"Birds of Trinidad"

In 2004, I entered The Don Eckelberry Scholarship Award, to my delight, I won. This award provided me a wonderful opportunity to observe the birds at the Asa Wright Nature Center in Trinidad. At the time I did not know much about the island, but was excited to see what inspirations this new place might bring me.

During my first trip—as a matter of fact, the first few moments of daylight— I was blown away by the colors, sights and sounds of the diversity of birds, vegetation and other wildlife... so much so, that I have been back almost every year since.

One of the naturalists working at Asa Wright was Denise Etienne, she was most knowledgeable about where to see particular species and helped answer all my many questions. We became friends and it wasn't long before I found out that she was also a very gifted poet and soon after the idea for the book was born.

I am happy to announce that Denise and I have finally completed our book of poems and paintings, "Birds of Trinidad".

"A Collection of Paintings and Poems by Beatrice Bork and Denise Etienne, Birds of Trinidad" © 2011

Save the date...

I'm getting ready for a new show at Soul Made Gallery, which is very exciting for me. It will be the first time my father and I will be exhibiting our work together.


Exhibit May 22nd through May 31st

Meet the artists May 27th, 4-7 pm
A double pleasure as we host critically acclaimed watercolor artist Beatrice Bork in the gallery, and jewelry artist Guenter Bork in the shop.

For more info. on store hours and directions:

Soul Made

725 Arnold Avenue

Pt Pleasant Beach, NJ 08724

732-892-0900

The Kids are Alright

I visited one of my colleagues from Artists' Gallery today, he and his wife have a wonderful eco-inspired farm—Sweet Sourlands Farm. I have to say I am impressed with my visits there, and always come away with new knowledge, and inspiration—and today was no exception.

This time I set out to get some photos of their goats, the kids (13 of them) were bounding about, between their anitics and just being so darn cute, I could watch all day. I also met the "handsome" buck named "Winston." A portrait is probably on the way!

Photo © Beatrice Bork

Longevity

I recently read an article written by an interior designer, in which they had mentioned that oil paints last longer than watercolor, which may be the case when looking at antiques, but does not hold true today. I have done a bit of research that actually say watercolors last as long as oils. What it really boils down to is the quality of the painting as well as the condition in which the painting is kept, no matter what medium.

The quality and technology in today's paints (all paints) and support materials are much better than even years ago. I use quality paints*, paint on an acid free watercolor support, and use archival quality framing (100% ragmat and acid free foam core), with UV protective glass. As with any painting in any medium—or photo or print, it is wise not to hang the piece in direct sunlight, or in poor conditions.

*I paint with A or AA rated pigments, which are rated as "permanent" (from the Winsor & Newton website: AA - Extremely Permanent, A - Permanent, B - Moderately Durable, C - Fugitive).

Out and about...

While I do enjoy the cold and wintry scenery, I am more of a sun worshiper, and as the weather gets warmer, I slowly come out of my hybernation. Spring is exciting as life resurrects itself, and I find myself being inspired every time I go for a hike. The mink in the above photo, may be seen in one of my paintings soon...

© photo by Beatrice Bork

American Coot as seen today

I spent a little time outdoors today at one of my favorite locations. Today's "bird-of-the-day" were American Coots, they were splashing around and chatting it up near the shoreline today... maybe a painting in the works one day. Here is one of the photos taken today.

American Coot Photo © Beatrice Bork

Process

Inspiration comes in many ways, and for me it usually comes from observation. Most of my paintings are carefully planned with a sketch and progress from that point, but sometimes the subject doesn't take form until after. For instance the piece here, "Skimmer," actually originated with a splash of watercolor I had done some time ago, and had been sitting in my studio, until it finally "it let me know" what subject should be painted.

"Skimmer" — Black Skimmer, watercolor © Beatrice Bork