Acrylic on canvas, stretched and ready to hang.

Signed on the front.

This is my first painting of a Palm Cockatoo. I've been admiring them for some time now, and making sketches from photographs with plans to produce a giant work on canvas.

This bright acrylic painting features some of my signature tropical botanicals found growing wild in my neighbours' overgrown gardens (a recurring theme throughout my work).

My painting technique for this work is flat and hard edged, and takes on a screen print characteristic with the clean lines, however my intention is to also create a sense movement and energy within a flat painting without the use of form or perspective. I like using a dry brush technique with calligraphy brushes with visible strokes to create a flow and rhythm, as well as very intricate fine line work for contrast (on the feathers in this work). Please check out all the detailed shots to get a better sense of the work.

Palm cockatoos are large, charismatic and emblematic birds native to northern Australia and New Guinea who's population is sadly in steep decline due to large scale habitat loss from mining, changed fire regimes and low reproductive success.