Notice Board 2025

Barry Walding Obituary

Barry was a member of TWASI from the early days on and off throughout the last 30 years has sadly passed. He was an extremly kind and generous man to fellow artists. His beautiful paintings were much admired and collected and he tackled so many different subjects other than wildlife.

In his youth Barry was inspired by a painting by artist David Shepherd, entitled March Sunlight.

Barry eventually met David Shepherd in 1977 and three years later left his job at Rolls Royce and took up painting as a full-time occupation.

“I’m a keen conservationist with a love of the British Countryside and its wildlife which has featured prominently in my work. I enjoy painting anything and everything. A lot of artists like to specialise in things like locomotives or aeroplanes or portraiture, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but I enjoy the variety.

I’ve been doing it ever since and have taken part in exhibitions throughout the country at places like the Yorkshire Railway Museum and the Mall Galleries in London, and had three successful exhibitions at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Slimbridge.”

Barry’s work has also been on show at Nature in Art, near Gloucester, as artist in residence on five occasions. He has produced paintings of everything from portraits in the style of the Pre-Raphaelites through to animals and transport. Some of his paintings have been used to raise money for charities such as the RAF Benevolent Fund and Battle of Britain Historical Society.

Dr Jane Goodall Obituary

So sad to hear today that one of our patrons Dr Jane Goodall has sadly departed this world she will leave a tremendous legacy for future generations.

Jane Goodall, Ph.D., DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace is world renowned for her pioneering research on wild chimpanzees, and efforts today to inspire every individual to protect the environment we share.

This is a membership only event but guests are welcome on the Sunday morning for the talk and demo by Nick Mackman 10am to 12.30 pm

Click here for a downloadable link for PDF booking form

TWASI CHRISTMAS CARD COMPETITION 2025
An annual competition for all TWASI members:

Design the front of a Christmas Card, to be sent to all TWASI Members by email or
post.
Your image may be in any media, including sculpture, photography & digital.
The design may include lettering if you wish.
The image may be in square or oblong proportions.
Maximum 2 entries per member.
Closing date for entries is 22nd November 2025.
Entries may be entered as a jpeg image (300dpi, up to 5MB)
and sent to saraiscrawshaw@aol.com
Please title your jpeg with Name & Title, and use Email Subject: “TWASI Christmas
Card Competition”.
Or – Post an A4 photograph to TWASI, Appletrees, Main Street, Willey, Rugby. CV23
0SH, with Name & Title written on the back.
If you wish to have the photograph returned, please enclose a s.a.e.
Entries will be judged by the TWASI Central Council members.
The winning entry will be sent by email to all TWASI Members this Christmas, will be
shown on the TWASI website, in the following edition of “On the Wild Side” Magazine, on
the TWASI Facebook Page, & if available, may be exhibited at the following Annual
Exhibition.
Prize: 100 copies of your design printed on good quality card for your personal use.

2025 32nd Annual Exhibition at Nature in Art

Click here to view The Annual Exhibition Award Winners and their work

TWASI MEMBERS SUMMER COMPETITION

1st Place – Louise Hancox – ‘Praying for Kelp’

“Praying for Kelp” is part of my Keystone Series – a small body of artwork that
explores unsung heroes essential to ecosystem survival. The artwork was created
using mainly pastel pencils on Pastel Mat.

It was inspired by my travels on the wild coast of British Columbia, where we
watched a lone sea otter drifting under the sun, paws folded in what looked like quiet
prayer. My own photographs were underwhelming, but a fabulous wildlife
photographer, Joe Tomoleoni, very kindly gave me permission to use one of his.

Joe is a marine biologist and wildlife photographer based in central California.
Beneath the surface, the sea otter’s presence shapes entire ecosystems. Once
hunted to the brink of extinction, sea otters are still endangered today.

By keeping sea urchin numbers in check, they protect kelp forests – vital habitats
that anchor marine biodiversity, protect coastlines from erosion, and act as powerful
carbon sinks.

He floats, as if weightless, yet carries the fate of a forest, a coastline, and a hidden
world beneath the waves.

With his survival, a living sea breathes.

2nd Place – Sophie Parkhill – ‘Horsey Gap Seals’

“Horsey Gap Seals” was created using a range of soft pastels, mainly Pan Pastel on
Pastel Mat.
The reference photo was taken during a drizzly trip to Norfolk.

At first, the beach looked like a mass of rocks – until a pup lifted its head and
revealed a colony of hundreds of seals stretched out before us.

3rd Place – Sophie Parkhill – ‘The Eye of the Catcher ‘

“The Eye of the Catcher” was painted in soft pastel, and based on a photo that I took
in Scotland whilst visiting my brother. The featured Oystercatcher was guarding a hidden nest, sadly unmarked as a nesting site.

It’s the first in my ongoing series titled “The Wonder of our Shores”, which celebrates
the wide variety of bird species found along our UK coastline.
Through this work, I hope to highlight the incredible wildlife on our doorsteps and
encourage more people to explore and appreciate our native nature.

