Horse and Sleight

I am eagerly anticipating the arrival of more slates!  Just last year I started doing more slate paintings and am going full throttle now.  One of the challenges lies in the inherent grain of the slate. This has been especially interesting when painting on the smaller pieces. I have enjoyed solving each one as it comes. Especially apparent in this group is the elephant, where you will see the chips along the edges, which worked nicely into the top of his head, and in his ear on the left side, and the tusk on the left, which has turned out to be a broken tusk.  Each piece of slate has its own personality, and sometimes I set one aside until inspiration strikes.  Right now, I am slate-less.  Ready for more.

 

Elephant, 6x8"

Bluebird Bath, about 4x4"

Sleigh Slate, about 6x16"

Horses in Snow, about 8x10"

Bunny and Trillium, 6x8"

Paintings on Slate

For my gallery show, I ordered a few slabs of slate from SlateLady.com . It was my first time ordering from them. I was happy with the product, except that one of the holes wasn't drilled all the way through. But that's easy enough to fix.  They come with holes so they can be hung with something like rawhide or baling twine.

I had painted on slate before, but it's been years.  My first attempt this time was this chickadee with winter berries, on a small piece, about 3x5"  The teeny, tiny detail makes for an interesting challenge on the textured surface of the slate.

Next was another small one, this lady cardinal on a wrought iron gate. 

Once I got the slates, I couldn't seem to stop painting on them.  I am learning that slate has a rough side and a smooth side, and for some reason I keep opting to paint on the rough side! Duh. Also, it sucks paint like a sponge. It likes a lot of layers. Sometimes you think you are done but then your paint disappears!

 Today's project is a group of horses running in snow.  This piece is 6x9"  A coat of glaze made a big difference in all of these paintings.  It darkens the slate and adds a nice sheen, for a good finishing touch. 

Here's another pic of the running horses, after glaze was applied.  The glare in this photo shows the bumps and ridges on the slate which makes it a challenge to paint on.  However, it was fun and a nice diversion for me -- so I will probably order more.

I Am the Eagle, I Live in High Country, mid Rocky Cathedrals that Reach to the Sky...

"Spirit Bird" 9x12" acrylic

 Yep, I am flying on Cloud Nine these days as my artistic career has reached an all-time high (wait -- that's a different song).  Beginning June 22, 2014, Fernwood Gallery in Niles Michigan will be featuring my art in a one-woman show, through most of July!  That's right -- all me, all the time! 

Fernwood is a lovely place, a state-of-the-art facility located in a beautiful botanical garden.  I can't think of a better setting for wildlife art than a place surrounded by trees and fields and the flora and fauna of Southwest Michigan.

Needless to say, this is a dream come true.  I have my work cut out for me as I now need to have 30 original pieces ready to hang on display.  Yikes!  It's a good thing I have a few months to do this.  Here are a couple of my first attempts to fill the gallery.  Both are eagles, and both are acrylic on 9x12" stretched canvas (which is easily hung without the expense of framing).  I have an affinity for raptors and so probably will be including some owls in the mix.  With these will come some other birds and wildlife, and of course, some of my equine art.  All pieces will be for sale as I produce them.  I will try to keep my blog updated with new art -- so check back for lots more where this came from!

Golden Eagle, 9x12" acrylic on canvas

Today's Project - A Loon for My Dad

"Display on Dark Water", acrylic on canvas, 9x12"

After 87 years on the planet, my dear Dad has left for higher ground.  I am so very sad.  He was a great man, my best buddy and the source of so many good thoughts and conversations.  I will miss him horribly, forever.  It is still so early, and I haven't thought about how I am going to come to terms with this tremendous loss, but I feel every day pulling me farther away from his time here.

This is my firat painting since he's been gone, a fitting one as we often sat out on the deck at camp in the evenings, listening to the loons yodel and howl as they flew over to settle into Bailey's Lake.  It was my favorite part of the days on Drummond.

Dad gave me a great gift in sharing his love for the natural world.  He taught me respect for the earth and for all living things.  When I am walking through the woods I usually see something that I can't wait to tell him about.  I know I will always think of him when I am in the woods.  I hope that, because of this, I will somehow be able to keep him close by.

Native Americans considered the loon the totem of dreams.  To see a loon signifies that you are drawing closer to your dearest hopes and wishes.  Of course, to the mainstream, a loon is a term for crazy -- which at this point in time, is totally accurate.  With the current mess
of characters crawling out of the woodwork, it would have to be loons.

