A Mackinder’s eagle owl (Bubo capensis mackinderi), Original Watercolor on Legion Special Handmade Rough, 300 lb rag paper

Description

I am donating 25% of the proceeds from original and print/NFT sales to the Kenya Bird Of Prey Trust, in Naivasha.

The male Mackinder’s rescued by Kenya Bird Of Prey Trust was discovered tangled in horticultural plastic and had poked its eye out. It is comfortably housed next to some verreaux eagle owls in their Naivasha sanctuary, and is begrudgingly tolerant of human interaction (as opposed to a verreaux, raised from a chick, which has become part of the human family at the trust.

I saw the MacKinder’s on a trip to the trust and was impressed by its sheer bulk and presence, though he was a bit camera shy, so I resorted to Getty images for a stock photo as my core reference.

After blocking in the deep indigo/purple background I began the painstaking process of laying in wet-on-wet and wet-on-dry feathers, one at a time to build the particular, ruffled appearance. The reflections in the eyes were especially successful (IMHO), and I was pleased by the dull, rough texture of the beak. Without strong side lighting to create cast shadows in my reference I was less able to build a strong sense of depth or solidity, but I’m happy enough with the detailing and textures.

I gave him his missing eye back too, for aesthetic reasons.

To see painting details and to read about the conservation of these owls, check out the artwork in my “Gallery” section