Mark Adlington is a terrific contemporary animal artist from the UK. I came across his beautiful work by accident online. He draws his subjects in their natural environments, before refining the sketches in his studio.
Adlington has a great sense for observation, he can paint any kind of animal very well.
I found two publications featuring his work on Amazon. One focusing on African lions, the other one on polar bears.
Here are a couple of great videos with him talking about his work:
All images copyright Mark Adlington.
