This is the first time I have done an extensive study for painting a series of birds in watercolor. I never wanted to brand myself as any single type of painter, but observing nature is my first priority and birds are an integral part of nature. You could say I am a birdwatcher – I study their movements, postures, and all the types of rhythms they make. Birds have great rhythm – I love the way they communicate with each other, it’s an absolute treat for the eyes.

I have a long association with birds. As a child, I used to go to the zoo to watch and draw them. Then when I was in my first year of college, I took a course called Bird Study, which brought me to the zoo again to do some sketches. One time I will never forget, I was chased by a group of ostriches! It was really scary at the time (but a bit funny now) and that day, I ran as far away from the zoo as possible.

To create my supporting visual references for these paintings, I took some of my own photos and also used the internet. Birds never stay in one place for long, so one must have reference photos. Painting birds can be very technical, one must study them in great detail to create the feeling of a real bird, rather than a toy. I love to work with highly textural subjects like birds. Actually I believe that everything in life has texture, even the way we talk, behave, speak and eat.

Another reason this series came to be – I thought I’d like to try painting something where I could use as many of my DANIEL SMITH Watercolor Sticks as possible – I got the whole set of 51 colors as a birthday gift. Fortunately, birds have an unlimited number of shades!