don't think I quite achieved my aim but I had fun trying.
 
Pink and Grey Galahs are one of my favourite birds. In more recent decades they have established themselves in suburbia but their calls still channel childhood memories for me from living in the country. Below is a small excerpt from my book Grabbing the Muse by the Throat.
 
While bouncing over the rough terrain and admiring his results, we were also entertained by great numbers of pink and grey galahs wheeling around the sky as one. I had forgotten how huge the flocks became when in their natural habitat. And their distinctive, almost deafening trills en masse was another joy to behold, made all the sweeter being that it was a remembered sound from childhood.  

The first photo I ever remember taking, was as a young child on our wheat farm in a landscape not dissimilar to this one. With Mum supervising I had carefully held our box brownie – which was black – at waist level so I could look into the view finder. I aimed it towards the trees in the chook pen and clicked the button, immortalising in print forever a cohort of pink and grey galahs as they chewed the fat together in a stand of tall trees. I still have the grainy black and white photo in an album.

 

8 comments:

  1. LOVE the colors...Keep experimenting WENDY!
    Good luck = )

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  2. Very lovely. I do like galahs they are such a handsome parrot,

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  3. Lovely memory - lovely painting! Thanks for sharing the excerpt.

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  4. What a lovely memory. Are galahs members of the parrot family?I saw your question on my blog. Yes, the pink flower is Erica.

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  5. How wonderful, and I loved that piece from the book.
    XOXOXOXOXO Barbara

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  6. How beautiful is this bird ?? Would love to have a few of them flying around in my garden ! Thanks for letting us have a glimpse into your book and childhood memories.

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  7. really nice painting :) don't think I've seen this bird before in person, only on tv. no common anywhere but there it seems :)

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  8. Wonderful experiment Wendy with such fond memories...these birds look just a bit like a parrot. So nice to see your versatile talent.

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