BA003 – Sir David

 Sir David Attenborough – the people’s hero. A Great British icon. 

I have been looking at this mans face since being a little girl andwatching nature programmes on tv like a religion. 

In later life I have been lucky enough to tread in just a few of hisfootsteps, visiting Turtle Island in Borneo where the iconic scene ofhatching baby turtles was filmed, and many years later working onBorneo with orangutans.Behind this enormous portrait of Sir David – there is a painting of anorangutan mother and baby. The work never lived up to my expectations- the photos I had taken being far more successful, and so I decided torework the canvas. 

You can see layers of jungle foliage behind the pale tinted background,and if held up to the light an orangutan eye will peer at you through SirDavid’s forehead. A very fitting metaphor for the man who has dedicatedhis life to raising awareness of the plight of endangered species. 

He holds a tree frog. They are the tiniest most beautiful of frogs and toheighten our awareness of this tiny beast I left Sir David in monotone. 

I actually was very happy with the underpainting and was concerned thatoverworking in colour may detract from the message.The original painting was worked over in a ground of whites and yellows.Sketched up/underpainted in monotone, a warmth added to the handsand the frog in the brightest green I could find 

Tags: Original,Canvas

Acrylic on canvas 100 x 100