Cattle Drive

20 X 24 Oil on stretched canvas
Contact artist for availability

I already painted a similar, smaller version of this painting, and I really liked it in the square format. I wanted to try it more vertical, though, so I eliminated the one slightly hidden steer and moved the lower one even lower - and aimed him in another direction. I also put the cowboy in a more interesting environment. AND made the whole thing more colorful and textured - there is a LOT of paint on this one. I still like the little one, though and will probably donate it to a silent auction for the Cancer Walk-a-thon that is happening here next month.
I remain stuck on the longhorns, it seems. I took some really cute rooster and hens-with-chicks pictures last week, so that may be my next obsession! Birds are always challenging, but I love them.
One on my collectors raises pigeons - and so did I back in High School. I had a Science Fair project where I taught pigeons to peck a spot to get rewarded with food. After the whole thing was over (and I did earn an "A"), we kept the birds in an outside aviary (in suburban Dallas!). We discovered pigeons to be very prolific breeders, and in no time there was quite a flock. Neighbors' and parents' complaints convinced me to take them off 30 miles or so and release them. The very next day all birds were back in the coop! It took a trip to Lubbock to get them far enough from home to stay away! They were pretty wild birds when I got them, and wild they became.
1 Corinthians 3:8
The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.

Stuck Easy

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My regular sun down routine includes catching both cats and securing them in the garage (safe from the coyotes), one last toss of food at the koi, refilling hummingbird feeders if necessary, and counting horse and cow noses. I only counted 2 horses last night – Easy wasn’t within immediate view from the back door, and he wasn’t hiding behind one of the large shrubs that line the garden fence, which was often the case. Uneasily I loudly called his name “Easy!!?”

A loud whinny from the scrub oaks and hackberries that line the driveway to my left told me where he was and that he was in trouble, because he didn’t immediately appear. I ran to the woods and in the dim light I spotted him – caught in the brambles and unable to go forward or back without getting scratched and scraped.

I bolted for the house and hollered at Mike to get the pruners and gloves while I got his halter. We hurried back to the horse, and I haltered him and kept him still while Mike trimmed the brambles from around his body and those already caught in his tail. Easy calmly stood there and then took one step at a time as we trimmed the snares from around him. As I petted him, I remembered that as I returned from town that afternoon around 2:00 pm, I noticed him standing in the woods and I recalled thinking to myself, I didn’t know there was a path at that exact spot. Well, there is now, and evidently after he scratched himself and got his tail tangled, Easy just decided to wait for help. Aside from a few nicks and being covered in mosquito bites, he was fine. I felt bad for not noticing that he was in trouble 6 hours earlier!

I haven't painted much this week - the yard and garden has commanded my attention. I did get a lesson in horse hoof trimming - thanks, Trista! That reminded me how MUCH underpaid farriers are! (Oh, my aching back!)

Proverbs 22:5
In the paths of the wicked lie thorns and snares, but he who guards his soul stays far from them.

Three for Breakfast, Please

6 X 8 Oil on gessoed Masonite
SOLD to a California Collector

These three aren't usually so polite while waiting for feed, I assure you.
Recently we have discussed building a hen house - not only for the eggs, but for bug control. Every few years we have an influx of grasshoppers and we haven't had that plague for a few years, so I fear we are due. During the last episode (at least 5 years ago) I purchased a dozen Guinea keets and carefully fed and cared for them for several months in a cage before I risked turning them loose in the yard. The first couple days of freedom went well, but on the 3rd day, 12 Guineas went out and 11 Guineas returned. And so it progressed for a couple weeks until all had disappeared. We suspect an owl (Great Horned) was the culprit. Guineas are notoriously stupid, although they are demons on grasshoppers. So now the consideration is game chickens (smarter birds) that we'll enclose in a hen house every evening.
Year ago when the kids were little, we had chickens, but Santa brought us a yellow Labrador puppy one year and we could not convince him that the chickens were not his personal play toys. So we have not had them since (to Mike's relief - he wasn't particularly fond of them). Now he has agreed to build me a coop - so it's been added to list of a million other honey-dos.
Revelation 11:6
These men have power to shut up the sky so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

HAPPY EASTER

It's raining in my part of Texas and we are feeling so blessed!
May you all have a wonderful and joyous Easter!
nodp

