Western Wear

8x10 oil on panel

Here is a companion piece I did this week to go along with a similar scene which is at Russell Collection in Austin. They had a customer who wanted 2 small paintings with horses, but no people in them. Hopefully this and my other piece will fit the bill.

This was our first week of summer vacation here. My daughter and I have had several play dates with friends and have been swimming. Its getting quite warm here in Central Texas. I haven't managed to paint much. I hope that when things settle into more of a routine I can work. I did take my french easel and palette downstairs to the kitchen so I can work in there and be more accessible to her.

This week I ordered a lot of frames to prepare for the show in Vermont at the end of July. I am trying very hard to be super organized and not wait until the last possible moment to get the work shipped. I will begin posting the paintings I've been working so hard on these last few months soon. Facebook friends have had some sneak peeks at what has been on my easel, but I didn't get around to posting images on my blog. Its been a little too quiet here. Not for much longer!

Hacking Around

7x 7 1/2 oil on paper - SOLD

Yesterday's post didn't go out. Setting Blogger to publish at a certain time does not work for me. I was in the infusion lab most of the day with my husband. As for him, he has improved almost fully. His strength and stamina have returned and he's been able to exercise and work. He still has some numbness. Next infusion will be stretched out to 6 weeks so we can get an idea then if he will have recurrence of symptoms and whether this might be chronic or not. Lets hope for not.

The Road Less Traveled

12x12 oil on panel

Rather a philosophical title. The Road Not Taken is a favorite poem of mine. That and Stopping by a Snowy Wood... but that wasn't so fitting for this scene.

My husband really loved the previous version I did of this horse and rider. But he wished it was a sunny scene. So, I made it so. The result reminds me of a colorized black and white photo. It has rather an unreal quality. On one hand, that is cool, and on the other, its unnatural.

I've forgotten to tell you all about the place these paintings are drawn from. It is the Dixie Dude Ranch in Bandera, Texas. If you remember, we went there just over a year ago during spring break. I had done some sketches which I posted here at that time.

Trail Boss

30x36 oil on canvas

I really have no idea what came over me today. I painted two small paintings of dogs then began to look through my photos for more. I came across some ranch dogs. And the ranch horses. And the next thing I knew I wanted to paint a large horse. Talk about something completely different. I have always loved horses and spent most of my youth doing anything I could to be around them. I had a nice looking chestnut quarter horse like this. Actually, Tasha was bigger and less elegant looking. Horse and rider are on the trails out in Bandera on a crisp March morning.

Trail Horse - 30 Minute Study

12x12 oil on paper
nfs

Another quick study to loosen up and get things flowing. Interestingly, the paper canvas pulls the oil out of the paint pretty quickly, making the stroke "stick" fast which makes me get looser with my color and I do more just putting the paint on and leaving it alone and get a little bolder with color. So the paper, and the fact that I set my timer, are creating some fun results for me.