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I was so happy with everything I had drawn so far. The composition was great and every part of my koala, the proportions and even the soft furry feel was portrayed perfectly.

I was eager to finish the initial stage of my drawing that’s in lead pencil so I could start adding some colour, only one thing was stopping me. I just couldn’t get the leg that was hanging down behind the tree branch to look right. Drawing the foot was especially tricky.

I was thrilled with the photograph I took of this koala for my reference. Everything was perfect only the foot just didn’t’ show quite enough detail in order for me to get it right.

I studied the angles and the area surrounding the foot, the shape and how the toes were formed and their relation to the whole foot but after many attempts I just couldn’t draw it.

I took some deep breaths and had a stretch to help calm me down. Things started to get better when I noticed that I hadn’t drawn the leg quite thick enough. This is the case where it is important to have all of the proportions correct showing that one small thing can effect a larger area, being the actual foot.

Now that I had figured that out, it appeared to be working really well and I finished, yet to my dismay I discovered that when I looked at my drawing as whole, the leg and foot overall was too small. My frustration was really beginning to boil! At that stage I thought it would be best to walk away, have some lunch and go back to it later.

After having a break an idea came to me. I typed in ‘koala’s foot’ into Google images and the perfect image came up for me to study. Although it wasn’t at the same angle as my own reference photo  it was enough to give me an understanding of how the foot is formed and how the different parts relate to each other. In the Internet photo I could see that one toe had two claws attached to it whereas in my photo the angle of the foot made it look like that one toe was two separate toes.

After studying both photos and with a better understanding of how the foot is formed this helped me to get it right.

Taking a break and having a clear head helped me see things in a whole new way.

Now things were really starting fall into place.

Regards,
Geri

One of the most awesome things about being a wildlife artist and living in suburban Sydney is the opportunity to connect with wildlife. I feel so blessed that I am able to experience the beauty and wonder of the national park that’s only about a 40- minute bike ride away from where I live.

As I ride uphill and as dawn breaks I take a deep breath in feeling energized and inspired by the pure energy of nature that surrounds me. The echoing sound of a whipbird’s song so crisp and clean uplifts me like a spring clean for my soul while the cool wind brushes against my face and over my arms and legs as I zoom downhill.  It makes me feel so alive.  Riding on some flat road again and to the side of the road I catch a glimpse of a lyrebirds’ long, soft brown tail feathers. He scratches around the dirt a little and reluctantly pokes his head out from behind a bush and then quickly darts back in again. Lyrebirds are a rare sight as they are such shy creatures.

Riding up another hill I catch a glimpse of what looks like something hopping around with rusty dark brown fur and a long black tail appears from behind a bush. As I take a closer look I see it’s a wallaby. He avoids eye contact and quickly hops further back into the depths and safety of the bush. Even though for just a short moment I feel so energized and blessed for witnessing wildlife in its natural habitat.

On my way home I imagine that I am the leader of a bunch in a bike race. That picture quickly fades as I soon realize I am in the slipstream of a flock of rainbow lorikeets right at the level of my helmet. Now I am really flying! I feel like I am one of them as though my bike has become my wings. All I see is a blur of glorious colour as they flutter their wings in front of me while the high piercing shrill of their call almost deafens me. That soon fades away as they fly up disappearing further into the sky onto a new destination. Now I’m focusing on my cycling again while I keep a mental note of the brilliant colours from those rainbow lorikeets for another drawing.

As I leave the national park and approach the urban environment there are still plenty of wild birds about. I always know if sulphur crested cockatoos have been around as they leave a trail of destruction with torn, tattered twigs and tufts of leaves strewn across the road after their boisterous play at feeding time. His deafening squawk is so loud that it goes straight through me and echoes for miles, yet it makes me feel so glad to be alive. On the other hand, the sweet and gentle flute sound of a magpie leaves me with a feeling of comfort and warmth as she pecks away at someone’s lawn intent on catching a worm for breakfast.

Closer to home and at night a lone tawny frogmouth will visit occasionally, while brush tail and ringtail possums run along the fence or along the branches of trees in our front or backyard. Quite often ringtail possums look as though they are performing a circus-balancing act where from a great height and with great agility and skill they run across telegraph wires. This makes great entertainment for my kids!

With all the wonderful wildlife that’s around me I feel such deep appreciation and respect for all of earths creatures as well as mankind because I believe we are all interconnected. It is through my drawings that I aspire others to see their own essence mirrored by the qualities and strengths of the animals that I draw and hence inspire a deeper connection with all living things as well as with each other.

Regards,
Geri

Tawny Frogmouth

Like owls Tawny Frogmouths are nocturnal and it was after returning from an evening walk on a spring night that this wise bird caught my eye.

The evening was warm, still and silent and although he sat motionless perched high on a telegraph wire, it was his yellow eyes, as bright as the stars surrounding him that caught my attention.  I gazed into his eyes for what seemed like a couple of minutes yet it is was as though time stood still. I too felt like I was motionless and blending into the stillness and the darkness of night. It didn’t feel scary. I and everything surrounding me became as one, it felt awesome!

He was looking at me as though he knew everything about me and the whole the universe. He was telling me in his silent language that I am more than my body and mind.

When I retired to bed that night I carried the feeling of stillness and felt safe after the realisation that I am more than my body and mind. I lay still and motionless, as a gentle wave of deep peace swept over me, wherein I felt like I was blending into the peace as a part of it. It was a kind of inner peace that I had never experienced before. Words cannot describe it. After the peace came the joy. Again, this was like nothing I had ever experienced before. I cried and cried, rejoicing for simply living and being. It was as though the layers had been peeled back to reveal the ‘real me’; my soul.

