At the Watering Hole

I started this project by sketching out a forest environment. I liked the idea of a watering hole that was a safe haven of sorts, or perhaps a meeting spot for the local wildlife. That starting point eventually led to a pair of foxes sitting together calmly while they're watched from the surrounding trees, and guarded by a sentinel from above.

I considered taking this in an entirely different direction by absolutely filling the woods with birdhouses and a wide variety of wildlife, but in the end, I preferred the eerie presence of woods that were largely empty, except for a troop of vaguely malicious squirrels.

Incidentally, I love my Sentinel Cardinal - when I thought about bad ass birds, my mind jumped to Debbie, the absolutely creepy bird from the 'Good Dinosaur.' Her scene stole the movie for me, so here's my nod to her.