The juvenile tawny frogmouth is central to the tapestry of handmade print collage images, creating a fanciful surround of leaves and flowers.  This piece, on wood panel, is multi-layered, with an initial abstract background.  Handmade prints on rice paper are applied in subsequent layers.  Transparent and semi-transparent colours are applied over the entire painting to create varying tones and shades.  
The entire piece is sanded in stages throughout the process in order to reveal more of the prints or even the initial background.  The feather details of the vigilant frogmouth are the final steps to create a suggestion of soft downy feather of a young bird, while still showing a hint of collage beneath.  Layering, medium transparency and the abstract print images represent the variety of colours and shapes in nature.   A leaf is not just green, but a multitude of textures and values, which are not always visible until one takes that close look, which this piece strives to accentuate.