David N. Kitler: Painting Nature's Textures in Acrylic

Join David Kitler and learn to take your wildlife paintings to the peak of photo-realism. 

David shows you how to use acrylic paint and texture painting techniques to create realistic feathers and tree bark.

David's advanced art techniques center around the transparent qualities of acrylic paint. He uses that transparency to create luminous feathers and intriguing eyes.

David's approach to acrylic painting combines watercolor techniques with the strengths of opaques. You take advantage of quick drying time and protective coats of gloss medium as you layer brilliant, transparent washes over a base of whites.

David Kitler covers a variety of topics. He walks you through short acrylic painting tutorials that cover grass and bark. He teaches you to think about how you use your materials to do most of the heavy lifting for your painting. Next David delves into a longer painting demonstration for feathers and animal eyes. Watch up close as he lays down layer after layer of transparent acrylic paint to create luminosity and variety in his piece.

David moves beyond beginner painting topics and leads an important discussion on reference material including pictures and 3-D specimens. He teaches you how to take cues from an animals anatomy to guide the direction and width of your brush strokes.

BONUS CLIP: Simplifying Natural Textures in Acrylics

AUDIO INTERVIEW: Listen to an audio interview with David Kitler. The video is overlayed with images from our filming sessions with David, his notebooks and a gallery of his artwork.

Read a terrific article about David Kitler from Wildlife Art Magazine (pdf).

About Artist David Kitler

Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, David's appreciation of nature began in his youth, as he explored the Canadian outdoors.Once he realized that the whole world was only a plane trip away, David embarked on longer reference gathering trips to places such as Kenya, Tanzania, Nepal, India, Brazil, Panama, and Costa Rica, as well as through most of the U.S.A. and Alaska.In the meantime, David taught himself to draw and paint, experimenting with a variety of media and techniques.

Because of his love of wildlife, David had initially geared his education towards becoming a veterinarian, believing that art could only be treated as a hobby.Still, while growing up, David received support and encouragement from his mother, who sometimes allowed him to stay up late on school nights so he could finish a drawing.David still vividly remembers one of the last things his mother ever said to him: "Don't let anyone ever tell you that you are not an artist."Unfortunately soon after, at the age of 17, David lost that source of support in a tragic manner, when David's mother was killed by his father.This terrible event impacted David's life, and that of his four younger siblings, in immeasurable ways.Introduced abruptly into the adult world, David had to find ways to support himself and secure his future, so he gave up his dream of attending university, and started work at a local factory.

Soon, however, David's sketches and paintings, which he continued to work on whenever he had a free moment, began to garner attention, opening a door to a world he had not known existed.It was then that he decided to pursue a degree in art, hoping this would further demonstrate his professional commitment and enhance his credibility.Fending for himself, David overcame incredible odds and eventually graduated with honours from the Ontario College of Art.

David's paintings have quickly gained recognition, and are part of corporate and private collections the world over.David is a member of the prestigious Society of Animal Artists and the Artists for Conservation Foundation (formerly Worldwide Nature Artists Group), and has been invited to exhibit in some of North America's major art shows, where he has received a number of Best of Show and Excellence awards.