Tuesday 18 May 2010

BBC Wildlife Magazine Wildlife Artist of the Year

Being a wildlife artist is a fundamentally solitary occupation – birds are easily disturbed and working alone reduces the potential for spooking the subjects – so I enter a few competitions from time to time as a way of keeping in touch with the outside world, and to let others know what I’m up to.

Earlier in the month I heard that two of my paintings had been shortlisted for the “BBC Wildlife Magazine Wildlife Artist of the Year Award” and would I kindly take them down to Wiltshire for judging. This would have cost an absolute fortune, but fortunately my good friend Nick Derry also had two paintings shortlisted and his parents were taking those to the judging. They agreed to take mine, too. The only problem was, I didn’t actually have any of the paintings that were selected; I had sold them last year! So after begging them back from their rightful owners I sent them on to Nick’s parents who took them to the judging yesterday (Monday, 17th May).

Last night I found out I had won in my category of ‘World Birds’!!!!
Here are the two paintings which were selected;



The glorious May has also continued to thrill on the birding front. The dotterels which I was sketching last week were still around into the weekend and I felt the urge to make a colourful composition of them with some wheatears, using my marker pen and colour wash style. I quite like the spontaneity this approach brings to the painting, but I can see it wouldn’t be everyone’s cuppa.

Then again, I’m not doing it for everyone – I’m doing it for me!


Following the long-staying dotterel came another splendidly exotic bird – hoopoe. This Mediterranean beauty found a pile of topsoil on a farm in Finstown to be just the ticket for the past few days and I spent a couple of hours making these drawings as the bird sifted through topsoil in search of beetles and grubs and then as it took forty-winks.



11 comments:

Szabi said...

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing news!
Which one is the winning work?
Your sketches are more and more amazing. The Arctic Skue, the Hoopoe... No words. So simply executed.
Szabi

Unknown said...

A well deserved award, I'm just delighted that your begging skills are up to scratch. You continue to produce work of the highest standard.

sev said...

excellent work im loving reading about it . i enjoy your humour too :-) congratulations on your sucess :-)

Unknown said...

congratulations tim,very well deserved indeed

Sian said...

Congratulations!! A well deserved award.

Mike Woodcock said...

Many congratulations Tim! Well deserved and no real surprise.

Paschalis Dougalis said...

Congratulations Tim!!
As already told well deserved!
I always believed that recognition
is a matter of time, for those who have the real value in their work,
like you Tim!

Paschalis

Francisco J. Hernández said...

Congratulations !! for this deserved recognition !.

Anonymous said...

Brilliant news Tim - I'm surprised we don't see more of your work. I think it is stunning!

Anonymous said...

Brilliant news Tim - I'm surprised we don't see more of your work. I think it is stunning!

Ken Januski said...

Tim,

As usual a pleasure to see these and read about them. But I'm here with other news, I hope not too superfluous.

Recently I found myself awarded a 'Beautiful Blogger' award, with the request that I give it to four other bloggers, that they pass it on, etc. etc.

I've wondered for each person I then gave it to whether it would be a curse, a blessing or just a nuisance to ignore. I finally decided to give it to you, busy though you are, and with plenty of far more substantial awards. But I took a look at your recent paintings here and thought: I just have to do what I can to help a US audience become more familiar with your work.

My apologies in advance,

Ken