Lion Deadly Art

My name's Steve Backshall, and this is Deadly Art.

I'm lucky enough to travel the world, tracking deadly animals.

But in this show, my team of artists take my killer moments...

..and turn it into art.

And we'll reveal another unique creation.

Along the way, you'll get to pick up some tips, tricks, and techniques,

so you can make some art yourself.

This is no ordinary art show, this is Deadly Art.

Coming up on Deadly Art, I'm on the search

for one of the most famous deadly felines in the world.

Lions are Africa's most impressive, most fearsome carnivore.

My team of artists recreate another killer piece of art.

-We got those finer details.

-And you can make your own art at home, too.

Today's deadly animal is possibly the fiercest feline on earth.

It's impossible not to have the utmost admiration

and respect for this legend of legends.

The lion.

LION ROARS

Its super-loud roar can be heard up to eight kilometres away.

That's like me shouting here

and being heard 76 football pitches away.

The males have that incredibly dramatic mane.

They both have strong jaws and retractable super-sharp claws.

And this is the only member of the cat family

that works together as a group to take down its prey.

Over to another team who work well together - it's my deadly artists.

Hey, I'm Mike, I'm a cartoon artist and I'm up for today's Deadly Art.

I'm Nicola, and I'm the power tool queen.

Mike and Nicola will be representing the Deadly Art team,

who are always up for a challenge.

This is the killer moment for our artists to capture.

While the lionesses do the majority of the hunting,

the male protects his family.

And when you see a male lion in full flow running at top speed,

it's incredibly impressive.

Look at that! So, Mike and Nicola, over to you.

-We've got to get across the speed of the lion.

-And the colours.

Blue sky and yellow fur, and the face - so noble and majestic.

-I love it.

-Let's go!

Time for some more Deadly Art.

Nicola's got the pallet sorted, and Mike's starting on the canvas.

When the Deadly 60 team and I visited Namibia,

after hours of searching in the bush,

we came across an incredible pride of lionesses.

Look at that!

Ooh, that's some purpose.

Looks like they've spotted something.

There's a couple of warthog off to our left,

and...our lions have spotted them.

This is the perfect time for things to start happening.

The warthog are getting closer,

they don't realise what they're doing.

This one here is moving forward with purpose.

It's going to happen right now.

One down. Over the back there. No, it's got away! He got away!

All the warthog scattered in different directions,

and one over there, unfortunately,

has just met its end in the thicket over there.

The others all escaped.

That would have to be one of the quickest,

most completely perfect hunts I've ever seen.

And that's why the lion has such an incredible reputation.

So how are Mike and Nicola getting on in the Deadly Art studio?

This is about movement,

so I've thinned out the oil paints with turpentine,

which will enable it to move loosely and freely across the canvas.

-It's potent stuff so don't try it at home. Let's get pouring!

-OK.

Now this looks fun!

Art should be messy,

but don't try any of the techniques you see in our Big Art.

Mike and Nicola have to tilt the canvas

to get the paint to run in the right direction. Now it's your turn.

Over to Mike for today's Deadly Doodle.

I'll show you how to do this Deadly Doodle of a lion.

As always, we start with simple shapes.

Today's simple shape is the heart.

We all love lions, so we're going to start with a heart

in the middle of our paper for the nose.

Draw an upside down heart for the mouth,

and another heart on the top of that for the area around the eyes.

You can draw a rectangle underneath that for the bottom of his mouth.

Add in two C shapes for his ears.

We're going to draw two curves on the side to mark out where his mane goes.

Also add in two lines to mark out where the eyes go.

OK. That's the pencil sketch done, let's add in some details.

Let's start with the eyes.

Go back over that line, and then start adding in your pupils,

which are just three Cs getting smaller and smaller.

We'll colour in this bit and do the same again on the other side.

Let's add in the nose.

When you go back over that heart, just add in some furry textures,

wrapping it around to his mouth.

Now work up to the nose. Go back over that heart.

This time, we're going to add in some nostrils.

Draw in that huge nose there.

Then add in some whiskers there.

Three lines here, three lines on the other side,

then do big, long lines for those big whiskers.

Now we're going to go back over the ears,

add in a bit of fur this time.

Now work on the bottom jaw.

Go back over that, but this time give him a little bit of a furry chin.

Draw in two little teeth at the bottom, two big teeth at the top.

So for the mane, we're going to go back over our guidelines,

but this time do a big curving line like this,

kind of like a zigzag lightning bolt.

All round the bottom. The same on the other side, a big lightning bolt.