Freckles is Leaving Now

9 X 12 Oil on Canvas Board $200
SOLD to a Texas Collector

This is the look I get from "Freckles" when I venture out to photograph her and her calf. It's the "Screw you, I'm leaving now" look - she trusts no one. Last year Freckles was open (didn't have a calf), but Ron kept her anyway hoping that this year would be productive. I think he's pleased with this speckled heifer. I said I wasn't going to paint every spot, but I feel like I did!
This cow is always the most difficult to catch in the pen. Whenever you have a cow like that, the "suspicious factor" seems to be transmitted to the rest of the herd, and if you press the issue, they ALL become impossible to catch and you may as well give up until another day. Only when you act as if you DON'T want to catch her can you catch her. And using a horse never helps - she can outrun just about anything - and with her horns, you don't want to corner her. SOOOO the solution is to leave feed in the corral, keep watch and when she finally wanders in (last of course), run and beat her to the gate. Her aggravating tenacity is what makes her such a good momma, though, and she reminds me of some people I know......
Luke 5:11
Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Have a very blessed Easter!

Are You Following ME???

5 x 7 Oil on Canvas Board $115
Includes Shipping and Insurance

A follower of my blog requested a painting similar to one I painted nearly a year ago - of Easy standing over his feed pan with a rooster watching - both waiting to be fed. I told her I may paint another one similar - keep watching. That sent me on a search through my archives of chicken photos and I found this handsome fellow. I hadn't painted him yet, preferring those roosters with a little more red in their tail and body feathers. But he has such a nice collar of orange around his breast that I decided to give him a try. Now I think I'll paint him with a horse - and possibly a hen - back to the archives.....
Luke 12:37
It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.

Whose Fanny is Cuter?

8 X 10 Oil on Canvas
SOLD

I have many talented people in my life - and not all are artists, in the strictest sense. Some are artistic with fabric, some are artistic with their heart. Some are just plain artistic at being a friend - all have gifts of the spirit and use them well. Among many things, Trista is an artist with horses - AND she has a cute fanny (as her husband Scott will attest to). Trista not only breeds and trains really nice horses, she takes care of them from head to toe. And she cares for my horses' toes, too. I couldn't resist getting this photo of her working on Easy last fall. She has promised to teach me how to trim hooves, and I think I will be ready with her next visit. If I'm lucky I may even be able to trade her this painting for her effort.....Trista? :-)
Exodus 35:31-33 ³¹ and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts- ³² to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, ³³ to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship.

Babysitter

9 X 12 Oil on canvas board
SOLD to a collector in California

In nearly every herd of cattle, there always seems to be one cow who is a bit more protective of not only her calf but all the other cows' calves, and she becomes the self-appointed babysitter. In Ron's herd, that cow is Freckles. I don't dare get closer than 100 feet to this cow, and I NEVER get close with Georgia, the Border-collie-wanna-be, unless I want some long horns shaken at me and the dog chased all the way home. This is mid-morning nap time at the Longhorn Calf Day Care Center, and Freckles seems to take her guardian job seriously.
I started this painting while in Granbury this weekend, but I got frustrated with it (actually I preferred visiting with the tourists more than painting, and I lost my concentration!). This is a difficult cow to paint, due to all her freckles, and her calf is no easier. But just like painting a brick building - you don't paint every brick, and here you don't paint every freckle. Through use of color, you hint at the freckles - and believe me, there's a million of 'em! And her calf looks just like her, so I'll be getting lots of freckle painting practice in the months to come....
Isaiah 30:23
He will also send you rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful. In that day your cattle will graze in broad meadows.

Getting Hot Already

9 X 12 Oil on Canvas Board
$135 includes shipping and insurance in U.S.

In the space of a few days, our weather has gone from frost cold enough to waste all my potato plants to mid eighties to extremely high winds gusting to over 65 MPH. Texas weather is testing us already this year and we are making summer travel plans to head for the mountains. I don't think we'll be gone as long as we were last summer, and we can't go anywhere in July because HOPEFULLY I hope I'll have bushels of tomatos, beans and corn to put up - if it all doesn't burn up or blow away.
Matthew 7:25
The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

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Price: $135 USD
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Catch Me If You Can!

16 X 24 Oil on Canvas

SOLD to a California collector

More roping pictures - this one is from a recent event held by the local university - Tarleton State. Not that Tarleton needs the recognition, but if you want your child to get a GOOD, solid education from professors that care and in a town that is still possesses a hometown atmosphere, send him or her to Stephenville, Texas. There is a world class Nursing school there as well as a great Business College and Agricultural College. And the pre-vet and pre-med programs are exemplary.
They ALSO have a superior horse production program and have graduated a number of world famous cowboys. Quite a few kids attend with their own horses in tow. Ye-haw! TSU is a part of the A&M system, and despite the fact that Mike and I went to Texas Tech, we are still Aggie fans - sometimes!
Ruth 4:14
The women said to Naomi: "Praise be to the LORD, who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer. May he become famous throughout Israel!

