The Bird Wall at the Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park and Zoo

I created an interactive mural at the Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park and Zoo. Here are images of the process and the completed work.

The project was sponsored by

                    

The finished product!  A Canada Goose for a big person, one for a little person, and a Peacock for everyone!

So, step 1 was boring, it was basic underpainting, so I had the unskilled labor do that.   I got the fun part, airbrushing!

This part was fun!  Got to show off my airbrushing skills!  Very tricky with the trees adding some special effects at the time. 

The last corner, still playing with the shadows, man, this is tricky. 

Done!  Oh sure, now the shadows of the tree are gone.  Typical. 

The artist and her latest canvas. 

The sky is ready, waiting for the birds!

It used to be a wall of windows to watch the monkeys before they built the new space.  Now, it's a wall of sky on the side of the temporary Komodo Dragon exhibit.  Last photo before the wings go on!

The zoo at night.  Putting up the pattern, thanks to some old but reliable technology.  We were pure entertainment for the wolves.  They were definitely not sure what we were doing, and kept an eye on us the whole time. 

Olivia Carlson and Jasmin Thomas starting to work on the tail feathers of the peacock, and yes this is finger painting.

Caution.  Wet paint.  Actually, not for long.  It was HOT out that day!

The Canada Goose, ready for lift off!

Underpainting the peacock.  Small Canada Goose in progress on the right!

Still underpainting.  So many feathers!

First try!  Ready for takeoff.

 Jude Farthing working on the entrance sign to the Komodo Dragons.

Olivia putting on some finer details.

Final touches.  Master at work.  Small Canada Goose was finished without any photo evidence of who painted it.  I did both  large and small Geese wings while the peacock underpainting was going on, so no one was available to take the photo.

The peacock is done!

Jasmin trying out the large Canada Goose.

And now the small one.  Sorry, Jasmin, doesn't fit you anymore.

Now that fits perfectly. 

The Bird Wall

Jude signing his name to his work. 

He finally got to paint a Komodo Dragon's head!  Jude worked on the cut out Komodo Dragons that are at the zoo, and he was disappointed when we painted those, because he didn't get to do the head part.  Now he did!

The large Goose wings fit a teenager. 

Varnishing the finished product.

 

Another Ta Da moment. 

Perfect fit.  Thanks, random stranger, for lending us your child in the middle for the photo for a moment.