Happy New Year!

Here's wishing everyone a wild and crazy New Year!!

Back on Track

Merry Christmas!! I hope the holidays were good to all out there :-)

While were besieged by a violent stomach flu, (which went through the family) and a bad case of "community acquired pneumonia" we still managed to enjoy a lovely, albeit quiet, Christmas with friends and family. I hope everyone out there was able to do the same, but without the illnesses!

Back to art!

"TREUE" German Shepherd - NFS
Commissioned Portrait • 11"x14" coloured pencil/watercolor

In the coming weeks I will be posting some of the Christmas commissions I had this year, plus progress reports on my entries for some upcoming shows, which all have January and early February deadlines. So without further ado, here is TREUE, a stunning GSD that I painted. The final portrait is shown with the original sketch at right. Enjoy!

Copper Gaze

"COPPER GAZE"
5"x5" original watercolor painting on Arches board

Here is my latest small auction painting. It is loosely based on our fist cat, who was a marmo and white semi-longhaired boy and he was beautiful!
I love how the intense look turned out in this piece; Cats are wonderful at holding that focused look when something grabs them...

This painting is available for $50.00 plus $6.00s/h.
Please contact me if you are interested.

WIP - Border Collie

WIP - Border Collie
4"x6" watercolor on Arches HP paper

I'm here, I'm here!...
I've just been trying to finish off my Christmas commissions, which I can't post until later, and I have very little 'extra' painting time, which explains my lack of blogging activity.
This WIP (work in progress) piece is a small collie painting, watercolor. Lovely happy girl (sorry about the lack of eyes...). It may be available, I have one customer who is waiting for the final before they commit to the purchase, so check back in the next few days to see the finished piece.
I am also starting another cat painting, and I hope to have it up on ebay by the end of the week. I would like to be faster, but I still have my Christmas shopping to do!!

Thirty Horses, Thirty Days

Thirty Horses, Thirty Days, Copyright Linda Shantz

I'd like to spotlight a fellow equine/canine artist today; Linda Shantz is a wonderful artist that lives not far from me here in Ontario and we've known each other since the CAEAS days.

She recently set up a challenge for herself ; painting 30 small equine oil paintings in as many days and has done a marvelous job! She even painted through a bad cold, still producing work, unlike some of us (ahem!) who take to their beds when ill... (I must interject here, that she has many horse hugs to bolster her spirits whereas I don not. That's my excuse and I'm sticking with it :-D)

Surf on by to check out her body of work at Thirty Horses, Thirty Days. And yes, some of them are for sale!

Oreo

"Oreo"
7" x 10" mixed media on watercolor paper

Since getting over the flu, I have been quite busy finishing up a bunch of Christmas commissions. I can't show all of them just yet, but here is one that is a pre-Christmas gift.
This is Oreo, a beloved pet who has crossed over the rainbow Bridge. This portrait was a bit of a challenge in that the available photo was quite small. I'm pretty pleased with the result, however, and I hope the client will be as well :-)

Pencil Pony

SOLD

"Moorland Pony"
4"x6" Pencil Drawing, on wc paper

I am fighting off the last dregs of this flu and did up this drawing today...

I'm sure any young girl would love to label this fella her "BFF" Calm, steady, friendly and trusting, he'll keep all your secrets and cover you with light kisses. And what girl could possible resist that mane, not to mention those eyes!!

Happy Thanksgiving to all our American friends!!

Flu...again

Due to another bout with the flu, Kim is taking some time off. Check back Wed/Thurs. for a new post.

Tabby in a Basket

"Tabby in a Basket"

5" x5" watercolor on WC paper

This is the little cat painting I had been working on. It was taken from another painting that I did a couple of years ago, but wasn't too happy with.

I changed my cat reference to a softly back lit tabby and the subtle browns, blues and dove grays, work lovely together. I am very pleased with how it has turned out; hope you are too!

This painting is available for $50.00us plus $6.00 S/H.
Please contact me if you are interested.

I am still here!

-SOLD-
"WOE IS ME!"
2.5"x 3.5" Original ACEO; Mixed media on watercolor paper

Finally I have ditched this ugly cold and am getting back to the land of the living!
I spent the last day catching up on some of my Christmas commissions and am going to give this week's DSFDF challenge a try, plus I have a little cat painting that I am hoping to post tomorrow.

It seems the older I get, the longer these colds take to work through. Trying to focus on an art board and hold a pencil or paint brush steady is next to impossible...so, I did doodle in some of my better moments and came up with a little whimsical ACEO that I finished up today.
This little guy kinda reflects what we feel when we are ill. Hopefully he brings a smile to everyone, especially to those of you who are fighting one of those annoying cough/cold/flu bugs now!

:-D

Shadows

SOLD
"Shadows" •5"x5" watercolor on board

Here is my painting for this week's challenge over at Karin's Different Strokes.

I have only eeked out this one painting this week as I am fighting a bad cold/flu thing that I caught from my son. A few more days and I'm sure I will be back to normal :-)

Grey on Black

-SOLD-

Grey on Black •4"x7" watercolor on board

Well, here it is, bad Friskett not withstanding, the second head study for my arabian pair. A wonderful grey on black.
I am not sure which one I like better; the grey , for all it's drama in contrasts, or the Black, for all the rich colors that play underneath that black coat....Perhaps you have a favourite??


Here is a peek at how these two would look presented side by side...

Old Frisket=Bad Idea

I don't normally use Frisket, but for my painting "White on Black", I wanted to get a really deep, rich background, and I needed to protect my white areas. Hence the use of this liquid masking product.

However, watercolor artists should only use FRESH Friskett, in other words not the bottle that has been sitting on the shelf for eons and eons (Did I mention I don't normally use Frisket?)

Once old, Frisket can, (and did) refuse to come off the paper, and when it finally did release, it took little pieces of fiber with it.
So, my painting for today was not salvageable and I have started it over...using a new bottle of Frisket which I have tested on a scrap piece of board (getting clever in my old age!)

Please check back tomorrow to see the new results. In the meantime, I am taking my cue from this lovely Brighthope Kennel pup I recently visited with and am going relax and go to bed-Cheers! :-)

Black on Grey

"Black on Grey" • 4"x7" Watercolor on board

Here is a head study of a lovely arabian. While he may be black, there is tons of colour in this handsome boy. Tomorrow I will be posting the 'sister' painting to "Black on Grey" entitled "Grey on Black."

This painting is available. If you are interested, please contact me.

 

The Road Ahead

"The Road Ahead" 4"x6" Watercolor on paper

Today's post is from Karin Jurick's Weekly Different Strokes Challenge.

While the photo itself was of an American monument, literally, I cropped in on a part of the reference piece.
I painted in a very subdued palette but focused in on the small bits of bright orange red color of the brakes and stoplights seen on the road.

As a Canadian watching the US Election from the sidelines, this mirrors my feelings at this time. American citizens are on the brink of possibly making history in electing their first African American President and/or their first woman Vice-President. The pressure in this election is intense...Nothing is clear cut, or stands out; so it is time to stop and think and take a breath before reaching that iconic building.

I wish the best of luck to both candidates and all our American friends as they go to the polls tomorrow. We'll certainly be watching here.
This piece is available for $50.00 plus $5.00 shipping.
Please email me directly if you are interested.