The United Colors of Bovinton

"The United Colors of Bovinton" (pastel, 16x16 inches) $975

I cropped this composition straight out of a photo from one of the feed lots up in Kansas. The camera was on it's longest zoom, as I had to stand back on higher ground next to the road because of the double fence around the lot. Still, the cows saw me and were curious. They stood facing my way as if waiting for me to do something exciting.

The composition was inspired by my "4 And a Half Sheep" painting from last fall. I enjoyed the odd crop of that one so well that I've been on the lookout for more images that will make for interesting crops.

The title was inspired by the clothing store of a similar name that was popular at the local mall when I was in college and was known for utilizing models of all colors.

"The United Colors of Bovinton" will be in my solo show at the Breckenridge Fine Arts Center in Breckenridge, Texas, June 11-July 20, 2013.

I haven't included progression shots in a while so here you go!

This is the first scan of what I thought was a finished painting. However...

...This is the finished painting. Can you see all that I found that needed fixing? (The first scan was also too dark in general, for example, the shadowed side of the black cow was not changed, the final scan just exposes it better.)

Thanks for watching! Please share!

.

Salt n' Pepper

"Salt n' Pepper" (pastel, 16x16 inches)  $975

For a long time there was a herd of black and white cows (that's some black cows and some white cows) five miles down the road ...until the construction started. I used to call them salt and pepper cows, sprinkled like seasoning across the field. I've wondered if they're actually the same breed, as I've seen the calves nursing on mothers regardless of color.

This one will be in my solo show at the Breckenridge Fine Arts Center in Breckenridge, TX, June 11 - July 20, 2013.

.

Got Milk?

"Got Milk?"  (pastel, 24x12 inches) 

The herd of Belted Galloways ten minutes down the road can usually be found way on the other side of the field, unless it's a cloudy, dull day. Finally I passed by on a bright sunny day and Oh Joy! There they all were, close to the fence!
This painting was composed from two shots of the new calves.

"Got Milk?" will be in my solo show at the Breckenridge Fine Arts Center in Breckenridge, Texas, June 11- July 20, 2013.

.

Miss Lilly Rose

"Miss Lilly Rose"  (pastel, 15x8 inches)  $1375

Well, I've learned my lesson from the last post, never to mention the weather in advance. South central Texas from San Antonio up past Austin and miles to the east and west of IH-35 received massive amounts of rain, severe thunderstorms and flash flooding all weekend long. Kerrville had a 40% chance of rain, and sure enough, it rained just about exactly 40% of the weekend.

Thanks to my excellent weekend in Houston last month, and my imminent solo show, I wasn't too bummed with the low sales. It helped a lot that it did not rain during closing and tear-down time!

View from my booth, midday Saturday

Artists socializing

 So now my attention is on my solo show in Breckenridge, TX, for which I have to deliver 25+ works this Friday. I almost have my list complete, and am even trying to finish 2 new pieces by Thursday. "Miss Lilly Rose" will be there!

.

The Quiet Side of White

"The Quiet Side of White"  (pastel, 32x32 inches)  $4000

My new show-stopper to replace the two that sold in Houston this spring. This one will be with me at the Official Texas State Arts & Crafts Fair in Kerrville, TX, this Memorial Day Weekend, May 24-26. (Along with several other new works never before shown in public!)

It's going to be a beautiful weekend - sunny and hovering around 90 with just enough cloud cover and a breeze to keep it from feeling too hot. (And come on... in south Texas, 90's not hot!) Come on out to Kerrville and enjoy the days of shopping and browsing beautiful artwork, fantastic food and drinks, free live music, demonstrations and children's activities. Fun for the whole family!

Visit the Texas Arts & Crafts Educational Foundation website at www.tacef.org for more info about the Fair!

.

Sheriff

"Sheriff"  (pastel, 12x9 inches)  $1375

Sheriff will be with me for the Texas State Arts & Crafts Fair in Kerrville, TX, May 24-26, 2013. If he survives the weekend unsold, he'll go on to my solo show at the Breckenridge Fine Arts Center in Breckenridge, TX, June 11 - July 20, 2013.

I haven't posted demo-photos in a while, so to make up for that, here are some good ones of Sheriff!

A couple days after he was 'done', I noticed his right eye was too high and close to the other, so I washed it out and repainted it. This image is after wiping off the eye with a wet rag. I didn't take more photos before the final scan, so I'll post that again below so you can see the difference without having to scroll all the way back up.

(The color change is just the variance between camera and scanner..)

Thanks for watching! Please share!

.

Carrot

"Carrot"  (pastel, 7x5 inches)  click here to bid

Carrot is my answer to Monday's Muffin. I thought the two of them make a great pair (Pear? Hmm, haven't used that name yet...)

Carrot and Muffin will only be on auction for a very limited time, as they will need to go with me to the Texas State Arts & Crafts Fair May 24-26 if they have no bids by May 20.

