Birdfair mural 2010 - Ethiopia's Endemic birds

Each year the birdfair raises money for a particular conservation project focused on birds - with a mural being painted by the artists exhibiting at the event used to promote the cause in whatever area of the world it may be.

This year's focus was the threatened endemic birds of Ethiopia, and John Cox (as he has for many years) produced a design for the canvas. John usually also has been instrumental in painting the background of the mural ready for the rest of us to add our particular bird or birds to the background but having done it for so long, this year the job was passed to myself, alongside Szabolcs Kokay and Stefan Boensch.

To give us a head start, I produced the basic colour design for the mural, which was blocked in by volunteers before our arrival, which made the job of adding all the different bits of vegetation much easier, without having to start with a huge blank canvas. Thanks people!


Design for the mural, above



My simplified version showing rough background colours for various habitats within the mural, from highlands (left) to flat desert/savanna furthest right.