Krystle Missildine loves animals. She has two dogs and five birds! Wanting to combine her interests in art and animals, the self-taught artist began painting portraits of people’s pets. Then one day she took it a step further, using a feather from her own pet bird as her canvas.
First, Missildine applies a base coat of acrylic paint onto the feather. “You can’t really sketch them out beforehand,” she says. Then the artist adds details, like fur or feathers, using a tiny brush.
Missildine paints on feathers from many kinds of birds, from wild turkeys to parrots. But to honor and protect the animals that inspire her, she uses only naturally molted feathers.