I glued the three pieces - the two crocodile strips and the larger piece with the heron - together. This was not easy because the paper was pretty heavy (Strathmore Mixed Media paper) and a bit warped. The moisture of the glue (I used Liquitex Matte Gel Medium) also warped the paper a bit. I had to keep pressing the three pieces together with my fingers for quite a while until the adhesive took hold.
At that point, I had a pretty wavy and warped piece. So I spread a towel on my kitchen counter and laid the piece upside down on the towel. I sprayed the back with water and covered it with a few layers of paper towels. Then I topped the whole thing off with heavy books and let it dry overnight. In the morning, it was flat!
Then I began the painting. I wanted a dark stormy sky and used opaque paint, using a couple of slightly different colors, and a couple of graduated layers, one over the other. I blotted the second layer with a damp paper towel for an uneven look.
The most fun part of this painting was the reeds. It was exacting work with a liner brush. I used photos of ancient Egyptian tomb paintings for inspiration, but added my own touches.
I realized I needed something more, so I painted (Daler Rowney acrylic ink dropped on a shape painted with cleear water) the two birds on a separate piece of paper. I tore out the duck and glued it in place. I usually prefer tearing to cutting, but I cut out other bird because I wanted to preserve all the background around it.
