The Drawing of Mr.Happy The Chicken

This is Mr.Happy the chicken. Inspired by a picture my sister who has a hobby farm shared with me. He was a very happy and affectionate bird who has unfortunately passed away. So I have done this artwork for her as a "sorry your pet died" present. (Which if you have a pet whose passed I do this for anyone. Not just my immediate family. Share pics and stories below)

He was quite fun to draw, and it took me a long time to accept just how small his head was compared to his floofy body. There was a lot of drawing and re-drawing before I got the proportions right.

The tools used

The pencil drawing is done with a Blackwing pearl, the ink a micron 05, the watercolour is windsor & newton pocket compact, and final flourish's at the end are done with various colours of Gelly roll pens.

The drawing process

I began with a quick pencil sketch that captured the shape and flow of the feathers.

Ounce I was happy with the pencil I started working on the ink. I started with the darkest areas and the biggest and top layer feathers first.

I could claim I have a system beyond that but I'd be lying.

And you can see most of the tools I used to make this, including tea. Much of my art is fuelled by tea. Also yes I am watching Star-gate Atlantis.

From here it's time to start the delicate process of adding colour with water colour.

I like using purple in place of black.
This is a mix of burnt umber, that red that's darker and the dark blue.

It's not the most obvious but I started with a really light layer. One of the things that's key with watercolour is that colour is built up.

From there I built up the purples. This was a lot of layers but when I get in the groove I often forget to take pictures during the process.

There wasn't much left done to do on the darker feathers, but I did need to let the feathers dry for the next step. Letting water colour dry is key.

And I totes forgot to take pictures while I worked on the lighter feathers, beak and the crown thing.

Now it was time to do the ground/background stuff.

At one point I was gonna leave it here but it's plain/boring.

I added some grass with little brush strokes. I honestly really enjoy just playing with watercolour. Mixing colours is fun.

The last step was the final flourishes with my jelly rollers. I love these pens cause they can go right over water colour or ink.

And then put in a frame. :)

Question to any other artist : What's your favorite medium?