The Usual Suspects

16 X 36 Oil on Canvas
Check with Artist for Availability

I have just about enough Longhorn paintings for the Granbury Gallery and decided to return to the horses for a while. My friend and neighbor, Lee Clay, hosted a cattle working last spring. I wasn't there, but my other friend Pat Broeder, generously shared some photos from that event.
I rarely paint from other people's photos, but Pat has a very good eye for photography and seems to have an instinct for what I like - though I'm sure she isn't thinking about ME when she uses her camera!
This Saturday is "Billy the Kid Day" in Hico, Texas. Legend has it that a man named Brushy Bill Roberts lived out his days in Hico, Texas and was actually the real Billy the Kid. An old friend of mine, Bob Hefner, wrote a number of exposes on the subject and even opened a museum nearly 20 years ago - now run by the Hico Chamber of Commerce. New Mexico has never been happy with Hico "stealing" its outlaw (some believe that Billy was actually killed and buried there), but the story has started some lively debates as well as put Hico (pronounced with a long "I") on the map! I'll be at Sugar Moon Antiques and Gallery Saturday afternoon working on a painting and visiting with the tourists. Come see me if you're in these parts - or are journeying down 281 to view the Hill Country bluebonnets. You won't regret it!
2 Corinthians 7:10
Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

Out of the Box

20 X 24 Oil on Canvas
I painted this 3 times and have wiped it off each time. The assignment for first Wednesday Daily Painter's Challenge was to paint something "out of the box". Well, after I have shown this one, I will definitely throw it into the box!
Don't ask about buying it. It will be gone tomorrow!!!! :-) But I have fulfilled my assignment....
2 Chronicles 23:18
Then Jehoiada placed the oversight of the temple of the LORD in the hands of the priests, who were Levites, to whom David had made assignments in the temple, to present the burnt offerings of the LORD as written in the Law of Moses, with rejoicing and singing, as David had ordered.

Easy Through the Bluebonnets

5 X 7 Oil on Canvas Board $115
This painting was donated to benefit victims of crime in Erath County Texas

My talented friend, Trista, has again told me about someone who might be interested in Easy for an English riding prospect. I have always thought that this horse should be used like that, but I have made no real effort to pursue finding a rider/home for him. I SO enjoy watching him run and using him as a model. This young lady, however, wants to lease him as a "trial", and I am considering the proposition. I'm afraid she'll like him so much, though, that she'll actually purchase him. What to do, what to do. I don't mind lending him out to responsible people - it might actually be GOOD for him. I would still have PJ and Dandy for my eyes to enjoy. And I have drawn and painted him so much, that I can almost "do" him with my eyes closed.
When I turned him and Dandy loose into the south pasture Friday, they ran and ran the length of the field - at "cruise speed". Both of them seem to just barely move their feet and skim the surface of the earth to move at breakneck speed. If I was Hindu, I think coming back as a horse would almost be a step up - especially if I came back as a horse cared for my someone like me. And I would surely love the ability to run SOOOO fast!
2 Peter 3:12
as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat

Spring Gift

8 X 6 Oil on gessoed masonite
SOLD to a collector in California

Spring is TRYING to come to my little part of Texas. We had another inch of rain last week, but last night I had to cover the tomato plants due to the threat of frost. I moved Easy and Dandy to a smaller pasture and locked up PJ for her annual weight loss program. PJ doesn't lift her head from grazing, and that's OK in the winter, but on Spring grass she gets really fat and has a tendency to founder. So she gets locked up in the round pen this time of year and goes on a strictly hay diet. She hates it, but it's for her own good. Every time I walk out the back door, though, I hear her whinny to me as if to say "I'm starving! Feed me more!" I can't remember the last time I saw her ribs, so she gets no sympathy from me!
As of yesterday, Ron still had three calves with 2 more cows due. Since the horses are moved, he should be letting them onto our pasture soon. I always look forward to watching them out my studio window and painting them as well.
Ezekiel 34:20
Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep

Waiting on Mother Nature

9 X 12 Oil on Canvas Board Contact Artist for Availability

Three of Ron's 5 cows have calved now - this one is still a hold out, I think. She's still patiently waiting her turn to give birth. I love her markings, and standing with the morning sun beside her, she did present a pretty picture. And the painting looks wonderful in this frame, don't you think?
So far the herd has given birth to 3 red and white freckled heifers. I tried yesterday to get a photo of all three together. That was like herding chickens, plus I didn't dare get too close because one of the cows is a first-timer and she definitely didn't look real happy about me approaching her calf. Thank goodness for long distance lenses and strong barbed wire fences.
Psalm 34:18
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Caughtcha!

