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One of my favorite things about painting wildlife is that there's always something new to discover. Sometimes it's an unexpected adaptation, unusual color or anatomical detail, and sometimes it's simply a familiar animal seen from a different perspective. My recent watercolors have taken me in several different directions, but they all began with something that caught my attention.

The Eastern Box Turtle caught my eye with the intricate patterns of its shell and skin. Those beautiful markings aren't just decorative; they help break up the animal's outline among the leaves and shifting light of the forest floor.

The Okapi is another wonderful example of disruptive coloration. Its striped hindquarters are so distinctive that nearly every reference photograph seems to feature them! But I found myself drawn to the other end of the animal. Okapis have lovely, expressive faces, with enormous ears and delicate features.

The Great Sapphirewing Hummingbird female is all about attitude. Hummingbirds may be tiny, but they can be very territorial and aggressive, as anyone who has put out a feeder for them knows.

Siamese and Ladybug features a portrait of Mizu, whom I adopted from the Wake County SPCA earlier this year. Named after the protagonist of Blue Eye Samurai, she's happily not quite as feisty as her namesake. I was fascinated by the ruby-red reflections in her pupils. Most cats have a reflective layer behind the retina called the tapetum lucidum, which helps them see in dim light and produces their familiar green-gold eyeshine. In Siamese cats, the genetics responsible for their distinctive coloration also causes reduced pigmentation and differences in this reflective layer so it produces a reddish reflection instead. I gave her a matching red ladybug as companion (or target). 

The White-Lined Sphinx Moth might be my favorite example of how a change in perspective can transform a subject. Viewed head-on, with its enormous metallic eyes, feathery-looking scales, and plush facial features, it resembles some sort of alien teddy bear. 

These paintings don't make a particularly tidy collection, and that's part of the fun. Nature offers an endless assortment of colors, shapes, behaviors, and adaptations to explore.