Colby

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

OK, here's a good cheese! Such a lovely golden yellow, perfect for grilled cheese sandwiches.

(Lol, if you're just finding my blog, that statement might seem a little strange... just browse back some posts and catch up on my 'cow-naming' history...)

On another note, last week I had really hoped and even expected to get 7 paintings done for this week, enough for 7 posts, and here it's late Friday and just my third post of the week, with not much hope for any paintings on the weekend. It seems to me that has been going on with me for weeks now (the hoping and then the disappointment.)

So I've finally had enough, and am giving myself permission to be an Almost Daily Painter, or even an Occasional Daily Painter, starting now and for the indefinite future. My average posting rate has been 17 per month for the past 2 years, "So," you say, "What's the difference?"

Well, that has been me trying to paint and post daily. It's finally caught up with me that I've not been doing it and along with all the other obligations of life, it's been getting even more difficult to maintain the illusion of a Daily Painter. (In other words, "It's HARD! Waaa!" Especially when I did not have permission to slack off!)

So! I've given myself permission (because I am my own boss, which is great!) and the tension is leaving my shoulders as I type.

So what does this mean for you, my followers, and your friendly morning cow with your coffee? Well, I might be taking a breather for a little while, as the paperwork has piled up to headache proportions, and the ol' sales tax date will be coming 'round again soon. Then I have some larger paintings I've been meaning to work on for some competitions, my "Cows, Etc." second volume to create, and the Christmas Season will bring portrait commissions.

But rest assured that I'll keep the progress of all art endeavors posted, and maybe you'll see some caricatures from time to time. And I won't be stopping the little 'dailies', just slowing down a bit, and just for a while. The golden carrot will still be dangling out there!!.. Waiting for me to chase it again!

Thanks for reading! Have a good night (or morning!)


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Tango

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

Yep, another dance name. I just can't keep my focus on any one theme for very long, it seems. The rest of the cheese names are getting a little moldy waiting to be used. I may do a couple of plant names next, or Roman kings perhaps. Hmmm...

Got some progress shots for Tango!

And by the way, "Tango" is the same calf as "Trouble," who graces the cover of my first 'Cows Etc.' book! Will I pick Tango for the cover of Volume 2? Hmmm, I don't know. But these two certainly illustrate the changes in my use of color over the past 2 years.

"Trouble" pastel, 7x5 inches, October 2011

Rumba

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

Sorry for the long delay. That's life interfering with the artist's genius again (sigh).

I wanted to use another cheese name, but none of the ones left on my list seemed to fit this majestic lady cow. So I delved into my 'dance names' list instead.

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'Ian at Breakfast' in Strokes of Genius 6

"Ian at Breakfast"  (pastel, 18x14 inches)

 I'm pleased to announce that this portrait will be included in North Light Books "Strokes of Genius, Vol. 6" which will be published in October 2014!

This is my one portrait of my son by himself, which I did as an answer to his question one day "Hey, Ma, how come you always draw Audrey?" (who I've painted no less than 5 times.) I said "Well, it's a matter of photogenics..."

So I searched through my family photo files and found this one from when he was still young enough to not be self-conscious or deliberately silly in front of a camera. I remember when I took the photo; it was definitely the light that caught me, and I may have thought even then that I would paint this scene.

Ian, who now goes by Robert, is 16 this year. When I told him of this recognition gained by his portrait, he said "Show me." and then nodded and said "Hmm."

I think that means he's pleased.

:)

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Beaufort

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

Though this is definitely not a dairy cow, I was happy that one of my cheese names fit him so well. "Beaufort" is such a satisfyingly manly sort of name, I think. Pronounce it loudly with a Texan accent and you'll see what I mean.

Getting ready for a weekend away, and was way too busy today for progress shots (I actually forgot to take my camera to the studio, and even though it's just 50 paces behind the house, I was not in the mood to go back and get it! Ever have one of those days?)

But here's a fun bit of news about Beaufort, he's the flipped image of "Bruce" from early last year...

"Bruce" (pastel, 7x5 inches) March 2012

It's been fun to deliberately work from some photos that I've done before, and see how my style has progressed. I seem to be getting much more friendly with color, and have been sneaking in some fun, calligraphic strokes lately.

Sometimes I wonder if, when I've played out this loose, expressive phase to my content, if I'll come full circle back to a tight photo-realism, but with a deeper vitality because of my color choices... Hmmm. Who knows. I'm too busy in the present to ponder that for too long!

I have another bit of exciting news to brag about in tomorrow's post, but then I may be 'absent' over the weekend. But I'm taking a bunch of new cow photos with me to paint! So be ready for next week! Thank you all for reading, and please share my posts with your friends!

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Josie

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

I wanted to continue the cheese names for a bit, but as this one developed, I saw just tons of colors in his coat. (Have you ever really looked at tan, brown or beige, and tried to paint it without using any tan, brown, or beige? ...Fun! ...And colorful!) So I was calling him Joseph (of the many-colored coat) before he was even finished. But when he was done, he didn't look much like a Joseph to me, more like a Josie, maybe... and now I can't get it out of my head "...Josie's on a vacation far away!..." (do those lyrics date me?)

Another bit of trivia about Josie: he (or she?) is the same calf from one of my very first mini cow portraits that started the series -- "Brown Calf", later renamed "Brynn" (Yes, when I started I actually thought I could title these cows what they were. Ha! That didn't last long.)

"Brown Calf" aka "Brynn" (pastel, 6x4 inches) from 2009

Here are some progress shots of "Josie"...

Thanks for watching! Please share!

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Izzy

"Izzy"  (pastel, 8x6 inches)  click here to bid

I meant to paint a lot over the weekend. I really did mean to! But somehow I wound up taking care of loads of other business, framing, and glass-cutting, and packing, and delivering, and tons and tons of email.  I also edited a couple dozen new 5x7 cow photos in preparation for painting them. Out in my studio, however, I discovered I was out of primed 5x7 boards. Sigh. So I spent the part of today that I didn't spend running errands measuring and cutting and priming and syncing my iPad.

Izzy got chosen for today's painting because he's an 8x6, and before I got too involved with busywork, I saw that I had an 8x6 board already primed, so I set to work on his underpainting and while the primer was drying on the other boards, I got to work!

See my progress:

Thanks for watching! Please share!

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Peek-a-Burro

"Peek-a-Burro"  (pastel, 12x9 inches) $350 unframed for a limited time.

I primed this painting a couple weeks ago and got most of the pastel on it last weekend in Midland, TX at the Septemberfest Art Fair. Finally finished it in the studio! I've done this fellow before, in "Head Rest" (image flipped) and this is definitely one of those shots that I wish I had several versions of. Anyway it deserved to be painted again, so I did a flip and a change of crop.

This one will be $450 when framed and is slated for the Bayou City Art Fest in Houston next month (Oct 12-13, 2013.) But for a limited time I'll offer it unframed to anyone who's desperate for it!

I also took progress shots. (Lots!)

 (Excuse the color change here - these steps I did in the studio...)

Thanks for watching! Please share!

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