Your Basic Bird, Berkeley

It's a challenge sketching a constantly moving bird. Roudybush and I enjoyed each other's company at Your Basic Bird. Around us were other brilliantly colored birds of many sizes -- sleeping, yelling, singing and feeding one another regurgitated seed (an act of avian affection).

You might ask, Wouldn't they all be happier in their native environments rather than sitting in a cage? To which a friend of mine would reply, Perhaps so, but they'll live longer lives in captivity.

Later, I learned that Roudybush mini is the name of his seed mix diet, not his species. Roudy, I hardly knew ya.  ~Susan Ford

More of Your Basic Bird

Your Basic Bird, Too

Feathered Friends

This week we sketched at Your Basic Bird, an institution in the Elmwood district of Berkeley for decades.  While Claudia and the knowledgeable staff gave advice to customers and clipped the birds' toenails, we drew.  Birds are surprisingly good models!

Colored pencil

Your Basic Bird, Too

I can't resist looking at birds, even birds in cages.
Their squawks were ear-shattering. Guess I'd squawk, too after twenty-three years in a cage. (Sorry, I didn't mean to end this blog post on a downer note, and no, don't ever invite me to the zoo.)