Muffin

"Muffin"  (pastel, 7x5 inches)  click here to bid

A friend of mine had suggested Muffin as a name for one of my cow paintings, and I finally found the perfect image! (Bubbe - this Muffin's dedicated to you!!)

Isn't he perfectly plump and baked to a delicate golden crust? I think he'd be a lemon muffin or maybe mandarin orange.

Yum.

Muffin will be available for only one week on the DailyPaintworks auction. I'll need to frame all my available artwork for the Texas State Arts & Crafts Fair in Kerrville, TX, May 24-26.

.

Brotherly Love

"Brotherly Love"  (pastel, 24x30 inches) $2800

One of the three large cow paintings I've been working on this week. I mostly finished this one earlier in the week, and it's been hanging around my studio, waiting for my verdict. It only asked me for a couple of small adjustments in the past few days so I'm going to call it done now.

Below is the primer underpainting that I gave you a sneak peek of on Wednesday:

.

"Audrey with Flowers at Seven" accepted to Hudson Valley Art Association Exhibit

"Audrey with Flowers at Seven"  (pastel, 28x22 inches)

Just got the news that this, my most recent award-winning portrait, has been accepted into the 81st Annual Juried Exhibition of the Hudson Valley Art Association. This is an old and prestigious organization. Signature membership is by invitation only. Artists are considered for membership after being included in three juried exhibitions. (So I decided to enter with my very best work and see what happened. Yay! Two more accepted entries to go!)

The show runs June 14 through July 28, 2013. The opening reception is at the Lyme Art Association, Old Lyme, Connecticut,  Friday June 21st, 2013 from 5 –7 pm.

.

Vern

"Vern"  (pastel, 7x5 inches)  click here to bid

I tried for "fast and loose" today. I like it. I think I've had cycles of working this way in previous years. I should concentrate more on sustaining this kind of energy. It's just too easy for me to slow down (...but horrendously large multiple approaching deadlines do help with speed and looseness.)

On another note, I finally posted a photo-demo of how I package my small unframed pastels for shipping. You can read it on my Art Journal Blog.

.

Beautiful Morning

"Beautiful Morning"  (pastel, 24x24 inches)  $2200

This was the demo begun on the Sunday of opening weekend of my 2-Woman Show with Jeannette Cuevas at Cactus Jack's in Gruene, Texas, way back in October.  Ok, so I'm slow about getting around to finishing things. I have my priorities, and it wasn't until now, when I have 3 weeks to prepare for an art fair AND a solo show, with another art fair 5 weeks after that (which will be during said solo show,) that my priorities got around to finishing some half-done works..

This one will be with me for the Texas State Arts and Crafts Show in Kerrville, TX, at the end of the month. If it survives that without selling, it will go on to my solo show in Breckenridge, TX in June. Meanwhile, I just might take it over to Cactus Jack's for the next week and a half, just in case.

I've been painting like crazy in the studio the past few days, and have (I think) finished one 24x30 new painting, am half-done with a 32x32, and have primed another 22x28 piece. I don't want to 'give anything away' too soon, but I'll give you all a sneak peak at the primer-underpaintings for those three, which I prepared on the same day last week...

22x28 primer underpainting for pastel painting

24x30 primer underpainting for pastel painting that's finished -- I think! Stay tuned for new posts.

32x32 primer underpainting for pastel painting that is currently about 1/2 done...

For all you new readers, I can explain that my current underpainting method is using pastel primers, that is, acrylic-based toned gesso that has pumice in it for grit that the pastel will stick to. I have two favorite pastel primers that I use in combination. One is Art Spectrum pastel primer, the terra cotta color. The other is the Golden brand Fine Pumice Gel, with Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold acrylic color (Golden brand) added to it (at about a 2/1 ratio). The resultant gold primer is slightly transparent, so I apply 2 or 3 layers for some variation of values. The Art Spectrum terra cotta color goes on top (or sometimes in between the gold layers) to add the dark value.

So before I even apply any pastel, I have up to 3 of my values already laid out in my underpainting! Stay tuned for more posts in the coming days! (Or just subscribe to my blog, if you haven't yet, so you won't miss anything!)

Thanks for reading, and please share!

.

Yang

"Yang"  (pastel, 12x12 inches)  click here to bid

This started as a demo for the Trinity Art League in San Antonio last month. I've titled him as a sort of sequel to "Yin" from last fall. They're both 12x12 white-faced blackies, but apart from that and the direction of the pose, they're about as dissimilar as can be. The color scheme, the temperature, the mood, the entire personality. I felt it appropriate to name them as opposites.

"Yang" will be on auction for only one week, then will be framed for the Texas State Arts & Crafts fair where he will sell at full retail of $550 (if he survives the auction!)

Here are some progress shots from the demo:

Thanks for watching, and please share!