Its awesome experiences like these that will stay with me for the rest of my life and I feel so grateful and blessed to be living in such close proximity to wildlife and to be a wildlife artist.

Many people may not be aware of what a Tawny Frogmouth is.  Although they look very similar to an owl, a Tawny Frogmouth is a native bird found in Australia and is more closely related to the Kookaburra and nightjar. There are many found where I live in suburban Sydney, New South Wales.

Tawny Frogmouths hunt at night and unlike owls, instead flying high and swooping down on their prey they sit very still and upright, roosting very close to a tree trunk on a low perch waiting for their food to come to them.  They feed on small prey such as moths and insects where they will often catch them in flight. When the time is right they can pounce down from their low perch and feed on things like worms, slugs and snails.

Tawny Frogmouths are so well camouflaged that they blend in with the colour and texture of the tree bark with their sliver-grey, streaked and mottled plumage. They could even look like a dead tree stump so that even if you are very close to them you may not notice them.

One of the great highlights of being a wildlife artist has been the great people I have met and hence the wonderful opportunity to travel overseas and see wildlife in their natural habitat.

I would like to share my amazing 6-day trip to Tanjung Putting National Park in the island of Borneo where FRIENDS of the NATIONAL PARKS FOUNDATION is stationed. My relationship with FNPF began when I donated a drawing of an orang-utan and I was invited to visit and witness for myself, the tireless and relentless work of the volunteers.

FNPF is an Indonesian non-government organization whose mission is to protect animals and their habitat. Their work is comprehensive and includes:

>Rehabilitation of Orang-utans, Sun bears and other animals rescued from the illegal trade.
>Breeding of the endangered Bali Starling
>Reforestation and environmental conservation
>Community development projects to provide the natives an alternative to logging and poaching.

When I first reached Borneo I was warmly greeted by some friendly FNPF staff and by my hostess Miow Yen Yap (known as ‘Yen’) who was the project manager (amongst other things) of FNPF. It was such a relief to see a smiling and welcoming face. I also met up with an English volunteer whose name was Jon Wild.

The first thing that hit me when I boarded the boat for my temporary home was the humidity. I believe it was around 95%!
On our way down the Sakonyar River we noticed an Orang-utan high up in a tree- top preparing his nest for sleep. This is quite a rare sight to see them in the wild like that as Yen told me they are quite shy creatures in the wild. When I arrived at my guesthouse I was taken to my room where I chose right away to put a Mosquito net around my bed! The bathroom called a “Mandy” had a “Bak” for bathing. This is an upright vessel containing the well water that you scoop out with a plastic container and then pour the water over yourself. Although not conventional for me I felt grateful to have experienced this “hands on” Indonesian way of life.

My first walk through an Indonesian forest was one of awe and wonder at how diverse it actually is. At one point I felt like I was walking in the deep jungle and then I came to a more open and sandy part. It is here that I witnessed the setting up of a “Camera trap” for identifying wildcats where we first noticed some wildcat footprints. As some wildcats are poached it is important to identify their numbers as this helps build a stronger case for protection.

Although Yen had planned something for me the next day we needed to put that plan on hold as a little emergency came up. Apparently a feral Orang-utan (whom we named Robert) came back to camp. It appeared that he had been in a fight with a more dominant male and he became injured with a tare in his back. The FNPF veterinarians observed that Robert was about 15 years of age and his cheek pads were just starting to develop. In order to operate he needed to be tranquillised. A bamboo blow- pipe did this. The FNPF field staff member was so accurate at using this instrument that Robert was hit right where the vets wanted. He slowly fell to the ground and was stitched up on the operating table. I had the opportunity of observing the whole process of tranquillising and operating on Robert from an appropriate distance. He was then taken to a cage a few meters away from the clinic to rehabilitate. After he recovered he was to be released back into the forest, however this was a slow process so as to make it a natural process as possible.

Illegal logging is unfortunately destroying orang-utan’s preferred habitat of peat swamp forest and it is not just in Tanjung Putting that illegal logging is out of control. It is all over Indonesia, including other National Parks. More than 70% of Indonesia’s original forest cover has been lost. Within the last decade, the wild Orang-utan population has decreased by 50%. Knowing these facts I was given the opportunity to observe how FNPF carry out their reforestation projects. The areas being reforested are part of the home range of wild and ex-captive orang-utans and contain rare species of valuable trees. Only native tree species are replanted in order to maintain the ecological balance.

On the final day of my visit I took a boat ride down the Sakonyar River to observe other wildlife along the way. I saw crocodiles, proboscis monkeys, hornbills and herons. The natural colour of the River is black. A process of tannin leaching into the water by the plants causes this. Where the water is not black (or green) is caused by illegal gold mining. Illegal gold mining removes the top- soil and therefore it takes centuries for the forest to recover. FNPF are doing everything in their power to maintain the ecological balance of those areas.

The “Grand Finale” of my trip was a visit to the local village across the river. Here I saw the local school and along my way a little boy ran out to greet me and to also see where I came from. Luckily I had a little Australian souvenir in my pocket to give him, which he was so delighted to receive! Many of the people employed in this village are working in FNPF’s rehabilitation and reforestation work. There is also an established batik workshop that teaches this ancient art of fabric design and manufactures products for sale. FNPF works in the villages to develop other sources of income including the ones I just mentioned.

I had a truly enriching, educational and unforgettable experience. It was an experience of a lifetime! Here’s the link:  http://fnpf.org

Regards,

Geri