It's either that or vultures.

"Loon Light" acrylic on canvas 9x12", 2012

Today's Project - the Kingfisher

When I hear the signature chatter of this crested bird, I always stop and scan the trees to search for him.  He might be shooting overhead, preparing to dive-bomb the water (because if I hear him I am inevitably by the water) or sitting on a post or limb, unmistakable with his over-sized, crested head.  If I spot him, I get an rush of sudden and complete happiness.  I am not sure why the sight of Kingfisher accompanies this giddy feeling.

Today I looked him up and found that he is a cousin of the Kookaburra, the Australian laughing bird.  Native Americans believed Kingfisher to be a good omen -- a sign of new warmth, sunshine, prosperity and love.  Who wouldn't welcome all these things?  Supposedly, people with a Kingfisher totem should live as close as possible to water, and as far north as possible. That certainly applies to me.

But I think the reason that the chortle is so infectious is because of where I am when I hear it.  I am hiking, or riding my horse, or out in the canoe, or someplace where the Kingfisher frequents.  It is a call to the primal side, the voice saying, "Look! Over here!" and there he is.  It is an audible signature of being in nature, of living in the moment.

I haven't seen him lately, but I have him on the brain.  Here he is, materializing from my mind's eye, in acrylic, 11x15".  Thinking of him makes me happy, so he is already bringing good things.

Barn Owl Art

Today's Project - Brown Pelican

Feeling pretty sad today about the situation in the Gulf -- so I drew this pelican as a sort of prayer for the birds and other wildlife. This is about 11x15", oil pencil, called, "To Blue Water".

Today's Project - Raven

This was a commission for someone's dad who likes to feed eggs to a raven friend. She asked for a collage and I wanted to make it sort of mystical, due to all the lore associated with the raven. This is 11x15", pastel on grey charcoal paper.

Blue Heron Watercolor

One of my favorites. Those of us who frequent shorelines and wetlands have certainly heard the familiar croak of this enormous bird. I've seen herons all over the country, from the rivers in Arizona to the rocky shores of my own Drummond Island Michigan. Natives and lovers of Drummond might be able to see the shape of the island camoflauged in the wing feathers -- to others it is just a nice watercolor of a big wading bird.

Ebay Link

Today's Project - Barn Swallows

My friend Vickie photographed this group of baby barn swallows last spring, and she kindly gave me permission to paint them. This is pastel and oil pencil, about 8 x 12".

This piece is on eBay.

Today's Project - Bald Eagle

Bald eagle in pastel; this is also available as a giclee print in my online gallery.

Today's Watercolor - Kestrel

I had lots of fun last year when I saw a kestrel coming and going from a hole in the barn overhang. I stuck my head up in the hole and found four eggs. A few weeks later I took the ladder, stuck my head in again and found four little puff balls staring back at me.

I didn't interfere with them, even though I SO wanted to grab one and raise it myself. But they did come out and they spent the rest of that season shrieking and calling to each other while the parents fed them. It was so wonderful and I so hoped they would come back this year... Alas. Maybe in the spring?

Bird Toys

Thanks to Etsy.com, I found something for the bird who has everything. Goober the African Grey lives with my friend Debbie Hendrickson in Ohio. I had recently discovered Etsy, the site with things handmade, and took a chance. Sure enough, my search revealed bird toys -- and what a great deal I got! There are all kinds of wood and plastic chewies on rope with a bell on the bottom. I purchased this from XnO Bird Toys on Etsy.

It can't always be easy living with a parrot. I have always liked birds but have never taken on the responsibility of a large one. (I did have a parakeet once; a delightful little guy named Joshua.) I imagine it will happen someday.

I was saddened to hear of the death of Alex, the famous African grey who shattered all science's ideas about the limitations of the avian mind. Alex died in September of this year at the age of 31. He was emotionally equivalent to a two-year-old child (yikes!) and intellectually a five-year-old. He could identify 50 different objects, 7 colors, 5 shapes, quantities up to 6, and most astonishingly, knew the concept of zero.

Alex did math better than I can!

Dr. Irene Pepperberg spent 30 years working with Alex, and I can only imagine what it was like to lose him. Reportedly his last words to her were something like, "Goodbye. You be good. I'll see you tomorrow. I love you."

*gulp.* Sure makes me look at KFC a whole different way....