Belle 3

Belle is almost finished and I hope she likes it. What a cute doggie!

The Wheelers 4

I took a risk and did a gloss medium pour over the whole painting and then added transparent inks and water soluble pastels. I'm working on this four-in-hand going through the water on a cones course in a competition. This is great fun!

Belle 2

I was not happy with the way Belle began so I started again with a new board and a different composition. Hopefully, this will go along better now. The underpainting this time is orange. She looks like she has accomplished a lot in her "office time"!

Belle 1

"The Wheelers" has been put away to rest and let the paint set a bit. In the meantime, here is the beginning of "Belle", who was photographed by her person after an exhausting job of helping in the office... by tearing up papers pilfered from the waste basket! This is going to be a tough portrait to do. The reference photo is posted here, and I have some other photos of markings. This one is 18" x 18" on gallery wrapped canvas, watercolor underneath, and maybe on top. also. We'll see. This is in the experimental category...which means that I will probably lie awake at night noodling over how to get it right. Suggestions are always welcome!

The Wheelers 3

Now it's getting interesting with many problems to solve and choices to make. I'm not in love with it yet...but probably will be tomorrow!

The Wheelers 2

This is a really fun piece to work on with the action and viewing upward at the horses. Some of these colors wiill remain but many will morph into something unexpected...even to me, at this point!
A special welcome to my hands-down, favorite instructor and friend, Elin Pendleton. You can see her wonderful work at www.elinart.com. She is a master of color and anatomy, as well as being just darn good company!

The Wheelers 1

I started The Wheelers today and you can see the blue background that will contrast with the colors to go over it. The title refers to the two horses closest to the carriage that are actually doing the pulling, while the two horses up front (the leaders) are there in case they need to help pull the load. A four-in-hand takes great skill to drive and especially to compete with. This one is also going to be a lot of fun...I guess I really like my job as they are all fun! This one is oil pastel on gesso board and will most likely be $1450.

Summer Afternoon 5

Here is the more-or-less finished piece. I took it to the photographer, and as I was posting this snapshot to the blog this afternoon, I noticed a part of the black horse's nostril that needed to be made more accurate. I quickly called the photog and he graciously offered to re-shoot it tomorrow after I take my repair kit to his studio and make the correction. Whew!

Summer Afternoon 4

This piece is almost finished. The photo doesn't come close to the subtleties of the shadow colors. When it is professionally photographed and put on the website, it will look much better.
Someone has inquired about the sizing and quality of the posted photos. Some of you found them too large to see properly, and some of you wanted to see them more enlarged to view painting strokes. I would like feedback as to this one's size and resolution. I don't want the photos to be high res enough to be lifted, but I do want collectors to see enough to know if they are interested in investing in the purchase of a painting. If there is interest in a certain piece, I could always send a higher quality image. Does anyone have advice for me on this? Many thanks!