Saturday, September 27, 2008

Hello, I'm Mr. Easy

nodp
I have an opportunity to sell Easy to a 4-H-er who is looking for a good horse to take her through high school and on into college.
When I bought Easy 3 years ago, I knew he was too tall for me, but I just loved his disposition so much, I brought him home anyway. But he's just too talented to languish away in the pasture, getting fat and just being my model. AND he's getting harder and harder to throw my big saddle on.
So please pray that this is a good thing for both the teenager looking for a horse and the horse who needs a partner and a good home.

Friday, September 26, 2008

You're Supposed to Follow Me

6 X 8 Oil on Canvas Board $125
Includes Shipping and Insurance
This little Arabian filly belongs to my neighbors and doesn't know that she is either supposed to follow Georgia, the Border-Collie-Wanna-Be, or be chased by her. And this confuses the dog.
Life is confusing enough already - do I buy stocks now or sell everything I have??? Should I get all my money out of the bank and put it under my mattress? Buy gold (can't eat gold)? Whew. I know one thing is for sure - I will be cutting wood all winter, because I don't like being cold. And I AM buying extra canned goods. That's about it. I joke and say "I can always eat the horses" but in reality I have real doubts about that, too. We rarely know what we'll do until we are faced with it, do we?
(FYI: There are over 400 references to GOLD in the Bible...)
Proverbs 16:16
How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver!

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Ma and Pa Cattle - Joined at the Hip

8 X 10 Oil on Canvas Board $125
Includes Shipping and Insurance
These two are a part of my neighbor's herd. John has a nice bunch of Angus cows that he bought as heifers last summer. They should be delivering his first set of calves this spring, and I sure hope he doesn't spend as much time helping heifers as I used to do when we raised Simmentals.
Many a night was spent in the barn waiting for a cow to calve and often having to help pull out a big baby. We had a couple C-Section deliveries, too, so I don't miss those days at all! Mike was working in town back them and since I had a home based business, I was the obvious one to lose sleep watching cows. All but one of John's cows are Angus, though, so I'm betting they'll be just fine. Angus cattle are known to be able to deliver and care for their babies quite well by themselves, thank you.
Acts 9:36
In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas ), who was always doing good and helping the poor.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Kiss My Arabian Filly ...

8 X 10 Oil on Canvas Board $125
Includes Shipping and Insurance
SOLD to a California Collector
I drove past the entrance to my neighbor's ranch day-before-yesterday and saw their farrier parked under a tree, trimming feet. PHOTO OP! After I snapped some good images of of the hoof trimming, they invited me back to the barn to see their latest babies.
I am actually
blessed with 2 wonderful neighbors who raise gorgeous Arabians. They are greatly outnumbered by all us Quarter Horse breeders, but they don't mind. We all love good horses and they raise some of the best (and even cross them with Quarter Horses occasionally!)
This little filly belongs to the Moores and is really fancy - both in attitude and conformation. What a looker - and she had the attitude to go with her looks. She obligingly pranced and bucked and frisked around me while I took a hundred pictures.
I know this color palette is way different from what I "normally" use, but I was experimenting with 4 different brands of Ultramarine Blue and what it does mixed with Cad Orange Hue (one of the ways I make "black") . I had all this paint left over, so I added a touch of Cad Red to the palette and stuck with just those 3. I rather like the results.
Psalm 33:12
Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Patriotic Cattle

8 X 10 Oil on Canvas Board $125
Includes shipping and insurance
Ron's cattle are quite colorful (red, white and blue!), and when these three lined up, it made a painting in my head. I probably should have saved it for the next Fourth of July, but I couldn't resist sharing it with you now.
Ron is home from the hospital now - the quadruple by-pass was successful, although he gave us quite a scare with complications following it. The niceness of one's neighbors can make all the difference in the world in how you feel about your own home, and we do have the nicest. And even though our closest is 4 football fields away, they are all important to us.
Romans 13:9 The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Friday, September 19, 2008

Dog Job

5 X 7 Oil on Masonite $125

Includes Shipping and Insurance

Those of you who own Border Collies know that they HAVE to have a job. These are not lazy, lap dogs. They are the entrepreneurs of the dog world. If you don't give them a job, they will make one.
Georgia, our Border-Collie-Wanna-Be thinks every time I go outside, there is something for her to do, too. She has to find and tree all the cats - sometimes the cats cooperate, sometimes they don't. (When the cats are inside, they all sleep together). She has to find all three horses and make sure they are OK. Sometimes Dandy will play tag, and sometimes she just continues napping in the sun. Easy will occasionally play, too, but PJ just shakes her head at her and continues to graze. PJ eats all the time and nothing can interrupt that.
Ron's cows are another job altogether. No matter which direction they are heading, Georgia gets them there faster, and the calves cooperate at this incentive better than the Mommas.
This bull calf is new to the bunch and doesn't have a momma in the herd, so he is easier to intimidate than the rest - for a while anyway. I suspect he'll quickly find out that Georgia is all bark and no bite and won't be hurried any longer. Meantime, Georgia has a job...

