"Cockatoo #1"

I suffer from Cluster Migraine - I get one attack a day for about five weeks then nothing for 12 to 18 months. During one of these spates of attacks I was clear of migraine for about one day in three and needed something to do. I found a batch of bird photos I'd taken and chose this Sulphur-crested Cockatoo.

By the time the migraines had left me I had drawn the bird twice, as I so enjoyed the experience. This was back in 1989.

I decided not to print because I was certain offset-litho printing couldn't capture the very fine detail. Then Giclée printing became available and I finally decided to print.

The original drawing took about 36 hours to complete and hangs on the wall of my studio.