Painting Of A White Hen

Little White Hen
10 x 8", oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson (c)2013 

Painting portraits of chickens has become a nice little escape for me. When I take breaks from the paintings that I have committed to, doing a painting of a hen or a rooster becomes a challenging diversion. They are never as easy as I imagine them to be but once I start one, I have to finish (8 x 10's are a good size, they do not take long to complete and they fit in almost any kitchen).

Painting Of A Chicken

Pollo
10 x 8", oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

I'm obsessed with painting chickens. Everywhere I go I am distracted when I see or hear them. Their soft feathers, the way they walk, the wonderful eggs that come from them. Its all good. The next logical step for me is to capture them with paint whenever possible.

When I was a little girl, my parents purchased some chickens that ran loose in our back yard. I thought they were such a nice addition to the family. Within a short time we thought of them as pets. I don't remember naming them but I do remember loving everything about them.

As the summer eased into fall there was a certain Saturday dinner I will never forget. My dad had gotten up early and without my knowing, had "taken care" of those feathered friends. Later in the day my mom was frying a large pan full of, you guessed it, chicken. When we sat down to dinner that night, with that huge bowl of fried chicken at the table, we children sat silent, staring straight ahead. No one moved. Our appetites were gone. To my parents' frustration we could not take one bite.

Visiting Northern England: Painting Chickens

There was one more subject that I was inspired to paint while in North Yorkshire. Chickens.

The White Hen
10x8", Oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

Lovely chickens, in all shapes and colors were roaming freely at times and adding more charm to my stay in the beautiful countryside of Northern England.

Resting Red Hen
8x10", Oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

I have always liked chickens, freshly laid eggs and roosters crowing in the morning to wake me up -  so this was a perfect situation for me.

White Rooster
8x10", Oil on canvas
Rita Salazar Dickerson

I used my palette knife and applied the paint in nice thick strokes. This rooster's tail, in particular, was fun to play with. With the knife I softened the edges of his feathers by dragging out the paint into the the background.

There will be more chickens to come!