How to Draw British Wildlife

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WILDLIFE Mark Bergin An Art School in a Book

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HOW TO DRAW

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BRITISH WILDLIFE Mark Bergin BOOK

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Published in Great Britain in MMXVI by Book House, an imprint of The Salariya Book Company Ltd 25 Marlborough Place, Brighton BN1 1UB www.salariya.com ISBN: 978-1-913971-02-1

© The Salariya Book Company Ltd MMXXVI All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

35798642 A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Printed and bound in Malta.

Reprinted in MMXXI This book is sold subject to the conditions that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form or binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

Author: Mark Bergin studied at Eastbourne College of Art and specialises in wildlife, historical reconstructions, aviation and maritime subjects. In 2020, he served as the technical judge on the Daily Mail Weekend Magazine’s Britain in Spring painting competition, alongside head judge Andrew Marr and fellow judges Jane Seymour, Anneka Rice and Philip Mould.

Editor: Nick

Pierce Visit

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C4 on tent s Making a start 6 8 1O 12 14 16 18 2O 22 24 26 28 3O 32

Materials Basic construction How to use photos Pheasant and duck Badger Stag beetle and red admiral Fox Tawny owl Red squirrel Fallow deer (stag) Frog and harvest mouse Mole and hedgehog Rabbit Glossary and index

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M aking a s t art

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earning to draw is about looking and seeing. Keep practising, carry a sketchbook to make quick drawings and get to know your subject.

Start by doodling and experimenting with shapes and patterns. There are many ways to draw and this book shows only some of them. Visit areas of natural beauty, and nature reserves. Look at other artists' drawings, but above all, find your own way.

Common poppies and a barnacle goose (above)

Acorns

Snowdrops Common starfish Quick sketches of herons

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Kestrel Rabbit and seagulls (top right)

Ladybird

Hawker dragonfly

Swallowtail butterfly

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Materials

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Stag beetle (Ink Silhouette)

nce you've chosen your subject, you need to decide what medium you'll use to depict it. Try using different types of drawing papers and materials. Experiment with charcoal, wax crayons and pastels. All pens, from felt-tips to ballpoints, will make interesting marks. Try drawing with pen and ink on wet paper.

Silhouette is a style of drawing that shows only a solid black shape, like a shadow.

Curlew (Pen and Ink line)

Lines drawn in ink cannot be erased, so keep your ink drawings sketchy and fluid.

Adding light and shade to a drawing with an ink pen can be tricky. Use solid ink for the very darkest areas and cross-hatching (straight lines criss-crossing each other) for ordinary dark tones. Use hatching (straight lines running parallel to each other) for midtones, and leave the white of the paper for the lightest areas.

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Felt-tip pens allow for the same versatility as a paint brush, letting you draw pictures with very fine or very strong lines.

Common seal (Felt-tip Pens)

Scottish Wild Cat (Pencil) Pencil drawings can include a vast amount of detail and tone. Try experimenting with different grades of pencil to get a range of light and shade effects in your drawing.

Remember, the best equipment and materials will not necessarily make the best drawing only practice will!

Dolphin (coloured pencils) Coloured pencils are incredibly soft and are easily smudged. Use fixative to protect the drawing.

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Basic construction

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oing lots of quick sketches will improve your observational skills and strengthen your understanding of shapes and proportions. This will give your wildlife drawings a much stronger sense of solidity and accuracy of construction. Take note of light sources - the direction of light will create light and dark areas that help to create form.

Kingfisher

Blue tit Small blue butterfly

Red stag

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Red campion

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Bat

Wasp

Ladybird Hobby (small falcon) Mouse

Great crested newt

House martin

Marigold

Pine marten Garden tiger moth

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