Black Cockerel, Colour Pencil on Bristol Board

I love drawing animals, and have done a few drawings of chickens. This is a very small drawing of Pat Mitchell, who owned the (VERY unfriendly) geese I drew running in snow (well, the geese were running in snow, with me following, but I wasn't drawing IN the snow. If you see what I mean...). He lives in a fabulous, crumbling demesne house in Woodford, County Galway, and just loves his chickens and geese. A student of mine lived near him so took me to meet him. He only lived in a small part of the house, with candle light only. I didn't see much of the house inside, but remember that when I looked up the curving, highly carved staircase, at the very top was a fantastic glass dome, flooding us with shafts of light.

Outside was a menagerie of every type of chicken imaginable (and some beyond imagination!) This splendid black cockerel was left in a plastic bag attached to Pat's railings - someone had rescued it and assumed Pat would look after it. And they were right!

Colour pencil on Bristol Board, approx 7 inches x 7 inches (17cm x 17 cm), by Julie Douglas 

Last week I got a lovely email from a mature student who did a portfolio course with me last year. He had no previous drawing or painting experience - the course was a bit of a shock to his system (on account of me taking no prisoners, so to speak), and he worked very hard. But it was all worth it. He wrote:


Wow! Those onions look amazing.
I should let you know that I have been offed places on the Architecture Degree Programs at UCD, DIT and UL.
Also a place at Limerick School of Art and Design.
The architecture courses required an interview process as well as a portfolio assessment. Portfolios were additionally examined during the interview process. Curiously, during all interviews, the show stoppers in my portfolio were the water colours that I completed at your portfolio course. That is despite serious endeavour with many artistic media since.
Who would have thought that architects would be so interested in a banana, some lemons, a chili pepper and some vague trees.
Please accept my thanks for your instruction, for opening my eyes (and ears) and for awakening my artistic potential.
I intend to accept a place at UL to study architecture. Their interview was rigourous and demanding which endears me to their tuition.
Continued success to you and I hope our paths cross again.
Yours,
Alan




Up coming courses - Portrait workshop, Illustration workshop - this is a new course and
Intensive Portfolio Course. Also summer classes for teenagers.
 Email for info: julie@juliedouglas.co.uk