In the studio with artist, photographer and instructor Robert Louis Caldwell

  “Dining al fresco” Yellow-billed Stork Graphite on 300# Arches watercolor paper, mounted to 1/2" maple panel and varnished 15 x 7 inches After drawing the Saddle-billed Stork and Marabou Stork, I decided to draw a third, creating a series of Stork drawings from Tanzania. I vaguely remember seeing some Yellow-billed Storks in 2016 while searching for Hippos in the Serengeti, and off I went to my reference database. Although you can not see it in my drawing, the apparent reason for the Yellow-billed Storks name is because of the bright yellow of the bill. While photographing these birds, still on the lookout for Hippos, we were looking upriver, which created this long vertical feeling in the landscape, dotted with this repeating oval shape of the Yellow-billed Stork. There must have been 30-40 of these birds walking the river banks looking for their lunch. They were so engaged in their hunt for food that it was rare for them to raise their head and make eye contact with me. Inspir...

“The Stand” Marabou Stork Graphite on 300# Arches watercolor paper, mounted to 1/2" maple panel and varnished 11 x 6 inches These are such odd birds, and some would say ugly; I find them disturbingly beautiful. With its bare head, hunched shoulders, and skinny bare legs, the Marabou Stork is often referred to as the Undertaker. Not only for the way it looks but also for its vital role in the ecosystem. They eat carrion and clean the land of dead animals. Although I will stop to photograph these birds anytime when I am in Africa; my 2016 safari-inspired this particular scene. I was in the Serengeti and up and about before sunrise, in the Land Cruiser slowly driving and scanning the early morning terrain for movement. The sun was starting to hit the tops of the trees, and up ahead, I noticed a form in the top of a dead tree, a Marabou Stork. We stopped and sat back as the sun illuminated the top of the tree and brought the Undertaker into full view. That scene, for some odd reason, ...

  “Frog Legs” Saddle-billed Stork Graphite on 300# Arches watercolor paper, mounted to 1/2" maple panel and varnished 9 x 14 inches “Frog Legs” is the first drawing I drew in my Stork series, a Saddle-billed Stork. It is a beautiful bird to watch in the wild they seem sleek but comical with their movements on those long lanky legs. They have a bright red bill with a black band and a yellow frontal shield which looks like a saddle. As for most people, 2020 was a challenging year; for me, to put it simply, it was a loss of a business that I had been building for the last six years. I found myself in June 2020 realizing that my art school was most likely not going to survive the pandemic, and I spent the rest of the year working through the process of closing a business. During this time, I did not paint or draw except for instructional purposes for those students who followed me to online instruction.  In January 2021, I found myself able to focus on my art again. I decided to s...

I have been asked many times about private instruction, and I am happy to announce that I have just created a private coaching program on the studio website. The Private Coaching allows artists/students to check in with me either 2, 4, or 6 times a month at a time that works within their schedule. The program is for artists/students working on their own projects and simply seeking guidance with their current projects. Questions may be asked about composition, color theory, reference materials, techniques, framing, basically anything to help you with your artistic endeavors. Visit the Private Coaching web page to read more about my new Private Coaching Progam , pricing, and submission form.