A remarkable National Geographic Magazine project started when Kathie and I began working with Professors Bert Hölldobler and E.O. Wilson of Harvard University's Museum of Comparative Zoology. Besides Hölldobler and Wilson's world class knowledge and experience, we were provided with unlimited resource materials and actual ant specimens. Back in the studio, with the help of a microscope, I did hundreds of detailed reference sketches of the ants and made copious notes. After six months of studying and educating myself on the world of ants, I was ready to begin the preliminary sketch ideas. Below are a few of the fifty or more advanced studies that were completed before the brush even actually touched paper.
|