First Light Bald Eagle by Kevin Johnson | Art Card
Sea Kayaking along Canada’s rugged West Coast can come with many spectacular rewards. During a gruelling paddle in Nootka Sound, filled with many days of relentless rain, my wife captured this beautiful morning on a beach of Bligh Island. An already peaceful, misty scene is painted with a warm glow as a golden ray of sunbeams through the clouds. I am a big fan of eagle watching and it seems it is often moments such as this that an eagle will casually happen past. With this piece I wanted to combine this calm, warm glow of the morning light on the coast, with the silent passage of the majestic eagle in search of its morning meal.
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ABOUT THE ARTIST
Originally from London, Ontario, Canada, Kevin’s boyhood pursuits included sports, the outdoors, and capturing his world in drawings and pictures. After graduating from high school, Kevin traveled the world with the Canadian Armed Forces. He touched down in many lands such as Italy, England, Africa, Cyprus, Pakistan, and Germany to name a few.
Throughout his life, Kevin has created art using many different mediums—oils, acrylics, watercolours, pastels, and graphite. While stationed at Canadian Forces Base Trenton, Ontario, Kevin ran a custom airbrushing business and taught airbrushing techniques through Loyalist College. An auspicious posting to CFB Comox, British Columbia brought together the perfect elements for Kevin’s developing skills: an emerging love of wildlife art and the natural rugged beauty of the West Coast. It is here where nature’s splendor has become the inspiration for many of his works of art. Being self-taught took many long hours sitting at his drawing board and has led to his newfound appreciation of this lifelong learning process. As a now dedicated pencil artist, Kevin has always loved the freedom, simplicity, and range of the pencil medium. He strives to create photorealistic detail in his pieces. This is accomplished in the total absence of colour by relying on the texture and tonal values of the subjects.
Retired from the Canadian Forces, Kevin now resides on beautiful Quadra Island, BC, located on the northeast coast of Vancouver Island, Canada. Being an avid photographer and kayaker, he now loves to travel with his wife Jo-Anne, gathering photo reference to be used in his work.
Kevin's artwork hangs in private collections across Canada, the USA, and the UK.
