John Rainbird Art

Bringing the beauty and majesty of nature

into your living room

ABOUT ME

Hi - welcome and thank you for the visit. Firstly the name - yes it is my real name and not just one I made up to look hip, but I am very grateful I inherited this particular surname. My friends just call me JR.

I was born and raised on the most incredible continent of all, Africa. I grew up in South Africa and studied Zoology and Conservation Biology at the University of Cape Town, a fine sandstone university nestled in the shadow of Table Mountain.

As for many people, nature is a constant source of inspiration and sanity for me in this troubling time in human history as we continue to witness the industrial scale assault on the natural world, despite knowing better.

I hope that by continuing to remind people of the beauty and majesty of the natural world, we can start to turn the tide of destruction to a tsunami of care and restoration.

I now live in Cairns in far north Queensland, Australia, nestled between the Wet Tropics World Heritage rainforests and the Great Barrier Reef. When I'm not doing my own art, I also teach art and also run my own Life Coaching business.

I am a largely a self-taught artist inspired by the great wildlife artists of our time, including Ray Harris-Ching, Robert Bateman, and William (Bill) Cooper, who I was extremely fortunate to be able to call a friend.

Art is an ongoing learning experience, and it forces you to know your subject in great detail, which is part of the joy of wildlife and natural history art.

I've worked in most mediums and enjoy them all, in particular oils for their depth and flexibility and pencils for their naked simplicity.

I try to combine the discipline of a scientist with the creativity of an artist whilst aspiring to convey the essence and majesty of my subjects.

Please feel free to get in touch with any questions, comments or just to say hi.

Best wishes

GALLERY

Quality stretched canvas ready to hang or Original Art (unframed unless specified)

Prices below are for prints and include freight within Australia.

If you wish to purchase any prints from the gallery please select it in the Shop page. If you wish to purchase any original pieces please contact me directly.

African Wildlife Series in Graphite and Pen and Ink

I love the simplicity and purity of graphite. I am a keen photographer so where possible I work from my own reference images. The wildlife in this series is based largely on animals I photograhed in Botswana.

Moremi Bull. Available as Prints. 70 x 100 cm) $320

This bull was enjoying a cool bath is a waterhole in the Moremi National Park. The elephants in Botswana tend not to carry the really big tusks like east African elephants due to the differences in available nutrients due the diffrerent soils.

Burchells Zebra Available as Prints. (90 x 60 cm) $270

Zebras are always one of my favourite amimals to see on safari despite being relatively common. In this drawing I wanted to convey the texture of their very fine coats. This stallion is keeping a vigilant eye out for trouble as other members of the herd graze quietly in the background.

Who's the Boss? Original and Prints available. (100 x 70 cm) #320

The African or Cape Buffalo is a formidable animal. It's good advice to tread wearily when you come across a herd of these powerful beasts. I really enjoyed capturing the range of textures on this thristy bull, from the variations in his fur, his ragged ears, to the gnarly boss where otherwise smooth horns meet, to this wet shiny nose and drenched chin hairs.

Leo Full Moon Rising . Original and Prints. (70 x 100 cm) $320

Lions have long been the animal that most stirs my emotions. As a very young child I used to have nightmares about coming across one in our garden outside of Johnannesburg. Watching the movie Born Free at the age of 6 transformed my view of lions and I have a deep love and respect for these amazing cats. In this drawing I wanted to show a big male in his more natural state of alertness at night. When a lion fixes you in it's gaze, its like being gripped by a lazer beam.

Prince of the Savuti Original and prints (50 x 40 cm) $ 180

This is a subadult male of the Marsh Pride who inhabit the Savuti Channel areas of north eastern Botswana. This young male was having a playful romp with one of the pride females before taking a rest to survery his domain.

Giraffe. Available as prints. (70 x 100 cm) $280

Despite looking like a odd collection of distored body parts, giraffes are the epitome of grace and elegance. Their big liquid eyes convey a calm determination. This female is gazing curiously towards some disturbance whilst other members of the herd begin to move off towards the treeline to find some forage.

Splash of the Titan Original and prints. (70 x 100 cm ) $320

A bull in musth thrashes the water with his powerful trunk whilst the herd gather on the waters edge to slake their thrist. Bull's in musth are typically narky and hyped up on hormones, their temporal glands discharging a dark slick down the side of their head.

Tree Squirrel Original and Prints (40 x 60 cm) $140

The might black rhino - Pen and Ink Available as prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Elephants are intersting no matter what side you are looking at! Pen and Ink Available as prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Antelope's Nightmare - Pen and Ink Availabe as prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Hippo family - Pen and Ink Availabe as prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Australian Wildlife

Tree Hugger - Koala and joey Original and prints. Coloured Pencil on paper

Queen of the Mangroves - Barramundi and archer fish - Oils. Original (framed) and prints (100 x 70 cm) $320

Riding the Wave - Green Turtle - Coloured pencil on paper. Original and prints (40 x 60 cm) $160

Cassowary Coast Guache Original (framed) and prints (30 x 30 cm ) $75

Musky Rat Kangaroos - Available as prints (70 x 100 cm ) $ 320

Rocket frog and Northern Barred Frog Available as prints (30 x 45 cm) $120

Kapok Water colour and pencil. Available as prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Let the adventure begin - green turtle hatching. Acrylic on board. Original and prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Torresian Pigeo (Acrylic) - Available as prints (100 x 70 cm) $320

Octopus on reef (Oils) Available as prints (40 x 60 cm) $160

Noisy Pitta (watercolour) Available as prints (30 x 45 cm ) $120

Dragon (Gauche) No longer available.

Double-eyed Fig Parrots (Egg tempura) No longer available

Koala - Pencil Available as prints (40 x 60 cm) $160

Wandering Whistling duck - Pencil- Original (framed)

Acacia pod and seeds study (watercolour) No longer available

Cassowary study (watercolour) No longer available

Miscellaneous

Bicheno (Oils on board) Original and prints (100 x 75 cm) $320

Oriental small-clawed otter - Oils. Original and prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Basket of summer pumpkins - Oils Prints available (40 x 50cm ) $140

Hanuman langur - Pen and Ink Available as prints (40 x 50 cm) $140

Meerkat family - Oils - no longer available

FAQS

Framed or unframed?

Prints are sold as stretch canvas that is ready to hang. Originals and commissions are generally sold unframed unless specified.

Art classes: What art materials do I need to have?

This depends on what medium you wish to work in. I'll give you a list of basic's you would need depending on your medium of choice.

Do you do commissions?

Yes I do take on commissions. Get in contact and we can discuss what it is you are looking for :)