16 X 20 Oil on gallery wrap canvas with painted sides
$300 includes shipping and insurance

I hope John Niero forgives me. This is my weak attempt to paint in his wonderfully colorful, vivid style.
I first painted this calf a couple years ago and never liked the results. Usually I get Mike to remove the staples and I then stash the flat canvas in a dark closet for the rest of my life and restretch a fresh canvas on the stretcher bars. But I had read an article recently about reworking disliked paintings in a totally different style. I saw some of John Niero's work in Western Art Collector Magazine, and it inspired me to paint over this painting in a totally different style. I've already got several others that I am going to work on in a similar fashion. Who knows - this just may be the start of something new!
2 Peter 1:19
And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

Water Cow

6 X 8 Oil on gessoed masonite $115
Includes shipping and insurance

I know some of ya'll get impatient and/or worried when I don't post regularly, but believe me, I am OK - just painting on some larger canvases and working in the yard and vegetable garden.
This morning as the sun was rising, I noticed Ron's cows next door getting up, stretching and getting ready to feed their calves (there's 2 new ones). I threw on a sweater and jogged across our front pasture over to the gate that separates us. I climbed the back side of Ron's pond to approach the cows on the other side and you might have thought the cows saw an alien. When they spotted me, they took off running for the far side of their pasture, and it took a good 20 minutes for them to realize it was only me and to settle down. I took photos for another 40 minutes and my patience was well rewarded.
I got some great photos of cows reflected in water, cows and calves crossing water, cows backlit by morning sun, etc.
Ron has five cows - three are speckled Longhorns and 2 are black, hornless (muley) cows. This little heifer calf belongs to one of the black cows, and Ron hasn't had his hands on her yet to find out if she has horns. You can't see them at this age, but you could feel them if you could touch her head - something I wouldn't recommend right now unless a good, strong fence separates you from her momma when you perform that test! A sweet cow can turn into a demon in a second if she thinks her calf is threatened. I know from experience.
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Drinkin' Buddy

8 X 6 Oil on gessoed Masonite $115
Includes shipping and insurance

Sometimes the best path to satisfaction is a long drink of water. Have you ever watched a horse drink - especially from the ground and not a raised trough? You can almost follow the swallow up that long neck and over the edge of the neck into the belly. And there is something so satisfying about those long long, guzzling gulps. I also don't think horses drink until they are REALLY thirsty. I rarely see one just take a sip and leave the tank. They either spend a long time drinking or they don't drink at all. Hmmmm - this is something that just occurred to me, and I'm certain their is a sermon in there somewhere.
Matthew 25:35
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in.

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Price: $115 USD
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Climb To The Top

This cow was climbing to the top of a ridge to see the cows on the other side. Sometimes the view is better, but not always. Often it's best to stay on the side of the hill and be a little protected.

My friend, Debra, took me around in her Gator yesterday to get morning pictures of live oaks and her neighbor's longhorns. Thanks, Deb! Deb lives about 7 miles from me - and she's a CLOSE neighbor! Here in this part of Texas, I consider anyone that lives within 15 miles of me my neighbor. And in actuality, some are even farther than that. I know a number of people that live in the city that don't even know who is in the house 30 feet from them.

This painting will be for sale through this blog until it goes to a gallery.

Galatians 5:14
The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Media: oil
Size: 5 in X 7 in (12.7 cm X 17.8 cm)
Price: $115 includes shipping and insurance

How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $115 USD
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Framed Paintings

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I swore I wasn't going to buy anymore frames, but I couldn't resist these (and some bigger ones, too). I am still working on gallery paintings and needed a couple impressive larger frames, but I couldn't resist a few smaller ones, too. It really is amazing what a good frame does for a painting.
The two darker frames (8 x 10) are $30 and the larger 9 X 12 is $56. I know that sounds like a lot, but it's American made, real heavy, all wood, and carefully constructed. And the longhorn painting looks stunning in it. I may have to spring for a couple more larger ones...
Psalm 139:15
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

It's All About the Horns

This big ole longhorn steer belongs to a neighbor across the highway. I don't know if he's competed in any shows, but I suspect he has won his share of ribbons. His horns appear to be award winners.

