The Elasmosaurus comes along nicely, and making a clay model was a swell idea. I’ve taken dozens of photos from various angles of the body and head, drawn them up and combined them in Photoshop. I dropped them into the wall layout for the museum exhibit and by golly, they work. I’ve sent them off for approval tonight. Hopefully, I’ll get started on the painting by the end of the week. This will be a big one!
Speaking of models, this was the technique employed by the great Charles Knight, dinosaur painter extraordinaire for the American Museum of Natural History. Interesting story here: The Sam Noble Museum of Natural History actually has a clay stegasaurus model he made for an illustration for National Geographic. A few years ago the museum built a beautiful new facility and everything was moved from the old grounds to the new, including a genuine, tumble-down pioneer log cabin built over a century ago. When they were moving it someone thought to look inside and lo and behold, sitting in the trash and rubble inside was the model, still intact. Now it has a glass case and place of honor in the new museum. An inspiration!
Drawing The Motmot 
Yes yes love these drawings. This is a project to drool over, but you realize, don’t you, that it is not for the faint of heart. How many of us construct models and draw from them? I stopped long ago. Taking the lazy way out. My hat’s off to you, adventuresome one. This is how you get lively drawings.
Well, I’m flippin’ over the Australian sketches, esp. the helmeted friarbird. Your line is amazing. The kookaburras are fabulous. They’re ALL great. Somehow looking at your sketches I understand so much more about these odd birds than I could, looking at a photo. I think it’s because I can see how they’re built in your sketches. Bravo!