Animal Sketches April 30 Part 1

I've been doing some animal drawing recently. It's an area of study that I've neglected unconsciously. Here's some drawings from the reptile house at the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City. It's interesting the things you notice when you take some time to draw an animal from life. The iguana's had a good portion of his tail removed at some point, the healed one isn't nearly as long as it should be. And that Chucwalla is missing a foot...

Quaking Aspen

Quaking aspens are fairly common in the Utah Wasatch Mountains and some of the groves are among the largest (by mass) and oldest living things on the earth.

Fallen Tree

A sketch done on prepared bristol board up Hobble Creek Canyon last Fall.

Figure Sketch

Recent 30 minute figure sketch. I used two colors of water soluble colored pencils.

"For Our God Is a Consuming Fire (Hebrews 12:29)"

Travis Tanner and I installed my painting of Joseph Smith Junior's First Vision this last week in the Nauvoo Cafe at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building on Temple Square in Salt Lake City. This is part of a larger show curated by Ira Gagon that hangs in the LDS Church History and Art Museum and in the Nauvoo Cafe. I'm waiting on a better photograph as a final portfolio image.

This painting has been sitting in my mind for at least ten years. When the opportunity to participate in this show came, I dropped all of my other paintings and projects to get this painting done in time for the show. It has occupied all of my non-teaching time since the end of December 2010.

Those interested can go see this painting at the Nauvoo Cafe which is open till 8pm Monday through Saturday from now until the end of June of 2011.

Please contact Ira Gagon at gagonira@yahoo.com regarding the purchase of this painting or prints.

5x10 feet oil on linen