Kathryn Ragan. Studio at the Farm

Meet Syd. Syd is about a year old now, and emu I helped raise him from a couple of weeks of age. I fell in love with him. he is intelligent and curious, and enjoys a cuddle [especially having his neck stroked]. I have taken many photos of him over the months, and the one I used as a reference for this painting seemed best to express his inquisitiveness and warm nature.

For the past year, I have been living on an environmental farm in southwest British Columbia. The owner and manager are both PhD environmentalists, focussing on birds. But, in addition to the exotic pheasants, and a monal, there are guinea birds, emus, and a variety of four-legged beasties [donkey, several sheep and lambs, some pigs and some mouflon sheep]. Did I mention chickens??? There must be over eighty chickens and the odd rooster. And, like us, they all have their own quirky personalities.

When I first arrived here, I was absolutely amazed. And it was the adult emus who really captured my interest – their movements, their size, the booming noise they make, their appearance, [they really do look like raptors].

I’m going to add a few more photos of them and Syd. He is a rascal – he “helps” me collect the hens’ eggs, and sticks his beak in their nests. It surprises me that the hens don’t back down but give Syd what-for for disturbing them.

This is my first time using WordPress, and I must admit this post is very rough. However it is, I hope you enjoyed the post, and will return for more [improved!] posts. Thank you for dropping by!