How to Paint a Bird with Gouache

The joy of bird watching is unparalleled. It is a chance to immerse oneself in the serenity of natural landscapes while observing the beauty of the little winged creatures. It is a delicate art, scanning the landscape with slow, subtle movements so as to not disturb the natural habitat and also eagerly anticipating to catch a glimpse of the plethora of birds that live in them.

The blue bird is one of the most enchanting sights of bird watching. It’s vibrant blue wings, complimented by its fiery orange chest, glistens in the sunlight like a jewel and brightens even a leafless tree branch. It’s graceful movements and sweet melody leaves a lasting impression in the heart of its observers, leaving them in awe of the boundless beauty of nature.

Bring all such beautiful impressions in your mind to life with Menorah sketchbooks. Menorah’s watercolour Sketchbook is the perfect canvas for your artistic endeavours. It is 300 GSM thick and made of 100% cotton. These watercolor papers offer the ability to achieve fine details even with multiple layers of watercolour and give a smooth flow while painting. They are ideal for watercolours, Acrylics, Gouache, Tempera and poster colours.

 

Here are the steps to recreate this gouache painting by @juiartserenity

 

Bird

1. Make an outline of the drawing on the 300 GSM sketchbook

 2. For the vibrant blue shade on the bird’s head and tail, mix violet gouache with white

 

 3. Time to paint the body of the bird. Use orange gouache to paint the first layer on the sketchbook. Mix orange with yellow and use it as the next layer and yellow as the last layer of the watercolor sketchbook. Blend them all together to get a gradient. Use red colour to highlight and enhance its bright coloured feathers.

 4. Use a size zero paint brush and paint with small lines to get a feathery texture

 

 5. Draw the eye, beak and claws with a mixture of black and brown gouache

 

Tree branch

1. Paint the tree branch on the 300 GSM watercolor sketchbook with golden yellow colour

 

2. Highlight with brown to make it more realistic

 

Backdrop

 

1.. Paint the green backdrop of nature on the 300 GSM Watercolor paper by mixing parrot green gouache with water. This process will give a smooth flow while painting as well as ensure that the gouache paint does not dry up too quickly

 The 300GSM paper absorbs both the paint and water without warping and helps to layer to get the desired result.

 

2. Next step is to draw leaves on 300 GSM sketchbook with the parrot green paint but without adding any water

 

3. As the final step, highlight the foliage with green coloured gouache

 

With that, we’re finished! Behold an easy gouache painting on the watercolor sketchbook 300 GSM that is cute as well as colourful.

 

Painting a bird is more than just a chance to hone artistic skills, it is also an opportunity to learn, observe and appreciate nature and the other lives around us. Capture and celebrate these beautiful creatures with Menorah sketchbooks.