Other States - Rajasthan   

At home with birds

Sunny Sebastian

Thenwell's sketch of a Kingfisher

JAIPUR: Making pencil a mighty tool of conservation is David Thelwell, celebrated nature illustrator from Hampshire, Britain. Thelwell, who has drawn thousands of wildlife forms for a variety of causes-- ranging from books for children to volumes on birds, to Christmas cards-- believes that illustrations give a personal touch to nature, compared to photographs.

Currently in India on a nature trail, along with wife Vivien and sister Penelope, he thinks that awareness on conservation has increased the world over but so are the problems. "When I was young conservation was nearly non-existent in England. Now a lot of people are interested in wildlife. They also like to buy illustrations of their favourite birds and animals," he observes.

Mr.Thelwell has to his credit many children's books and 96 illustrations on butterflies. His latest works are to be seen in the book, "The Herons" authored jointly by James A.Kushlan and James A.Hancock. "Drawing is my passion. Of course, I could survive on it as well," the soft-spoken artist, who is seemingly more at home with birds, confesses.

Though Mr. Thelwell, who took up illustration of flora and fauna as a full time job in 1989, is here for the first time he has an India connection. "My father, an Army official, was in India during the Second World War. I could never manage to get to this place before. Now I am really loving it," he says. His father also is a well- known illustrator in Europe.

The Thelwells would have really regretted their late arrival to India as within a week of their stay in Delhi and Jaipur David could spot and draw about a dozen new species of birds. It takes only 20 minutes for him to draw a bird in four different postures while watching it. "Some of the sketches go waste or remain incomplete as the object hops from one place to the other or files away. Then you start anew," he explains.

Mr. Thelwell carries pigments with him and if he gets a chance colours the plumage of the bird or the skin of an animal before he forgets the exact shade. " There is always the risk of one forgetting the exact colour of a bird's plumage. At times I follow the technique of numbering the portions of the object I have drawn. Once I get back to my room I carry out the colour scheme at leisure," he informs.

Mr. Thelwell, who toured Bharatpur, Agra, Bandhavgarh and Khajuraho while in India has by now filled many sketch books with wildlife and monuments including tigers of Bandavgarh, various bird species, the Qutab Minar and the Taj Mahal. He left the sketch of a White-throated Kingfisher— previously referred to as White breasted Kingfisher— for the readers of The Hindu with his friend and conservationist, Harsh Vardhan.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

At home with birds

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu