How long does it take to complete a painting?

35 years!  35 years of training and study, observations, and trial and error on techniques.  Actually, it takes a different amount of time for each painting depending on subject, size, and complexity.  Large paintings will take several months.  Medium paintings take approximately one month.  Miniatures take approximately one week.  Although, a complex piece such as Garden Jewels, which has 23 hummingbirds in it, took four months to complete.

My images appear on a variety of different products such as rugs, collectors plates, greeting and Christmas cards, playing cards, puzzles, jewelry boxes, night lights, sun catchers, T-shirts, sweatshirts, and accent chest of drawers.

Most of them result in ideas sparked from scenes I've observed while traveling.  I usually take a minimum of 500 new photo references every year.  Much of my backyard has been planned and planted to attract many of my favorite bird and small mammal subjects.

The majority of my painting are started with an acrylic underpainting, overlayed with oil paints.  The 3-D effect I receive in the paintings are achieved with many thin layers of paint.

When I'm getting ready for exhibitions, I usually paint 8 to 12 hours a day.  Usually 6 to 7 days a week.  During the holidays and gardening season I slow down a bit.

In Summer, Spring, and Fall, males and females are often seen together.  I depict this in my paintings.  The brown bird is usually the female.  She's colored this way to blend into her surrounding and protect her young.

On landscapes, I always start with the sky to set the mood and color of light for the painting.  Then I proceed into the background, middle-ground, and foreground.  No details are painted in the first stages of the painting. 
When animals and birds are depicted in a painting, a black and white map of highlights, shadows, and middle-tones are created first.  The eyes are done next.  Then I start on the background and work towards the foreground.

After the reference photos have been reviewed, thumbnail sketches are drawn.  During the thumbnails sketches, composition, painting shape, and subject placement are explored.  One design is selected, and further work is done to refine the sketch.  the final drawing is put onto the canvas in pencil.  A painting is started from here.  The actual painting is the final step.