Bluebirds and Purple Coneflower has been released, so I'd like to give you some background on the piece. If you have any questions about the painting after you've read through this post, please leave a comment below. Bluebirds and Purple Coneflower by Larry Zach (c) 2008 I've been wanting to do a bluebird piece for a long time, but I was only recently able to finally gather all the reference material I needed to create a strong painting design.I was raised on a farm in eastern Iowa between the town of Swisher and the eastern-most colony of the Amana Colonies appropriately called, East Amana. The farm included some rich Iowa River bottom ground and nearby hills and valleys with a mosaic of...
I am happy to announce that I've had the opportunity to donate two pieces of art to the upcoming Shoot for a Cure event and will be able to contribute to the mission of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Donated prints: Sportsman's Dream | Signed and numbered, artist proof, canvas edition (one of only 25) Dream Bucks II -- The Missing Trophy | Signed and numbered, limited edition, framed Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend the event because of a conflicting fishing trip to Saskatchewan with my son. Nonetheless, I encourage any bird hunters to get out there for the 2nd annual event and help beat last year's total of $33,000 raised! Here is some more information and a link...
I had a great morning sitting on the deck and watching the birds as it got light today. Amazed by the activity and variety of birds within sight of the deck, I decided it would be fun to make a summer project of observing, photographing, and painting the birds in the immediate area. Here are early observations: A pair of wrens are nesting in the box right off the deck. While one wren carried sticks to the nest, the other spent considerable energy trying to drive off a red-bellied woodpecker that wanted to feed in the area. The fact that the woodpecker seemed to totally ignore the racket and diving attacks didn't seem to hinder the enthusiasm nor the persistence...
Here's a quick update from the farm -- a 240-acre piece of land I manage for wildlife in southeastern Iowa. I got a lot of work done at the farm earlier this week. I took some soybeans with me for planting food plots. Unfortunately... the tractor wouldn't start. We worked on it much of the day and finally got it going. I tilled and disc-ed until about 9:30pm because of the rain forecast. Good thing I did, because it started raining about dawn the next day. I'll see if I can get some spraying done between rains. I also worked up 5 spots for fruit trees in the orchard to replace trees killed by rabbits and mice. Planting corn and...
