Saturday, February 28, 2015

Finished with February!

This week I finally crept out from under the bacterial infection that laid me low mid-month.  I'm still surprised by bouts of fatigue and the apparent need for afternoon naps every other day...but having received feed-back from EB on my "At the Feeder" submissions, I was bound and determined to finish that piece off before the next assignment -- which arrives tomorrow!

Believe it or not, EB liked this one:
This one, please

or

This one...
The Original, please

and the original one (above) -- complete with Offending Bird! -- better than she liked the one that you, Gentle Readers, found so whimsical and charming.  

She wrote:

I think I like the bottom one - not because of the Ugly bird...I don't think he's ugly at all!!  Simply because the balance of shapes feels better...I'm not keen on the head only one that does feel a little strange...you could keep the top one and add a few tail feathers in that bottom right hand corner...the one that's leaving with a full belly!!  Are the heads and wing spans in proportion?  I'm sure you have quite different birds where you are...so I don't know...just check quickly on that though.
I love the flurry of movement..and you can always link shapes with seeds falling - you know what a mess  they make!!!  and if you have the level in the feeder - I see it hasn't disappeared!!! then I do think you might think about simple seed shapes in there.  the more I look...the more I enjoy this piece!!!  go for the top one, but add the bird leaving...and consider the seeds...you could just play with real seeds (Don't attach!!) just to see how they would look both in the container and falling...super idea!!!  I love the way this whole assignment has lead to such a variety of work.
So...I compromised.

I trimmed OB by almost 2" -- removing most of his portly out-of-proportion body but showing more than his head.

I bound the piece in black to give it further definition in space (rather than facing it so that it would 'float').

AND...I put in some birdseed...

At the Feeder  (C) 2015

At the Feeder - Detail 1


At the Feeder - Detail 2

(I couldn't figure out how to show a bird leaving...the tail feathers just seemed to me to look like bushes growing out of nowhere!)

I think the birdseed makes it.  It likely wouldn't win any prizes, but I can live with it.

What say you?

Linking up to Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday...Roll on March!

7 comments:

Cathy Tomm said...

Naps are good. Glad your feeling better. Love the little birds and the seeds falling.

Jenny K. Lyon said...

The addition of the seeds it brilliant and so charming! The whole piece has a whimsical, hand-drawn feel which I love. Great piece!

Judy Warner said...

Glad you are feeling better! I really like the addition of the seeds...it adds so much interest.

Can't wait to see what you create in March!

elle said...

ya know, as I was waiting for the images to fill I was liking that bottom one. Great insight and the added bits make it a keeper for sure. March WELL into this next month! :)

Kathie Briggs said...

I'm glad EB agreed with me that the offending bird was not particularly ugly :-). And I agree the addition of the seeds adds a lot. We know how messy the little darlings are. So glad you are feeling better.

Bethany Garner said...

Feel great about this one...it's a good composition, Margaret. I think well balanced by the size and angles of birds "in-flight hold" and individual placements(who else has done that?). The seeds do add dimension and a familiar aspect to your piece. Good fun really.
I agree that I would have liked to see one bird being chased away! That ALWAYS happens at my feeders.
Bethany

Susan J Barker said...

it amazes me how people find subjects to create in various formats! I watch the birdfeeder (with Walter the cat sitting on the arm of my chair) every single day, but I have never before considered capturing the image! Regardless of which is better, you have inspired me to look around a bit more!