This painting was done for the conbook cover for MFF 2012! I can finally share it.

On the con book, it is flipped, so that the TV would be on the front cover instead of the back.

The convention theme was "It came from TV". I don't watch TV, really, so it was hard for me to figure out what I could use, but it came to me-- why not put one of my favorite programs on it, but with a twist?

HENCE... a group of birds watching The Life of Birds as narrated/hosted by SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH. Sir David is an amazing man and if you've ever watched a nature documentary you probably have seen him or at least heard his voice. I hesitantly suggest that he's done more for wildlife awareness and enthusiasm than nearly anyone else, ever. Even if you disagree, you must admit he's AMAZING.

If you have not watched The Life of Birds, and you are a bird fan, THERE IS NO EXCUSE! The DVDs are a wonderful purchase, and if you are poor like me, you can watch legal copies of them for free as uploaded to Youtube by the BBC itself: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ELaYy3a60ZYJo&feature=plcp

OKAY now then, as for the species, I had a very hard time choosing.

DISCLAIMER:

1. Yes it is likely that I somehow neglected to choose your favorite species. Truly, if I were godlike, I would have somehow placed all 10,000 (approx) species of bird in this painting, but as it was I sort of overdid it and worked myself into exhaustion. I appreciate your enthusiasm (quite honestly! I love every bird!), but I will politely ignore "it should have had this kind of bird!" comments with as much ignoring power as I can personally muster.

2. These birds would never be found together in real life, and would be eating one another, and some of them don't even perch in trees. Also they are watching TV.

Many species were chosen because they make appearances in The Life of Birds, a few were chosen because they are my pets and damnit, I wanted to paint my birds, and a few were chosen JUST BECAUSE. I tried to stay away from overly complex, patterned plumage just because I was trying to get this painting done this year...

Shown here, from left to right:

White-Breasted Nuthatch

Keel-Billed Toucan

Acorn Woodpecker

Sappho Comet Hummingbird

Cockatiel (Das! )

Rhinoceros Hornbill

Hoopoe

Lyrebird (Easter Egg: the scene on the TV is the Lyrebird scene)

Bronze-Winged Pionus (this is my parrot, Khu!)

Blue-Bellied Roller

Barn Swallows

White-Throated Sparrow

Faverolles Chicken (Derperella!)

Olive-Backed Sunbird

Snowy Owl

Black-Crowned Night Heron

Wood Duck

Superb Fairy Wren

Blue-Footed Booby

Calf Bird

Golden Eagle

Swallow-Tailed Gull

Digital Painting, with photos from myself, creative commons, and my brain used as reference to check my details and anatomy against. Special thanks for the creative commons references of the birds I could not take photos of myself goes to: lip Kee (flickr), pestana (flickr), putneymark (flickr), and antogros (flickr)!