Proverbs 10:4
Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth



Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Time to Leave the Nest


8 X 10 Oil on Masonite $125
Includes Shipping and Insurance
My neighbor, Ron, leases our pasture for his roping cattle. Some are Longhorns, some are unidentifiable. All are entertaining and pleasing to the artistic eye.
This is my favorite cow and her spring-born bull calf who is obviously getting pretty big for his britches. It won't be long before he's bigger than his momma!
Ron's in the hospital right now, though, and cannot wean the calves yet. There are 4 pretty big babies, and since we have beautiful grass right now, I suspect he'll get to that chore when he comes home - or we'll do it for him. Just like some human children, leaving Momma's care is traumatic for calves. It usually means several days of listening to constant bawling when we separate them, but ultimately everyone is happier in the end. Just like with people....
Romans 8:39
neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Fair Warning?

16 X 20 Oil on Canvas
SOLD to a Dallas Collector from Dutch Art Gallery

I painted this image as a small painting first, and I am beginning to believe that I do my best work in that manner. I added the cactus and hiding snake to give a reason for the horse doing his spooky, jumping thing. The mountain man image came from the Rendezvous Pageant at Pinedale, Wyoming and I have several more plans to use him.
I have been busy painting larger paintings recently because I have an ad coming out in the American Art Collector Magazine next month. I also participated in a small local show this weekend, and sold one of my big paintings that I WAS hoping to sell after the ad. Being low on large-painting-inventory is a GOOD thing!
I plan to paint a couple more little ones today - Ron's cows were up close to the house yesterday evening and one big old momma cow has a HUGE baby still nursing on her - talk about a chick that needs to leave the nest! I couldn't resist taking their picture.
Psalm 84:3
Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young— a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Idaho

6 X 8 Oil on re-gessoed panel
FREE!!! (plus shipping)
Claimed by collector in Georgia
Many of my fellow Daily Painters are committed to posting everything they paint, every day, regardless of the quality. Let me let you in on a little secret about MOST artists. We occasionally (and even often) score with a really good piece, but we all have dogs sleeping in closets, hidden on shelves and tucked away in corners. I really admire the painters that are truly honest and let us see their every effort.
I painted all day on a very large painting that I started 4 months ago. I don't like it anymore and do not know how to "fix" it without starting all over. Nevertheless, I spent all day on it and then painted this small landscape which is equally bad (in my opinion). It's on a panel that I had already painted ANOTHER bad painting on!
And yes! it is FREE!!!! I will GIVE it away to the first person to email me - just to see if you are paying attention (shipping will cost YOU, tho! About $10). LOL
I need to return to the basic fundamentals....
Colossians 2:8
See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Kiss My ....

5 X 7 Oil on Masonite $115
SOLD to a Dallas Collector from Dutch Art Gallery
I needed a break from the DETAILED big paintings I have been working on. Little ones are mindless fun. This old bison was having fun the day I photographed him, too. Chasing cows and other bulls. I could have watched his antics all day.
This little one and most of the other small unsold paintings that have been completed this year will all go up for auction on eBay the first week of November - just in time for Christmas. Stay in touch so you don't miss out on the fun. Many will be framed, too, and I will start them all at the same price - probably at half of what I originally listed them.
Acts 2:13
Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine. "

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Hurry Up, Mule!

20 X 24 Oil on canvas
Check with Artist for availability
As you know, we spent a lot of time this summer traveling and gathering reference material for my paintings. One of the events we attended was the Pinedale Mountain Man Rendezvous Pageant in Wyoming. They re-enact the settling of the county with a totally fabulous show held at their rodeo grounds.
I took pictures of mules, horses, teams of horses, native Americans, cowboys and settlers, and MORE. My husband declared my photo library complete. I say, NO WAY! But I have to admit that it's pretty close.
This mule was being towed by a scruffy looking guy, and the fellow in the background was actually part of another scene. I put them together and will let YOUR imagination react to the image. (Who's towing the mule and why are they in a hurry? Is the man chasing them or warning them?) All I know for sure is that the mule needs to go faster!
Psalm 55:8
I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.