Vertigo, 11x14"

My newest painting is inspired by the trip I took to the Pribilof Islands about three years ago. Use the search engine on this blog to read about that trip. Type, 'The Remote Pribilofs' to start with the first post.

It was cold, windy, foggy, and rainy nearly the entire time that we were there. Cozying up to the slippery edge of the cliffs to photograph nesting seabirds certainly gave me a sense of vertigo.

The species of bird that is the subject of my latest painting is the cute but obscure, Parakeet Auklet.

Parakeet Auklets are probably the most widespread and common species of Auklet in the Pacific Northwest. They are not shy on the nesting cliffs.

Since they were such cooperative subjects I shot many photographs of them.

Parakeet Auklets were far more numerous on the Pribilofs than their close cousins the Crested Auklets.

However they were not nearly as numerous as the Murres. These Thick-billed Murres keep company with a single Parakeet Auklet. Thick-billed Murres are known as Brunnich's Guillemots in the Old World.

I chose this fat Auklet as one of my subjects for the painting.

This was also one of my subjects.

My version of the fat Auklet. I removed the tiny rain droplets that I initially painted. They did not look right.

Another detail shot.

The entire painting, Vertigo, 11x14". It is the first, and almost certainly the only Parakeet Auklet painting that I am likely to do. Although I like the painting just fine. I believe that the nondescript subject matter will make it very difficult to sell.

It did inspire me to start a related painting, (Tufted Puffin) also from my Pribilof trip.