“Grounded in Tradition”
This is my newest painting, the second largest I've completed, using oil on gessoed Masonite board. The image measures 22 X 36 inches.
This particular painting features three Eastern wild turkeys, displaying. My inspiration was derived from one of many turkey hunts where I witnessed three Tom turkeys strutting on the edge of a small wooded area far in the distance. Often times I see wildlife (like those turkeys), and I think about how great it would be if I could disguise myself as one of them. How incredible it would be to enter their world, having the amazing ability to walk up to those displaying wild turkeys without scaring them. When creating my art, I find myself trying to find the true essence of the species I’m about to portray. Unfortunately, wildlife is just that, wild …and there is no easy way to create the artwork I’m doing. Through my images I try to give every observer the opportunity to experience what I can only imagine it would be like to come face to face with these outstanding animals.
As with most of my paintings, my goal for this piece is to create a realistic, personal moment for the viewer. I want the viewer to feel as though these turkeys are looking at, and actually displaying to them, as if they were disguised as a hen wild turkey …therefore creating the feeling of interaction within their world as opposed to just being a spectator to a flock of turkeys. This interaction is what I'm hoping will make this painting unique compared to other turkey paintings. The bird on the right is the dominant of the three and is walking out toward the viewer …enhancing the connection and eye contact. In addition to the turkeys, there are many other things to hold the viewers attention and to make this a more interesting image. If you look close, there are many different species of plants, deer tracks, and an arrowhead (front and center) in the dirt.
-- Technically, the arrowhead is a bifurcate and was never used for hunting turkeys but that had nothing to do with my intentions for including it. --
The one I added to the painting was actually found by my father in a patch of woods where I grew up hunting, so there is some special meaning there to me. My reason for adding it speaks to the fact that when we hunt, we are taking part in a tradition that has carried on for countless generations. In the same manner that turkeys have their traditional strutting grounds, mankind seems to have our traditional hunting grounds. (So the title has a bit of a double meaning) Despite what we are hunting, we take part in a heritage that so many dismiss or take for granted. In a world where many people are trying to put a stop to hunting (because of cultural changes, and lack of understanding). I believe that it is imperative to never take for granted any right that we have. For when we hunt, we are not only taking part in something we love, but we are carrying on a right that is Grounded in Tradition.