Woodcock: Colin Woolf - Wildlife Paintings
Woodcock
Woodcock Pin-feather Painting
My specially-made feather 'brush'. I have two - one made from silver and ebony, and |
The woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) is one of Britain's most enigmatic and elusive game birds. Since medieval times a wealth of country folklore has endowed it with an aura of mystery and magic - a reputation echoed by the cryptic camouflage pattern of its plumage and its sudden appearance on flickering wings during the twilight hours of dawn or dusk. Some woodcock remain in Britain throughout the year, and in summer the male's curious 'roding' display flight can often be seen just before nightfall. Masses of migrant woodcock arrive in the autumn, when a cold, clear night with a full moon often brings a silent 'fall' of woodcock on open expanses of moorland and pasture.
A 'cock flicks up out of cover and is soon away on surprisingly large, almost owl-like wings |
I was first attracted to the challenge of painting with a woodcock pin-feather about 15 years ago, when I was told about the technique by a gamekeeper. In the 19th century, miniaturists used woodcock pin-feathers to paint portraits on ivory. The tiny pin-feather comes from the leading edge of a woodcock's wing. Only two such feathers occur on each bird (one on each wing). It took a lot of patience to learn the technique, as a pin-feather is not an ideal substitute for a brush! Having mastered the skill, I'm sometimes known as 'the artist who paints with a feather'. Before beginning a painting I have to sort all my pin-feathers and carefully grade them. I discard hundreds, and the chosen one may be the only usable specimen in a collection of 200. This will then have to be treated and mounted in my specially-designed holder before I can use it for painting. At the bottom of the page are several photos showing variations in feathers, and more information. |  |
The white, pointed tip of a woodcock's pin-feather can just be seen on the The picture below shows a recent painting in progress
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As an instrument for painting, a pin-feather is far from ideal, holding very little paint, resisting water and wearing down quickly at the tip. Despite these drawbacks, and after much trial and error, I've developed a successful technique. I insist on only using ONE single feather for each painting, and after completion the pin-feather used for that picture is inserted into the watercolour paper - a finishing touch which adds to the uniqueness of the picture. In all the years that I have been painting with a feather, I have only rarely managed to achieve a 'right and left' - that is, a matched pair of paintings using BOTH feathers from the same bird (one from each wing). The reason it so rarely works is that each feather is unique in ability, and quite often the second feather will break or be too flimsy to produce a painting. Understandably, a matched pair of paintings painted in this way commands a much higher price than two single paintings. |
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An example of a complete painting, painted with a woodcock's pin-feather. The actual feather used to paint this woodcock is slipped into the paper just next to my signature at the bottom right of the image |
This image is roughly twice the size that I painted it, showing just how much detail you can achieve with a pin-feather |
My most famous pin-feather painting was painted with a 150-year-old feather, kindly given to me from the collection of Lady Letitia Louisa Kerr. This painting was auctioned at the Mall Galleries in London in 1999, and is now available as a print.
Woodcock pin-feather originals are highly sought-after by game shooters and fine art collectors the world over. If you'd like to commission your own unique pin-feather painting (the background can be of your own countryside), maybe using some feathers that you already have or even a pair from the same bird, I'd be delighted to discuss it further with you.
A selection of pin-feathers form my large collection, showing the amazing variation in size, shape, colour and pattern. I have feathers from Europe and several different counties in Britain from Scotland to Cornwall. Size in particular varies enormously, the smallest being 23 mm long and the largest being 37 mm long.
These ones below are pin-feathers from SNIPE
I had hoped that there would be some recognisable difference between the regions. But there doesn't seem to be, and the variations within a sample from any county are so wide that a huge number of feathers from each area would be needed in order to arrive at a result. My first study suggests that Portugal and Scotland show the widest range of variation, but more feathers are needed; interestingly a small sample form Somerset shows a very russet colour bias. If you have any feathers sitting in a drawer and wish them to be used in this way, then there is a chance that you may get an original sketch by Colin in return (assuming that the collection is of reasonable size). I am particularly interested in receiving feathers from other countries, and from the east of Britain. I have another 12 photos showing more variations and will get around to posting them up on the site at some stage.
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Contact Details:
Colin Woolf Wildlife Paintings
Ardbeg, 2 Blairhill View,
Blackridge, West Lothian, EH48 3TR
Tel: +44 (0) 1501 751796
Email: colin@wildart.co.uk