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When I began taking watercolor lessons with Jean McMullen in the fall of 2009, I already loved to watch, photograph and identify birds in my own backyard. I had even created a little Shutterfly book with all the birds I had identified and photographed. It shouldn't have surprised me that the very first painting I created in class was of a Tufted Titmouse I had photographed at my backyard feeder.

My very first watercolor painting, a monochromatic rendering of a Tufted Titmouse.

Yes, I painted other subjects (mostly because they were class assignments). But it seems like every chance I got I painted another bird...and another. In 2013, when Jean invited me to be a resident artist in her new gallery, Missouri Artists on Main, it was only natural that my emphasis would be birds. I did (and do) paint more than just birds, but when it comes to watercolor, birds are definitely my first love.

Wild Turkeys in my backyard...taking advantage of my bird feeders!

What is it about birds that inspires me? The endless variety of birds is astonishing, even in my own backyard! They come in all shapes and sizes, from the tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that entertain us each summer, to the large Wild Turkeys that visited our bird feeders every evening at dinnertime for a season. (I'm sticking to my backyard birds, so I won't be talking about Great Blue Herons, Ostriches or...well, you get the idea.)

Here are a few fun facts about the Ruby-throated Hummingbird: This summertime (in Missouri) visitor has a long, slender bill, very short legs, weighs only about 0.11 oz (3 gm), and beats its wings about 53 times per second. Have you ever come close enough to a hummingbird to hear the "humming" of its wings? Very cool! Not so cool is the fact that, apart from his brief role in reproduction, the male ruby-throat has nothing to do with nest building or caring for its young. The female does it all.

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are a metallic green, with the male sporting a beautiful bright red throat patch.

In contrast to hummingbirds, Northern Cardinals are year-round residents, weigh about 1.5 oz (42 gm), and are slightly smaller than American Robins. Males are a show-stopping brilliant red, even in the winter, while the females are beautiful as well — golden brown with warm red accents. Both sexes have orange cone-shaped bills.

Did you know that both female and male Cardinals sing? I actually witnessed this a few months ago as I craned my neck to observe the pair on a tree branch high above our house. And females Cardinals sing more complex songs than males.

Kamikaze

Reveille

Another interesting observation: One year we had a resident male cardinal that attacked his reflection in the windows of our home, his favorite being the bedroom window, where he woke us early every morning with his head banging. Apparently it's not uncommon for males and females to exhibit this behavior, which usually stops at the end of breeding season. Our male (we called him Kamikaze) continued this behavior for almost a year. Aside from his quirks, however, a male cardinal is an awesome partner and father. A male Northern Cardinal helps his female by providing nesting material for the nest, feeding mom while she sits on the eggs, and caring for his young. And I love that Cardinals mate for life!

Courtship

The male Cardinal watches over the nest and feeds the female while she incubates the eggs.

Daddy Cardinal feeding his young.

Enough examples. I could go on and on! Chickadees, Goldfinches, Tufted Titmouses, Coopers Hawks, Blue Jays...they are all so wonderfully different! They are elusive and free, they fill the air with music, chirps and squawks, they entertain my cats, and my husband and I find them entertaining as well!

So close and yet so far away! (Mischief in a stare-down with a Mourning Dove.)

Boots and Truman, watching the birds.

You have probably figured out that I enjoy watching and photographing my backyard birds almost as much I enjoy painting them! So why am I inspired to paint birds? Maybe because when I'm lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time with camera in hand, able to click the shutter button and capture the image of that beautiful bird, that moment is over far too quickly. But when I use that photograph as a reference for a painting, I am once again in that moment. I am spending time getting to know every inch of that bird, from it's tiny claws or colorful markings, to its clear bright eyes.

There's just something about birds. When I'm stuck or struggling with another painting or project, sometimes I'll just stop what I'm doing and paint a little bird. It just cheers me up. When you look at my paintings I hope you see the love of birds that I have, and I hope you feel the joy when you are looking at them that I feel as I am painting them!

Paint. Love. Repeat.