David Shepherd Tribute

13th October 2017

It is with great sadness that we announce that David Shepherd, conservationist, artist and much-admired patron of Oak Tree Animals’ Charity has died aged 86.

Richard David Shepherd, born 25 April 1931, was an avid supporter of animals and wildlife. In his early years, he dreamt of being a game warden in Kenya, Africa, but after being discouraged by the head warden in Nairobi, he returned to England to pursue a career in art.

His love of animals and wildlife is apparent in many of his works. In 1960 he was flown to Aden, the port city in modern Yemen, by the RAF and commissioned to ‘portray the life of the country’ through his art. It was on this trip, after spending much time painting the local wildlife and coming across a herd of dead zebra poisoned by poachers, that David Shepherd became an active conservationist.

Throughout his artistic career David Shepherd wore the same three pairs of paint-stained overalls and employed the same two plywood palettes to mix his paint for the thousands of works he produced. He was also an avid fan of jazz and classical music

David Shepherd’s involvement with Oak Tree Animals’ Charity was a result of a friendship with the charity’s then Secretary, Frank Tebbutt.

David Shepherd donated several paintings to the charity and much of his time. He visited Carlisle on several occasions and gave extremely interesting talks for supporters and local schools about animals and also steam trains, a great love of his.

His passion for animals and support of our work will be greatly missed.