Give him a little puff of hair at the top. The last little touch...

Make his eyes look really menacing by adding in a dark line. Like that.

Right, there you have it! How's that for a deadly lion?

That lion looks ferocious! We visited Devon on a Deadly Day Out,

and here's how some of you got on with this doodle

in the Deadly Art tent.

CHEERING

This is my Deadly Doodle. Rarrr!

I love the eyes, they look cool.

I'm Leanne and this is my Deadly Doodle.

It's just basic shapes. It was explained well.

My name's Erin and this is my Deadly Doodle.

-BOTH:

-This is our Deadly Doodle. Grrr!

The teeth are the deadliest bit, I really enjoyed it.

Seriously impressive! Remember to keep on doodling.

Let's get back to the Deadly Art studio and our lion canvas.

We've created energy in the painting

by throwing paint over the canvas to get a feeling of movement.

In the killer moment, the lion's mane is moving in the breeze.

That's why my paint is dribbling in this direction.

Wouldn't mind giving that a go myself!

Now you can get involved. It's DIY time.

I'll show you how to make this really cool lion backpack accessory.

We'll start by making the pom-pom.

We'll begin by drawing a leaf shape on a piece of card.

A small circle in the centre. Then cut it out.

To cut out the circle in the centre,

make a slit from the top all the way in, and cut it out.

When we put wool onto this template, to avoid it slipping up to the top,

I'm going to add some little ridges in here to grip hold of.

You'll need two of these,

so use the first one as a template to make an exact replica.

Piece them together, grab some wool.

And just start wrapping it around.

Keep on winding the wool around until you can't fit any more on.

Take some scissors,

and put your scissors in between two pieces of card like that.

Then simply snip all the way around the edge.

Just mind your fingers.

As you cut, you'll see the wool pop away.

It's starting to look like a lion's mane already.

Before we remove the template, we're going to tie it off in the middle.

Take a piece of wool and wrap it between the two pieces of card.

When you reach the top, tie it up right to the centre, really tight.

Now we're ready to remove the cardboard, very carefully.

But look at this! Already, we can see our lion's mane coming to life.

And now we're ready to make his face.

We need a small piece of foam, and I've drawn some shapes on one side.

These will make up his face and his ears.

I'm going to start with this shape, which is an M shape.

I've cut it out, and also this piece here,

which is an angular square with a tab on the top.

It's like an upside-down cupcake!

These two pieces are going to form this section of his head.

Dab some glue on the tab, and then stick that down onto the centre.

Then we need another dollop of glue along here and here,

then fold these under and wrap that around.

You can already see this is starting to form this part of his face.

And now we'll work on this part of the jaw.

I've cut that out and added two slits.

Put a dollop of glue on each corner,

then wrap it under and stick it down.

The top half of his face needs teeth,

just to make him extra deadly.

I've cut two small triangles of white foam

and I'm just going to fix them under his lip.

Now all he needs are some eyes.

Take a small polystyrene ball, cut it in half, and colour it yellow.

Then glue these to the top of his head.

You see? Looking great already.

And now you need some eyelids, which are two small semi-circles.

You simply put on a bit of glue and stick them down,

wrapping each one over the top of his eye.

Now for the detail. Take a marker pen, and colour in his nose.

I'm going to draw on an M shape and colour it in.

And, of course, some pupils on those menacing eyes.

Take your pom-pom, the lion's mane,

and we're ready to start sticking his face in.

So peel back some of the wool and put him into position.

Then attach the lower jaw....

..an ear either side, and then a keychain.

And there he is!

Doesn't he look awesome? I think mine needs a bit of a haircut.

That'll look cool on your backpack.

Right, back to our lion painting, and it's looking good.

Now I'm adding a further level of detail to features on the face,

starting with the nose.

I'm working on those amazing large eyes.

That's it, job done.

After we worked into it, layer after layer,

we really got those finer details.

And now we have a beautiful, vibrant, dynamic painting.

-A perfect portrait of the lion.

-Yep, I love this guy.

Earlier, I asked the Deadly Art team to recreate this killer moment,

and turn it into art.

So, let's take a look at the finished result.

Wow! This would have to be one of my very favourite pieces of Deadly Art.

The way the lion's mane is flowing in the wind,

it really gives an impression of speed and power.

You can almost sense this animal powering its way through grasses.

The lion has such a grand, regal, majestic face. It is beautiful.

That was a truly sublime work of art.

Make sure you try the Doodle and the DIY,

and we'll see you next time for more Deadly Art.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd