Peter Burke: London, Ontario Wildlife Artist

I am sometimes asked about the process of creating a plate for a field guide. First I accumulate as much material as I can, in the form of specimens (usually from Museums), photographs and field notes/sketches. I obtain measurements of each species on the plate so that their scale can be related properly to one another. A rough sketch of the plate is then made, getting an idea of composition and order of species so that the plate reads as clearly as I can make it. Once this is done, I can draw the individual poses on separate pieces of paper. These are then shared with the author I am working with for accuracy. I usually work at twice or two and a half times finished book size so I then make copies of my drawings at a slightly smaller scale to fit this size. Once the layout is arranged I can add ideas of background washes or foliage/landscapes. This mockup is then transferred over to a stretched piece of watercolor paper with tracing paper. The plate is then ready to be painted to completion.