Spring News!

Hello to all my Fans, Friends and Family,

Spring is finally feeling like it is here! I thought it might be time to spread some news.

Beginning April 15th you will find my work hanging on the walls of the FlatIron Steakhouse in Red Hook, NY. Along with some beautiful shots by the owner, Jessica Stingo, will be 6 of my pieces. So stop by for a fantastic meal...and take a look. I can honestly tell you that when we eat there, we eat everything on our plates. It is all delicious. There are vegetarian dishes and I can easily make a meal of their appetizers, salads and sides. Not to mention the desserts! www.flatironsteakhouse.com

After that....opening on May 2nd will be the Over Hill and Dale art show of equine and landscape work at the Maplebrook School in Amenia, NY. This show has work of the highest quality and partial proceeds from sales will go to support the therapeutic riding program sponsored by the school for it's students. I will have 3 pieces hung in the show and 6 more matted available. So come on over on Derby Day and enjoy the camaraderie and artwork. More details on the reception time to come.

And don't forget to purchase copies of White Horses - From the Literal to the Sublime. I have been thrilled with the feedback I have been getting and have already had to order more copies of the hardcover. Click here to see the preview of the hardcover, http://www.blurb.com/books/592211 Purchase directly through me and your copy will be signed and sent along with a special packet of postcards from the images in the book.

Enjoy what Spring you are getting. My crocuses are in bloom!

Warmly,
Juliet

Dressage Painting

I had a super productive day in the studio today. I had the whole day to myself and I just got into the zone. I am calling this one done...theoretically speaking of course. I may find something that needs tweaking here or there. I struggled with this painting a bit because I went into it without any plan what-so-ever. This is a horse doing a half pass across the diagonal. This is a larger painting..refreshing for me since I have been doing so many small pieces lately. This is acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas and measures 18 x 14. Available for sale. The image has a bit of glare on it. I apologize for that. Don't forget that the image is clickable for an enlarged view!
Check out my blog at Epona Studio Blog and my website at www.deborahosullivan.com

Palomino Portrait by Kimberly Kelly Santini

"High Noon Toogie," 12" square, commissioned equine portrait depicting a palomino, from the Painting a Dog a Day project, acrylic on board. I believe Toogie's portrait is sold, but haven't yet gotten confirmation from my client. 

 

If you are interested in "High Noon Toogie" please shoot me a note. Proceeds from this painting will benefit Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kenab Utah. And just a warning - get yourself a snack before pulling up the Best Friends site - you'll get lost in all the stories & great information.

 

Notice the new header for today's email? I've decided to periodically share the inventory numbers for the Dog-a-Day paintings. Toogie's is painting #67 for 2009 and #641 from the Painting a Dog a Day project. Hard to believe I'm closing in on painting #700 - sounds like the making for a party....

 

This piece was a challenge in values - I didn't want the darks too heavy or devoid of color, and I didn't want my lights washed out and flat. I do not use black in my palette - I mix my darks with a three way combo of the primarys, which gives me a richly colored variety of shadows.

 

When tinting, I use a lot of cadmiums and light magenta along with titanium white. And it's important to me that there is never a swath of pure titanium white anywhere in my pieces - after all, when is anything pure white in real life? it's always got a hint of another pale color in there.

 

Thanks, as always, for sharing my paintings with your friends and family.

See you tomorrow!

Kim Santini

ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com

www.turtledovedesigns.com

Elin Pendleton - Secret Pasture, Oil, 30 x 40

I've been tremendously busy with springtime on the "farm" here--planting the raised beds, fertilizing and planting more citrus, and getting everything ready for the next Color Boot Camp workshop here in April. I'm so glad to be back to the brushes now, and finished the 30 x 40 of the "Secret Pasture"--another place where I'd love to spend time. Most of the finishing touches are related to the lights on the sunlit areas, and the addition of one horse off in the distance--thus, the "secret".

It's hanging on the wall behind me and I just so enjoy looking at it from across the room. I'll be back on Fay's farm in May!

Whooee, though...here at Two Trees it's been a long day! We doubled our goat herd last night with the birth of triplets from our milk doe Uke--six days early. From midnight to 2:30 I was on maternity duty with her in the brisk night air. Mom and kids are fine, two beautiful boys and one girl--who is the spitting image of her grandma! The middle boy is huge, and I had to assist to get him and his sister safely into their new world. Here they are only a few hours old, with mama, this morning.

Tomorrow I go out to the Whitewater Preserve to paint on location for an upcoming Plein Air Artists of Riverside show. This Preserve is the newest in a chain of open space parcels to allow the movement of wildlife, and links the corridors of the Mt. San Jacinto range to the San Gorgonio mountains to the north. It's good to be back painting!

You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2009 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.

Here's Lookin at You by Catherin McMillan

Here's lookin at you

Sahara is one of the lovely palamino mares being looked after by Horse Rescue here in Australia.

Here's lookin at you is an original pastel drawing. 6 1/2" x 9"

$175.00 + shipping

10% of the sale price will be donated to horse rescue to help them continue to look after horses like Sahara.

To purchase email Catherin: catherin@animalarthouse.com

Pay Pal Available.

