The Chickens of Fair Oaks Pastel | 7x5
Nearby Fair Oaks village is known for their free-roaming chickens, truly free-range poultry. Story has it began back in the late 70s when a young boy who had lived and tended chickens in the village in the 50s returned to settle in Fair Oaks along with 3 hens and a rooster. He let them roam free and somewhere along the way, locals who wanted to rid themselves of pesky crowing roosters began dropping their roosters off. Now they roam free, but the number of roosters appears to far outnumber the hens. Many don't care for the pre-dawn crowing and lately some complain about the poop, but so many of the people who live and work there find their presence a colorful symbol of the rural nature of the village. I was there today and snapped a few photos of some scratching around the hillside.
Painting notes: Day 13 of the 30 paintings in 30 Days Challenge and I really didn't want to paint yesterday or today. What is always surprising and I hope lasting, is the moment I started drawing the design for this little gem, I was having a great time and didn't feel a bit tired. This was done on a small 5x7 Ampersand beige panel. I've always like the Ampersand pastel boards; I have to order the beige color online but it is one of my favorite surfaces - and oh so easy to pop into a frame!
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