Have you made a ____
- Christian Davila
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- Aug 6
- 4 min read
Hummingbird?
From the very beginning, after the inevitable question, "How long does one take to make?" the next thing people ask is almost always, "Have you made a hummingbird?"
For years, that question followed me to every art show, gallery, and craft fair. It seemed like no matter what bird I had on display, someone would point to the tiniest, fastest bird in the world and ask why it wasn't there.
Back then, I honestly believed I'd never be able to make a hummingbird. My sculptures were built with air-dry clay, wire, and hot glue; great for larger birds, but not exactly ideal for something as tiny and delicate as a hummingbird. Even if I somehow managed to make one, I knew it would never be truly small and I was right.
In 2018, I finally decided to give it a shot. My plan was to sculpt the head from polymer clay and create a mold so I could cast the body in air-dry clay. The wings would be inserted directly into the body before it dried. I made it as far as creating the mold... and then I stopped. The head was already 3 inches and adding the body would make it 5-6 inches and it was getting really big. The body intimidated me, but it was the wings that confused me. Their shape, the way they overlap, the tiny feathers, and the incredible angles they create all felt impossible to recreate with the techniques I had at the time. So it was scrapped.
Then, in 2023
I revisited the idea. I was preparing for my solo exhibition at the Chico Art Center, a collection featuring bird species found in Butte County... even the hummingbirds. If I was going to make a complete collection, I couldn't keep avoiding them. I also wanted each bird to be as close to life-size as possible.
By then, a lot had changed. I'd become much more confident with 3D modeling and printing and had learned just how thin and surprisingly durable you could make printed parts. For the first time, I could actually see the hummingbird coming together in my head.
3D Print
The plan was to 3D model and print the body and beak as one piece, then carefully sand/wood burn the beak down and add a small amount of polymer clay to add the subtle texture and details that the printer couldn't capture.
Laser Cutting
The wings, though, were still the biggest challenge. Thankfully, spending years experimenting with Adobe Illustrator and my laser cutter. I had figured out how to design the wings so they stayed mostly intact while cutting, and I'd learned tricks to keep the delicate paper from burning or getting those fuzzy, charred edges. Suddenly, everything was coming together! I love looking at the wings when done! They look so good!
Tiny Parts
You'd think that after figuring out the body and wings, the rest would be easy... Yeah, not even close.
The female hummingbirds were mostly silky greens and browns, while the males had that brilliant flash of iridescent red. Different colors, same problem; they both needed an unbelievable number of tiny feathers.
And I mean tiny less than a quarter inch tiny.
Most of my birds only need these miniature feathers around the top of the head or for a few details near the eyes. Hummingbirds are different. The tiny feathers start all the way down at the neck and continue over the entire head.
That meant hours of paper punching.
Each paper flower punch creates a flower with eight petals that will turn into 8 feathers. Seven punches produce just 56 tiny feathers... and that's barely enough to cover the red crown on a male Anna's hummingbird.
It's one of those details that most people will never notice, but once all those tiny pieces are layered together, it looks natural and makes all that work worth it!
What now?
Looking back, I'm glad I couldn't make a hummingbird in 2012. If I had forced one together back then, it never would have become what I envisioned. I would have probable hated making them. Every skill I learned over the last decade; 3D modeling, laser cutting, paper layering, and even a little patience was building toward this one little bird.
It's funny how the smallest bird became one of my biggest challenge cough some day a Flamingo cough and a Peacock cough cough
Now, when someone asks, "Have you made a hummingbird?" I finally get to say, "Yes."
Usually, I can point to one sitting in my booth. If they've already sold out—which they often do—I just smile and say, "I do... maybe you will catch one next time"
After more than a decade of avoiding them, it's funny that they've become one of my most popular birds >:(
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