Alladale Project

BAS is currently completing an oil painting entitled "Monarch of Glen Alladale" which depicts a regal red deer stag in the grand setting of Glen Alladale. This painting will be published as a Fine Art Canvas Limited Edition, from which the proceeds will assist the conservation work being carried out at the Alladale Wilderness Lodge & Reserve in the Scottish Highlands. Alladale is the visionary work of Paul Lister, founder of the European Nature Trust, whose passion for conservation is pioneering such valuable work in Scotland and elsewhere in Europe.

The BBC are presently running a six part series on Monday evenings at 8pm entitled "The real Monarch of the Glen" on BBC2 Scotland (Sky Channel 990), the episodes are to be aired on BBC2 in August.

www.alladale.com; www.mikebirkhead.com

Echo Project

The Art of BAS is working with The Elephant Trust (Amboseli Trust for Elephants, www.elephantrust.org), having spent time with their researchers in Amboseli National Park, Kenya. Cynthia Moss is the world's foremost elephant expert and she works tirelessly in the field with her equally dedicated team. Echo is a well know matriarch of one of the Amboseli herds, she has become famous through several BBC documentaries over the years. Now in her senior years, Echo has been taken to heart by many and has given the researchers the most intimate portrayal of elephant behavior, welcoming them into the life of her herd.

Funds raised through the sales of BAS' Echo painting, "Echo of Amboseli", and Fine Art Canvas Limited Edition will directly aid The Elephant Trust (Amboseli Trust for Elephants) and their invaluable work amongst African elephants in particular. The African elephant, as with her Asian cousins, are experiencing unprecedented pressures from mankind and are suffering in many ways. Let's hope that the future is bright for these magnificent creatures, our largest land mammal, that has such a big hearted and gentle nature. The Echo painting and Fine Art Canvas Limited Editions are now available and we trust that the collectors support will greatly assist the work of The Elephant Trust (Amboseli Trust for Elephants).

There are new Conservation Projects soon to be undertaken by The Art of BAS, please review the Conservation Projects section on The Art of BAS website to read about them and join us in whatever way you are able to in supporting the plight of wildlife and nature around this fragile globe.

Art Course in October!

BAS and Su Lees will be holding a 3 day Art Course at Nature in Art, Gloucester, this coming October. Please contact Nature in Art (www.nature-in-art.org.uk tel:01452 731422) for further details and enroll as soon as possible since the Art Course is limited to twelve people. It'll be a very creative few days and we very much look forward to your company at this wonderful location.

Art Quote to Ponder!

Art is an aspect of God and there is only one God, but different people see Him in different ways. Though He is always the same He doesn't always look the same... (Emily Carr)

"Echo of Amboseli"

Very soon The Art of BAS will launch the Echo Project which will highlight the invaluable research work of the Amboseli Trust for Elephants. The research is lead by Cynthia Moss, the worlds foremost expert on elephants, and the research team are based in Amboseli National Park, Kenya. Echo is the name of the matriarch of one of Amboseli's elephant herds, she's a distinguished lady with several BBC documentaries to her name! BAS spent some time with the researchers in the field and the resulting painting "Echo of Amboseli", together with Fine Art Canvas Limited Editions, will be sold to raise funds for the vital work of the Amboseli Trust for Elephants.

Save the Tiger!

This is a photo of a Bengal Tiger that I was fortunate the see in Bandhavgarh National Park, India. It's not easy taking photo's when on the back of a nervous elephant!

The Bengal Tiger is amongst the most beautiful yet endangered of the worlds big cats. To see such an animal in the wild is truly an awe inspiring privilege and surely a treasure to be guarded for future generations. Many of India's National Parks and Tiger Reserves have now relinquished their tigers to poachers and loss of natural habitat, this represents a sad betrayal of the National treasure and it is an urgent need for the nation to act decisively to preserve the Bengal Tigers existence in the wild.

There are many dedicated people and organizations trying to save the tiger from extinction in the wild, they can always benefit from our support in whatever possible way we can lend them a hand - for the sake of the beautiful tiger!

What is an Artist Proof?

The above painting, "The Crossing", resulted from a wonderful research trip in Yellowstone National Park, USA. Yellowstone is an excellent location for North American big game and bison in particular are in healthy numbers within the Park. The painting comes from an area called Haydn Valley, where Yellowstone River winds gently through the landscape and the waters are shallow enough for wildlife to easily cross over to new pastures.

Here's another term within the world of Fine Art which often needs clarification:

An Artist Proof is a Fine Art reproduction intended for the artist's personal use. It is common practice to reserve approximately ten percent of an edition as artist's proofs, although this figure can be higher. The artist's proof is sometimes referred to by it's French épreuve d'artist (abbreviation E.A.). Artist's proofs can be distinguished by the abbreviation AP or E.A., commonly on the lower left of the work.

With modern printing, artists proofs are not better quality prints than the regular edition, however they are desirable to many serious collectors in that there are fewer signed in this way, making them even more valuable. Each Fine Art Artist Proof produced by The Art of BAS is personally signed and numbered by the artist.