Last year, I resolved to get really good at drawing pigeons (piggins) by drawing one a day for a year. This proved to be a Herculean task, and although I feel like I got pretty good at piggins, I misjudged the fact that I should have been finishing my PhD and moving house too.

This year (in the only extension they’ll give me) I *will* finish writing and submit my thesis.

I will also attempt a few piggins. Maybe.

#YearOfPigeons

Day 94 - my eyes are floating. Squillions of stitches with one or two strands from an embroidery thread, and yes I know I need to move it forwards a bit in the hoop. I need to stop seeing in miniature first. Took nearly 2 hours. 2p for scale.

#YearOfPigeons #birds

Day 91 - I am still trying cyanotypes. It’s overcast today so the exposure time is completely different to yesterday’s bright sunshine. Then again, I quite like the lucky dip aspect of making these. I actually love the pre-washing stage (right) but it is ephemeral.

#YearOfPigeons #birds

Day 89 - cyanotype piggin! I mixed ferric ammonium citrate and potassium ferricyanide and painted it on watercolour paper. It makes a yellow paper. Then a piggin on glass, glass on paper, outside for about 3 minutes and the yellow goes through green to bronze. Wash off the remaining solution and ta da! Blueprint piggin.

#YearofPigeons #birds

Day 81 - finished the knitted piggin. It wanted to go outside.

#YearOfPigeons #birds

Day 80 - I am not sure I got the perspective right, but it’s a foray into how watercolours will behave when trying to do piggin necks. I will have to experiment more. I drew the outline in pen first so there was no opportunity to make its piggin bum longer.

#YearOfPigeons #birds

Day 79 - another tiny canvas, another piggin head. I feel like I’m focusing a lot of getting piggin faces right, but hopefully I’ll move on to whole piggins at some point. Acrylic on canvas.

#YearOfPigeons #birds

Day 78 (Day 22 Payback Piggin)

I’ve been looking up fancy breeds of piggin. This one is called a Budapest pigeon. It has a very smol head. Also, I have a few days I didn’t piggin so Payback Piggins will be happening for a little while too! (Watercolour and fine liner pen)

#YearOfPigeons #birds