James McCallum

Larks and Leverets deals with the wildlife commonly found on Norfolk’s farmland. There are chapters on hares, long-tailed tits, skylarks, displaying pheasants and winter flocks of pink-footed geese. There are also features on other typical farmland species such as grey and red-legged partridges, turtle doves, rabbits, pigeons and doves, lapwings, butterflies and stoats.

Larks and Leverets contains over a hundred paintings, numerous watercolour studies and written observations. The notes on behaviour have been made from direct field experience and the paintings have been completed, almost exclusively, outdoors at the time of watching.

Larks and Leverets is full colour throughout, 140 pages long with printed end papers and limited to 1500 copies. The first 50 copies are a special edition with an original hand-coloured and hand-printed etching on the cover and spine. The following 1450 are hardback with dust jacket.

The Foreword was written by John Busby the highly respected and hugely influential fine artist. His work appears in many publications and his two editions of Drawing Birds have encouraged several generations of bird artists to go into the field and work directly from life. Several books focusing purely on his own work have been published, notably Nature Drawings and Land Marks and Sea Wings.

“....seeing nature through James’ eyes we realise just how cursory our looking really is. James draws quickly and watches slowly. Both skills have been sharpened by years tuned-in to wildlife wherever he finds it, and to Norfolk in particular.”

“My favourite painting is of a ‘parade’ of six French partridges walking in single file towards you, each bird a character full of wary tension following the leader. James’ line is as perceptive and full of humour as ever and brings everything to life.”

An extract from the Foreword by John Busby

Both the Hardback and Special Edition of this book have sold out and are no longer in print.