A Preview of a New Exhibition

Sunflowers for an Exhibition

 

Here is a painting from a new exhibition which I be opening in a few weeks.

The Exhibition is called 'Get Back to the Garden' from Joni Mitchell's Woodstock

song.  I hope to show the importance of small urban gardens in providing food for

bees, butterflies and birds now that so many of their natural feeding grounds have been

lost to food production and building development. This is called 'Sunflowers'.

 

 

 

I grew these small lemon coloured ones this year they were some of the most

showy and successful.

 

Frances Jill Studd website

Midnight Collective

 

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016



Mid Winter Black Swans in New Zealand

A Brood of Black Swans in Mid-Winter

 

I took these photographs of a family of black swans on a small lake near where we live.

It is now mid Winter and four cygnets have hatched and survived.  I believe that

they have been helped in this by the locals who are feeding them, as soon as they

saw me they came gliding over.

 

 

One of the parents was keeping a careful watch.

 

 

Frances Jill Studd website

Midnight Collective Blog

 

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016

 

More Wild Flowers from New Zealand

 

Eglantine

Here is another painting made from a collection of wild flowers which I gathered on a

recent walk along the Wharemauku stream, I have called it Eglantine after the

wild rose which grows in the hedge behind our local airport.  I have also been surprised

at the number of weevils which seem to living on the spinach in our vegetable patch,

they are remarkable little creatures, so I have put some of those in as well.

 

 

 

The Guinea Fowl feather comes from Staglands a wildlife reserve which we visited

for our youngest Granddaughter's first birthday.  It was a real treat and the

girls just loved the animals, my favourites were the little brown pigs which

followed us around.

 

 

Here they are!

 

Frances Jill Studd website

Midnight Collective Blogspot

 

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016 Pigs courtesy of Staglands

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Wild Flowers from New Zealand

A Bouquet of Wild Flowers

 

My granddaughter picked a bouquet of flowers for me when she went for a walk

with her grandfather.  I have used some of her collection in this Autumny painting

along with some colourful leaves which seem to have fallen later this year.

Also included are some honesty pods and a stick insect.  We often see these

'hayseed' stick insects and came home the other day to find one on the front door.

 

 

 

Here is another spiney stick insect which I picked up off the footpath

this morning, it must have been blown out of a tree in the storm

we had last night.  This one would have been 8 -9cms long in

it's body  so quite a large one.

 

 

Frances Jill Studd website

Midnight Collective Blogspot

 

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016

 



Huka Falls, the Waikato River, New Zealand

Huka Falls

 

Here is a little film of the Huka Falls which we visited recently, it is the

most visited of the natural features in New Zealand.  This was believable as

even at nine o'clock in the morning buses were drawing in and many

different languages could be heard amongst the viewers.

The Huka Falls is in Wairakei Village just North of Taupo and is where

the Waikato River which drains Lake Taupo narrows to 15 metres through

granite rock.  32 - 270 cubic metres of water per second pass through the

narrow gorge

 

Frances Jill Studd website

Midnight Collective blogspot

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016

The Last Rose, a Painting from New Zealand

The Last Rose

 

This is my latest painting from the garden as Autumn settles in.   It is warm

and muggy with the rain and the bees and butterflies are still busy

 

 

Among the leaves are many small beetles and ladybirds as we tidy up

for Winter.  This work will form part of my Wild Garden exhibition

not just a series of paintings on gardens but a look at the

importance of supporting our birds and insects within an urban

environment.

 

Midnight Collective

 

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016

 

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Painting Rudbeckia Daisies in a New Zealand Garden

 

Rudbeckia Daisies

This is a new painting of the Rudbeckia daisies in a nearby garden.  They are intermingled

with poppies and salvia and the bees seem to love them all.  We are almost into

Autumn now and the houheria or lace bark tree is flowering at the back of our garden,

 it is full of honey bees and from there they are coming into our vegetable patch to fertilize 

the pumpkins.  Along with the monarch butterflies they

are also visiting my pink cosmos and scarlet dahlias.

 

 

Wellington has had the hottest Summer on record so even with Autumn here

the days are warm and muggy.

A Monarch on the houheria tree

 

Midnight Collective Blog

 

All images copyright Frances Jill Studd 2016