I e-mailed my friend, Debra, and asked her if she knew he name of her neighbor's big ole black and white steer. This is how she responded:

Well you are going to absolutely crack up!!! Lonnie & Kit started their herd with 4 young steers. They let

each of their (then) 4 grandchildren name them. There is Rusty - red spotted Res.Gr.Champion.

There is Bronco - pretty sure he's the buckskin with blended black shoulders and head.

Then one small grand daughter named the little solid white cute one Snowball. He is now VERY BIG with

lonnnnng sharp horns with black tips and is pretty mean. Course with a name like that I would be, too.

The last grand daughter could not talk at the time of the naming because she was a baby, so they

just called him Baby Steer until she was old enough to decide. Well, she liked the name. So go ahead

put that moniker on that big ol' beautiful black & white longhorn. Tell the whole world just who Baby Steer

is. "Baby Steer" it is!

It has been raining for 2 days in my part of Texas and I have been in and out of it all afternoon without complaint. Despite the fact that it's 40 degrees, I have smiled during every wet minute! The bluebonnets always bloom around my birthday - end of March - but it was beginning to look a little "iffy" as to whether or not we would get a show this year. The seeds germinate late summer, and we did have a nice rain in August that got them up. But all winter the little bluebonnet plantlets have remained small and pathetic, waiting for moisture that failed to come. BUT we have nearly 3 inches in the rain gauge now, and I had to search for my mud boots before I could go feed the horses. (Mike graciously loaned me his.)

I may paint this again with bluebonnets.

Isaiah 61:11
For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.
Media: oil on canvas panel
Size: 9 in X 12 in (22.9 cm X 30.5 cm)
Price: $150 includes shipping and insurance in US

How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $150 USD
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Downhill Cattle Drive

A hot summer day, heading downhill toward another pasture with, hopefully, greener grass. You may draw a parallel with today's economic situation. We must descend to the valley before we climb the mountain.

I painted this from a photo taken by fellow artist Doug Prine. Doug is very generous not only with his talent and teaching, but also with the hundreds of photos he takes. I don't normally paint from photos taken by other artists, but this one was impossible to resist. I am going to paint it again much larger, and probably place the cowboy coming up over the edge of a ridge with a touch of sky visible.

Last week I spent about 30 minutes at the end of friend, Debra's, driveway taking several hundred photos of her neighbor's longhorns. I am particularly fond of their champion steer, Rusty. There were also a number of cows with their younguns and several other steers. I am so fortunate to live in an area with uncountable critter models! I really don't need to travel far from home.

Matthew 20:15
Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?

Media: oil on canvas board
Size: 9 in X 9 in (22.9 cm X 22.9 cm)
Price: $150 includes postage and insurance

How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $150 USD
Framed as shown: $200 plus shipping and insurance
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Longhorn Morning

SOLD to a collector in Connecticut

My front pasture gets the prettiest light in the morning. This was last spring when we had green grass and rain. For a Longhorn, this cow is in great shape. And she was nursing a big calf at the time, too. All the cows are in the pasture next door right now, so I don't get to see them much. Ron will let them come over as soon as we have grass, I suspect. But we need rain first - I think that's how it works. And we haven't had significant rain in over 3 months. We are currently under a burn ban and like California, we cringe when the high winds come through. Getting surrounded by grass fires isn't fun. We don't have the pine forests, though - just lots of pasture grasses that burn fast and furious. I keep the yard grass immediately next to the house watered just in case our pasture catches fire. There's not much left to burn though.

Psalm 104:4
He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants.
Media: oil on canvas panel
Size: 8 in X 10 in (20.3 cm X 25.4 cm)
Price: $115 USD

How to Purchase:

This painting is SOLD
Price: $115 includes shipping and insurance U.S.
Or, send me an email

Reflected Travelers

SOLD

This creek bed in Central Texas provided the perfect setting for this couple. I wish there was as much water in it now - we still need rain.

I will be journeying to Baton Rouge Wednesday and will return Sunday. I have a lot of kin in Louisiana (Hi, Jane!), and Mom and I periodically go visit them. I'll be taking my camera and hopefully will find some green and signs of Spring in Cajun Country...

Media: oil on gessoed masonite
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
Check with me for availability

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Arabian Afternoon

8 X 10 Oil on canvas panel
SOLD

Arabians can be fiery steeds - this one is still young, though, and doesn't show the signs of being hot - but it's in his blood and in his heart and cannot be ignored.
Psalm 72:14
He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.

Media: oil on linen board
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
Price: $115 USD

How to Purchase:

This painting is sold, but I may be able to paint another one similar for you.
send me an email