When I was young I wanted to be a marine biologist. I watched nature shows on tv and, when those weren’t enough, I checked out nature documentaries from the local library. Life took me in another direction but in 2018 I was given a professional-grade watercolor set and I fell in love with painting wildlife and nature. More recently I have been balancing my watercolor painting with digital illustration, and enjoy expressing my love of the oceans through two mediums.
The painting titled California Marine Wildlife: With Absolutely No Scale began as a challenge to myself. For years I had painted on a smaller scale, and I finally wanted to tackle a large piece. The elephant seal was the first animal I painted, followed by the humpback, then by the hermit crab. As more and more animals made their way onto the page I felt that sense of excitement I felt for the oceans as a child reemerge. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area I had the privilege to see elephant seals in Año Nuevo State Park on a field trip. I visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium and marvelled at the million-gallon tank. I stared, mesmerized by the sea lions at Pier 39. The feeling I got visiting all these places as a child returned as I painted the many animals that call the California coast their home.
California Marine Wildlife, With Absolutely No Scale depicts more than 40 animals and organisms that live off the California coast. From the great white to the spanish shawl nudibranch. From apex predator to immobile aquatic invertebrates. The joy I felt not only painting, but in researching and finding animals to paint, was infectious. Soon my paintings revolved primarily around the oceans and the animals that call them home.
In late 2020 I fulfilled a dream of mine by becoming SCUBA certified. Fueled partly by a yearning to travel–to see something new–when the world was still ravaged by covid-19, and partly so I could begin taking my own reference photos for my paintings, I became certified during a king tide in Monterey, California. The world that opened up to me was intense and beautiful.
During a guided dive in December of 2020 my partner and I experienced the awe of diving among a dozen sea lions. Graceful and playful, it was like being in an underwater dog park. The sea lions played in the bubbles made by my regulator. They glided around us, making a mockery of our comparatively-ungraceful movement underwater. I am forever grateful that our guide brought a camera and was able to capture photos of the underwater sea lion dance.
Since then, my love for the oceans has spilled out into my digital illustrations as well. Creating illustrations based on the animals and scenes I see while diving fills me with joy, and connects me with my childhood self who was so enamoured with the oceans.
I share my art and admiration of marine wildlife with the public through my Instagram account: @megpaintedthat. Through my art I connect with other nature-lovers and ocean enthusiasts.
Painting and illustrating has led me to rediscover a childhood dream. I credit it with encouraging me to finally complete my SCUBA certification and to be able to view marine animals in their natural habitat. So, while childhood dreams may become forgotten, trust that they can be reignited. I hope my reinvigorated love of the oceans invites you to remember and reignite a bygone passion.
Meghan McLean
Meghan McLean is a graphic designer and artist. Her work focuses on wildlife and nature, with an emphasis on marine wildlife. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. To see more of her work check out her Instagram @megpaintedthat or her website at meghanmcleandesign.com.
This piece was prepared online by Panuruji Kenta, Publisher, SEVENSEAS Media