Acrylic Paint on paper

Signed on the front.

The Green Rosella is endemic to Tasmania and the Bass Strait islands. It is the largest species of the rosella genus.
Found in a wide range of habitats with some form of tree cover, the green rosella is predominantly herbivorous, consuming seeds, berries, nuts and fruit, as well as flowers, but may also eat insect larvae and insects.

My current work seeks to accurately portray ornithological subjects using vintage book pages as both the inspiration and substrate onto which the birds are depicted. While the birds are depicted in a realistic manner the work retains a painterly quality with a combination of fine detail and evident brushwork.
The use of vintage book pages as the substrate brings an underlying story to the piece through the history of the books themselves which is often evident in the imperfect nature of the paper with blemishes, marks and creases.
My technique involves painting in thin layers building up the form with layered feather details. At times some of the text may show through the paint in an almost shadowy way that binds the bird to the page but also contributes to the underlying feather details.
While the birds in some works can have an easily identifiable, even a direct link to the page content (as an example depicting a bird using the identification page from a field guide) others can have more discrete and even an intangible relationship to the page contents.
The works are created in acrylic.
A literal relationship between the bird depicted and the page utilizing the page with the description of the bird from the iconic and classic field guide of Australian birds by Cayley.
Using a page from a field guide pays homage to the history of field guides and their use by birders whether professional or hobbyist. The use of field guides as a substrate for the piece also references the work of artists in the past who made field guides a work of art in themselves.