A Chicken in Every Portfolio!

Whether perusing art sites I’m on, or going to art walks locally, I’ve come to a very unscientific conclusion.  There is a chicken in every artist’s portfolio. Or nearly every one of them. Of course, some specialize. Many also are owned by chickens, the same as some people are owned by cats, dogs, and cockatiels.  I’ve been gathering the examples and participation for this post for weeks now, with the expectation that there will be more like this.

 

DAVID L. BRADLEY, Arizona, USA

“Factory Farmed,” by David L. Bradley, (photo used with permission of artist)

David L. Bradley’s enormous chicken made of found stuff caught my eye during during this year’s September first Friday artwalk. I spotted it the minute my husband and I walked into Frontal Lobe gallery.  That it was about the horrors of factory farming made it even more special. The show was “Consumerism,” and factory farming fits right in.

Below are David’s words about this piece and his own chickens:

“My sculpture titled: Factory Farmed depicts a larger than life size chicken with foam rubber legs and feathers made of old shreds of plastic sheeting, and a waddle made of a pink inflatable toy. The idea came from thinking about where our food supply comes from and becoming aware that the chicken meat we buy in the grocery store is supplied by huge operations that treat chickens inhumanely. The chickens are packed together in huge pens so tightly that they have to be de-beaked so they don’t peck each other to death, and they are forcibly injected with antibiotics due to their close quarters. When we consume chicken from one of these factory farms we are consuming the antibiotics as well as all the stress and fear the chickens suffered through during their lives.

“I raise four chickens in my backyard in a large shady and plant filled area, and feed them table scraps and high quality chicken feed so I know that the eggs they provide are as healthy as they could be.”

David’s website: http://www.davidbradleyart.com/

Frontal Lobe is located at 1301 Grand Ave, Suite 2B, Phoenix AZ, https://www.facebook.com/FontalLobeCommunitySpaceAndGallery

 

ANITA INVERARITY, Scotland, UK

“Going to Market,” Anita Inverarity, ink on illustration board, (photo used with permission of artist)

Anita Inverarity has been on my list of favorite and followed artists on Redbubble.com for years. She does gorgeous birds and animals and sometimes people, too. It was a thrill to see a chicken appear in my feed one day, from Anita’s page.  Below, Anita tells about her bird series that includes the chicken piece.

“I drew “Going to Market” for an exhibition called “Storybook” The influences were animal whimsy and the nostalgic feelings of looking through old children’s books. I had a notion to draw a chicken and she looked like she was in a rush to go somewhere hence the title- then I gave her some companions for the journey including an opportunist mouse hitching a ride in her shopping basket.”

See Anita’s chicken and other beautiful work here: http://www.redbubble.com/people/anitainverarity/works/12505721-going-to-market

 

LYNNETTE SHELLEY, Pennsylvania, USA

“Cock of the Walk,” Lynnette Shelley, mixed media on panel, (photo used with permission of artist)

“Bantam,” Lynnette Shelley, tea, wine, and ink, on paper, (photo used with permission of artist)

Lynnette Shelley is also a fellow Redbubble artist.  Redbubble is probably where I first started noticing so many artists and photographers did have a chicken.  I found two chickens in her portfolio! Though they are in different media they are distinctly Lynnette.

Lynnette: “I’ve drawn lots of animals over the years – and with roosters I happen to like their attitude and how decorative their feathers are.”

You can see her chickens at the following links.

http://www.redbubble.com/people/lynnetteshelley/works/7111354-bantam

http://www.redbubble.com/people/lynnetteshelley/works/10939540-cock-of-the-walk

Be sure to take a look at her other work too, some of which is similar in appearance to mosaics.  This makes a nice segue to a future post which will include at least one mosaic artist but that’s all I’ll say for now. 😉

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