A Horse Portrait in Oils

I recently finished this painting of 'Iggy', a bright, coppery chestnut owned and loved by Sarah living in Kentucky. He's a big boy but I particularly enjoyed painting his soft, white and pink muzzle. I imagined his soft breath on my hand, reminding me of some of my favorite moments with my horses- their soft muzzle, warm breath, welcoming nickers, the sounds of them munching their hay. I got to reexperience those sights and sounds thru a child's eye yesterday with a friend's son who was celebrating his 9th birthday. I got a chance to 'make his day' by taking him around on my dear sweet kid's horse as he gibber gabbered all that he knew about horses.

As an equine and animal artist I get to combine all the things I love- animals, the tender part of people that comes out around babies and animals and art.

For more information on my art please visit my web site or drop me an e-mail at artbysue@hotmail.com

Thank you and Happy Trails!

Sue Steiner

More For The Shade Of Black Series

Instead of doing things I should be doing..like paperwork and other sundry stuff..I did this casein for the "Shades of Black Series / Winter". This is a 12 x 12 casein and has lovely peachy colors in it and lots of blue.
I have also been working on the bigger image of my mom on her pony and that is almost done. It too will be a 12 x 12" work, but this time it is a mixed media...with some casein and acrylic in the mix...and pen and ink!
I have booked my flight down to Kentucky for May and the opening reception of my art show on the 8th. We are planning on getting to a few horse farms while there for photo 'ops' and the Kentucky Horse Park too. Granted it will be a whirlwind week...but I am still looking forward to it!
Now after having taken some time off to be sitting in the sun with the dogs...back to work...on yes!!! The Taxes! I promise!

Serenity by Catherin McMillan

"Serenity"

By

Catherin McMillan

6 1/2" x 9" pastel

$150.00 + shipping

10% will be donated to Equine Welfare TREW

TREW cares for unwanted and injured horses in Australia.

pay pal available

email: catherin@animalarthouse.com

www.animalarthouse.com

Two Paintings, Black Horse, by Kimberly Kelly Santini

FROM THE TOP: "Frisky," 6" x 8," $324 and "Black," 8" x 16," $529. Both acrylic on canvasboards, depicting a dark bay or black warmblood horse. Inquiries may come to me.

 

Today's paintings were inspired by Alpac, who belongs to fellow artist Judy Wood. Last week Judy sent bragging photos of her handsome boy frolicking in the snow and I begged permission to paint him. Well, I didn't really beg - I asked politely, and Judy, being the wonderfully supportive friend that she is, immediately sent me hi-resolution pics and her blessing.

 

I lost Alpac's likeness early on, but since I was striving for mood and light, and concentrating on color usage, I let it slide. It's harder for me to work in stricter value ranges than it is for me to work in saturated color, and I had many moments where I was fighting the paint.

 

But I stuck it through, and all worked out in the end. I couldn't be happier with these paintings.

 

If these pieces don't sell by the end of the week, I'll enter them in a juried equine art show in Ohio.

 

Thanks as always for looking at my paintings and sharing my artwork with friends and family.

See you tomorrow!!

Kim

ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com

Approaching the herd

I have a new horse photography client in my geographic area, and have been out to her place a couple of times since we first met in the late fall/early winter. I love her set-up and her herd, plus she is in a very nice prairie setting. The only thing lacking so far in our association has been decent weather, and that's something that I hope time will correct as our very long and harsh winter finally shows signs of a slow departure.

This shot is a merged one where I took one photo of Mable leading her boy Michael, and merged it with a different shot of the mare herd. I also altered the colors and added a mild wood texture. I'm quite happy with the end result. I've got lots of shots of Mable's horses in my portfolio already, and I hope for many more to come in the future. You can check her website to learn more about her operation, and my website (under the Western gallery) to see more photos from her place. 

Drawing a Blank, graphite study by Sheona Hamilton-Grant

"Drawing a Blank"

Mixed media (graphite-charcoal)35x27 cm

295 Euros ($365)

Sheona Hamilton-Grant. 2009.Copyright

Here is how a young equine playfully reacts to the boredom of winter.

Here is how a graphite artist reacted to the feelings and memories this simple gesture awoke.
Here is "Drawing a Blank".

Elin Pendleton with an Illustrative Oil for Show Jumping

Some of you may know that I used to be in illustration, many years ago. This painting is SO not the Color System, but there are parts of it buried in the pattern of colors splashed over the rider and horse. It's a strictly illustrative piece to catch the viewer and bright colors do that!

This is a distraction from the greens of "Hidden Pasture", and is done for the HITS posters for the show jumping circuit. I've been getting their press releases, and like a gnat, finally got out and swatted this 20 x 16 oil off my easel. I hope they like it.

Those of you familiar with the Color System will have a hard time telling what time of day it is. After all, there's a green horse, and look at that cadmium orange on the breeches! And in the shadows, too. ACK! This kind of color rule breaking can make for an exciting illustrative image, where realism takes a back seat to "punch" to catch the viewer's eye.

On other news, we've had an interesting four days doing all possible to save the male red tail hawk that nests in our pines. According to the raptor rescue I called, he was poisoned by eating a still-alive homeowner-poisoned rodent. I cannot tell you how agonizing it is to see such a magnificent bird in such distress and to have such a sad outcome. We nursed it and tried our best, but because we didn't get to it soon enough, we were unable to save him. Red tails mate for life, and I hear the female calling for him. PLEASE, before you put out that poison bait for the rodents, remember this red tail hawk, and know that you DO make a difference, one way or the other. Here's a photo of him in our outer studio, when he was still alert and defiantly beautiful. The dowel was needed to occupy his beak while we fed him. Rat poison doesn't stop with the rats, folks.

You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2009 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.