When Art Meets Chickens: 17

This is the 17th installment in a series that explores artists, crafters and writers that are inspired by chickens in their work. Some are professionals while others hobbyists, yet all have something to contribute to the world of chicken keeping and chicken art.

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Simeon Dieterle

I’m an artist based out of West Bend, Wisconsin, USA. My favorite mediums for art are dry pastels, charcoal, and graphite. Much of my inspiration comes from my garden. Favorite subjects highlight nature, botanicals, and wildlife.

Along with my wife and two small children I tend to 30 chickens on our rented retired dairy farm. This series of chicken art has some exaggerated colours to highlight the character of the chickens and bring vibrancy to the pieces.

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Kristin Becker

I’ve loved all types of birds my whole life and enjoyed drawing them and other animals throughout my childhood. My art was put on the back burner while I raised my family. When my kids were grown and I found myself with more time on my hands I decided to try out painting. I have always been a sketch artist so painting was completely new to me. I was extremely rusty but I saw I still had some potential so I kept practicing and in a short while people started asking me to paint their pets for them. That was the beginning of my little business. 

In 2019, I went to pick up a new pet pigeon and the lady put a red chicken in my arms and said, “This is my sweetest hen”. I immediately fell in love. Needless to say, Bonnie, the hen came home to live with me in my apartment. It was around that time I shared my art with an online chicken group and started painting chickens for people. 

It’s been four years since I was introduced to Bonnie and my life has changed. I have four house chickens now, three of them are roosters and they are all sweet and affectionate. Not only do I love and continue painting them, I spend a lot of time shedding light on the true potential of roosters. They are intelligent, can be loving, affectionate and funny pets. I’m constantly entertained by my little flock and can say I will always have chickens in my life and continue to develop my skills with painting them.

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Heidi Barnett

I’m not a fan of straight lines or picture perfect realism, although that has its place in art. I like to take chances, focusing on colour – not the object – and breaking up the restriction of lines. Straying from the confines of a paint brush, I have moved on to objects such as pallet knives, forks, my fingers, and Q-tips, which prevent me from getting too tight, too bound. I love the circular shape which I get from various items.

When not experimenting with new painting techniques or working on an expansive mural, I teach art classes to seniors. “Art is therapeutic. It is life, and I want to help others express their emotions and life stories without worrying about staying in the lines. I will continue to work to share my love of life, color and and texture on canvas. It is my passion and my voice in the world.”

I always wanted chickens; my husband kept giving me excuses why I shouldn’t get them, so one year on our anniversary I told him the only thing I wanted was chickens; I knew that would make it happen. Now I wonder if he loves them more than I do.

The one thing I really love about chickens is their personality, they are all so unique. People laugh when they see my chickens, they love the humour in them. I don’t feel like I have to add or exaggerate to capture this. There is some comic relief in chickens. I love to paint subjects that are uplifting, and chickens bring joy. I don’t see an end to chickens being one of my favorite subjects.

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Thanks to everyone who shared their art, used with permission.

Feature photo credit: Amy Sanchez