26 Open House

26  "Open House" 8x8 oil on board, copyright Laura Gable

I love the freedom of working with birds nests. The rattan and twigs structure makes for some fun movement and color. The addition of eggs, or in this case, the remnant of eggs, is always a pleasing addition which gives a sense of the feathered family that lived there. Having had a family of young robins in our backyard this year, makes this subject matter all the more appealing to me. They nested at the top of the pergola support which made a wonderful vantage point to view them from our back window. From fledgelings to juvenile, we watched them craning their neck, sometimes multiple times a day, as they sought out the ants, worms and blueberries they were continually fed. But eventually as all the healthy wildlife does, they stepped off one by one and flew off to other realms ... never to be seen again.