2024 News and Notices

Obituary

Ken Stroud the founding member of The Wildlife Art Society International sadly passed away this November 2024. Older members of the society will remember Ken’s dedication and enthusiasm for the society he founded. He has been unable to be with us at the Annual Exhibitions for many years now, since the 25th Anniversary of the society, but he will be missed by many of his artistic friends.

The Society award at our annual exhibition The Founders Award for the Best British Wildlife was created in Ken’s honour.

“My aim when producing one of my wildlife paintings is to impart something of the lifestyle and character of the animals I paint. All too often, wildlife paintings are sterile, static portraits of animals, rendered in great detail but tell the viewer little about the animal or its way of life. Wild animals are alive, they hunt, mate, react with other animals, fight and search for food. These are the stories I want to show my prospective buyers, not just beautifully rendered, photorealistic portraits.

Having been fortunate to have travelled to some beautiful and amazing countries, I have tried to absorb some the atmosphere, observe the special light and watch the animals that inhabit my paintings.

I have travelled in Africa; Kenya and Tanzania, witnessing the drama of the plains animals, the big five and so many other fantastic inhabitants of this magical country. To Canada; the Rockies, for elk, bear, big horn, deer, prairie dogs and fantastic scenery., In Austria I visited the Bayeriche Forest located on the Austrian/ Czech border in winter snow to watch and photograph bears, lynx, wolves and bison.

Such is my interest in wildlife art that in 1992, along with a couple of other artists, I started The Wildlife Art Society International – TWASI, for which I served as the Chairman and President. I am now the Immediate Past President and Founder. The society has gained a truly international following. Other areas of interest include North American Indians and historic reproductions. I am also a Signature Member of the international group Artists for Conservation (AFC)”.
Ken Stroud

KEN STROUD (LEFT) WITH VIC SHARRATT (RIGHT)

Christmas Card Competition 2024 Results

1 st place: Louise Hancox – “Everglow”

“This robin artwork was created using coloured pencils on Grafix Drafting Film, and the
background is oil pastel. The fabulous reference photo was from Sue MacCallum-Stewart
at Wildlife Reference Photos.

Finding the perfect title for my artwork has become an art in itself, almost like a little secret
door into the story I’m hoping to share. Sometimes, it isn’t always clear why I’ve chosen a
subject until I’m searching for the right title.

At first, the idea behind my robin seemed simple: a nod to Christmas, and the branch
(very) vaguely met the “Tree” challenge for my art group meet-up. But when I gave myself
space to sit with it, I felt there was something deeper behind my choice.

I set it aside for a few weeks, and when I returned to it, the little glow in the robin’s feathers
caught my eye. The lyrics from Coldplay’s “Everglow” immediately came to mind –
“You’re with me wherever I go, You give me this feeling, this Everglow”.

And then I understood what this artwork truly meant to me. I lost both of my parents, days
apart, during a single, devastating December week, four years ago. They both loved
watching garden birds, and a little red-breasted robin was a favourite guest.

In British folklore, robins are said to be guardians or messengers, protecting those we’ve
lost. This robin is my quiet tribute to my Mum and Dad, a gentle reminder of their love that
I carry with me every day.”

2nd place – Kate Evelyn Smith – “Winter Sunrise”

I have never been a fan of art competitions, because appreciation of art is so subjective.
However, I am always glad when the TWASI Christmas card competition comes around.
It gives me a focus and a deadline for Christmas preparations which otherwise I would be
sadly lacking!

My painting “Winter Sunrise” depicts the view from my drive towards the east. I live on
forty acres of common land which is cut for hay and only grazed for a couple of weeks a
year, so it is quite wild with big thick tufts of grass. I took the reference photos a few years
ago, when the snow lay on the ground for over a week. The obvious attraction was the
beautiful sunrise, but it was fascinating to see how the fox run, from the bottom centre of
the painting leading up to the left, was made so prominent by the settled snow. Some
animal tracks, possibly muntjac, roe deer or foxes, were also left in the deep snow,
heading towards the Brook which runs along the line of trees. Another useful aspect for
the painting’s composition is the way the blustery wisps of clouds and the long shadows of
the trees create a good sense of perspective. The painting is in acrylics on canvas.

3 rd place – Kate Evelyn Smith – “Wood Mouse, Winter Feast”

“Wood Mouse Winter Feast” was my attempt to avoid the statutory Christmas robin and
replace it with a beautiful wood mouse instead! Having said that, I think Louise Hancox’s
“Everglow” robin is exquisite and a much deserved winner! My wood mouse is painted in
acrylics on board. I had to research the wood mouse to make sure it did, in fact, eat holly
berries and I also used a variety of images from Freepix to make sure that the mouse and
the holly berries were in the correct scale. While the wood mouse has big, shiny eyes,
lovely thick fur, and large Mickey Mouse ears, it also has a naked, rat-like tail which isn’t
perhaps the most attractive feature for a Christmas card. Next time I should choose the
dormouse, which, I learned, is the only UK rodent with a furry tail!