Glimpse of Sea-life

Glimpse of Sea-life, handmade watercolours on Fabriano watercolour paper, 26 x 35 cm, 

© Matteo Grilli.

For this still-life of Australian shells and beach findings I drew inspiration form an old sketchbook dating back to my time in the Galway Bay, Ireland, see the top right-hand-side corner of the photo above.

It is amazing to find such a variety of creatures in just a handful of items. Using a nature guide book I could identify the remains of the following creatures:

Spengler's Triton
Hercules Club
Pipi
Tellens
Mactras (Truncate; Reddish and Dissimilar)
Cockles
Scallops
Reef Crab's chelae
Bell Acorn Barnacle
Brain Coral

This artwork is available as a greeting card. For this artwork I have used a selection of four of my own handmade watercolour paints. Talking about handmade paints, I just published a page on my blog which explains with photos the fascinating process of watercolour making, take a look HERE, I hope you will like it.

Thank you for reading.

All the best,

Matteo

New Book Release: Watercolour Explorations on Australian Wildlife Vol.1

I am very happy to announce the recent release of my self-published book Watercolour Explorations on Australian Wildlife Vol.1, 90 pages, 7 × 7 in / 18 × 18 cm, available in soft cover, hard cover with dust jacket or hard cover image wrap and as an eBook.

  'After witnessing the beauty of Nature, often rises a compelling need to capture its fleeting essence to make it visible once again, to linger on that beauty, giving it that little bit more permanence allowed by art. My ultimate goal was to draw the attention to that beauty and to share it. Watercolour explorations on Australian Wildlife is a tribute to nature. It is also a collection of watercolours and drawings completed between 2010 and 2013 in and around Brisbane, Australia.'

 Watercolour Explorations on Australian Wildlife Vol.1 would make a perfect gift for anyone interested in Australian wildlife and nature, birds, natural history, watercolour art, birdwatching or travel, for grown ups and children alike. By clicking on the link above you will be able to see a preview of the book. Feel free to share it with your contacts. 

Thank you. 

MG

Tides

Low Tide, watercolour on paper, 23x36cm, 2012 © Matteo Grilli

A stretch of coastline relatively untouched, hidden and primeval lies where the only audible sounds are those of the sea, the wind, the elements and the birds. Just like this for millennia, with the only exception for human voices, occasional and far. Now it is high tide, the sandy patch, the rocks and the pools of yesterday are now a vortex of currents, foam and huge pounding waves. Like all places between land and sea, change is here continuous and tangible.

The waves are relentless, despite the submerged cliffs they still are living and moving mountains of water which become a shattering white explosion overcoming everything. One after the other. There is something fascinating about waves, their relative slowness, languor and unpredictability, their motion and tenacity: irrepressible and necessary. The grace, beauty and power of the ocean's nature is accomplishing its task. 

I wonder where all yesterday's creatures are, the sea cucumbers, the shells, dead or alive, the plovers, the oystercatchers, the seagulls and the dolphins. All under cover, but then it is their home, they know its ways. Every now and then some seagull flies along the coastline southwards, just like the terns and a pair of oystercatchers. The noise of the waves is deafening and endless, but it induces a feeling of peace and soundness. Watching and listening to the mighty force of the ocean from a fair distance is both reassuring and comforting. For now the inhabitants of the coast will have to find their daily bread somewhere else, or wait for the tide to recede.

Woody Heads - NSW

Here is a selection of shell-related artworks from my shop.