Sketches at the Animalarium

The Animalarium is a small private zoo at Borth, Ceredigion, Mid-Wales. It was originally set up as a rescue centre for unwanted exotic pets, the most impressive of which is Rajah the leopard. I din't draw him as he was constantly prowling on the top of his shelter and was nigh on impossible to observe for more than a few seconds.

The owners are passionate and informative and encourage you to get closer to the animals where practicable- I came away having handled corn snakes, monitor lizards and having had a 3 stone boa constrictor draped over me- all complete firsts!

There isn't much shelter on site and on the day I visited the weather was changeable, but I cruised round with sketchbook and attempted to draw the animals, occasionally aided by my husband tempting them with tidbits from the feeding pots to get them near to where I stood.

I started with the goats, however they were restless as they were waiting for their feed time. I managed a study of an older billy who was content to sit and chew the cud.

The pony stood fairly still although he eventually moved away, hence the forelegs not being very accurate. I did find that life class has helped me focus on getting an overall outline down fast to begin with.
The meerkat sentry was the best model, as he only really moved his head. I didn't get the mass of his lower body, though, as it was bulkier where his weight settled in his seated position.

The lynx was only too happy to stay put- I think it was the female as she was smaller. The sun came out and she was half drowsing.
The emu was a quick capture of shape as the male chased his offspring (emu dads are the childrearers) back to the far side of their enclosure, previously I'd not been able to see all of him. I think the legs should have been a little further forward.

I made a second less detailed study of the lynx to catch the way her limbs were sprawled out.

The wallabies were busy feeding in their shelter. I kept to a simple line and I think it worked better than trying to put any tone in- the line shows their dynamic shapes better. The rhea (ostrich-like bird) was seen at a distance, when I went closer to photograph him he tucked his head under his body and resembled a giant fluffy toadstool on two legs!

The lemur was really only interested in being fed grapes. His brother had the same idea so it was difficult to settle him for any time between skirmishes. I managed to catch his wide-eyed "spectacles" okay, and was pleased when I later compared it to the photos I had taken.

The hornbill kept moving his head from side to side, athough from the angle I was looking at him from I could continue to draw by referencing the mirror image. I couldn't see his feet or lower body as he was sat among foliage at the time- I did get a couple of reference photos later.

The perfect model! I had great fun drawing this African Horned Turtle. Unfortunately he was flopped out against a support post, and in moving my head to see the rest of him I failed to get the width of his shell in the right place- the outer line shows where it should have been as I realised my mistake at the end.

As we were leaving, the wallabies came out for a walkabout. I again concentrated on their lines as they were moving around a lot, hence the superimposed studies rather than lose time turning a page.
There were many other animals I either didn't have time to draw or who just moved too fast- the marmosets being one example. There were also a couple of caymans in the reptile section but the dim lighting made them difficult to see. I came away with a good range of different animal shapes and felt I had trained myself to observe better than when I visited Newquay Zoo last year. Life class is not just about drawing people!

As a postscript, the final picture was done later in the week when I returned to my friends in Cwm Duad, and did a brief sketch of two of the horses grazing, from the same viewpoint as last year. Again, I think the overall shapes are better observed although I have not done any horse studies in the interim period.

The larger horse has thickset stubby legs as he is a draught breed. The smaller horse is a true Thelwell barrel-on-legs character- a miniature Shetland with a personality to die for.