AZALEAS IN THE PARK

11x14 oil on canvas

This month our theme for Some Texas Artists Like to Paint is flowers. Oh, dear it is official, I am not a flower painter. I attempted a few this week, all wipe outs and one so bad, I just threw it in the trash. As I wailed and threw fits, my sweet husband very confidently suggested, "just paint like Nancy Medina". As you know it doesn't quite work like that, but I do like that a few posts down on our little blog she refers to a glass of wine, now that I can do.

Ann Rogers encouraged me to post this painting for the flower theme. She and I went out last spring together and painted one day in the Turtle Creek area of Dallas. Each Spring the azaleas put on a show and just scream paint me, so we did!

HER BELOVED GIO

8x10 oil on canvas panel nfs

I admit I sometimes get behind in visiting other blogs and there are times when I will visit a blog and keep reading until I feel "caught up" on that artist's blog.

About a month ago I was visiting Sherry Massey's blog and found myself reading and reading and realized how much I had missed. Sherry and her husband fell on some very hard times and for what must have been a most difficult decision, returned their beloved Gio to the breeder with the understanding that they WOULD be back to take their Gio home with them once their lives returned to a sense of normalcy. During that time something happened to Gio's health and the breeder made the decision to have him put down. With tears streaming down my face, I read about her love for her wonderful friend and their shock in learning of his untimely passing. Life can be so hard and so unfair, I find things that cannot be explained are the hardest to accept, and to me, this was one of those times.

Perhaps it's just a highlight on the top of Gio's head, but I saw a heart and thought this could be a little valentine gift for Sherry. Happy Valentine's Day, Sherry, this painting is for you! I know it is not the same as having your precious Gio, but I do hope, in time, it will bring you some comfort. I hope you are reading this or perhaps someone will send you this way, please e-mail me with your contact info and once it is dry, I'll put your painting in the mail for you. Take care all and Happy Valentine's Day to each of you!

EIGHT FOR TEN

5-1/2"x14" oil on panel

Ok, so by now you all know about Carol Marine's new challenge at Daily Paintworks, go here to see all of the amazing results. Ten minutes per little painting...do I even need to tell you the first one is in the upper left hand corner and the last one, #8 is in the lower right hand corner? Ten minutes was difficult for the first row, but by the time I got down to the second row, I found myself not needing the full 10 minutes, Carol was right, it gets easier and you do get a feel for what you can accomplish in 10 minutes. Ok, so I failed in subject matter, she specifically said paint an object; however, I am not a still life painter and find painting such things tedious. After failing miserably with a few asparagus, I fell back to a photo of what else, a dog.

CASSIE

8x10 oil on canvas sold

Cassie is an Ibizan Hound and belongs with the set of 5 portraits I recently painted for Cowgirl's foster mother. I had never seen an Ibizan before this time, this smooth hair beauty is gorgeous and a delight to watch in action. Because Ibezians are sighthounds, Cassie's attention span was unbelievable; she has the ability to hyper-focus on one very small thing, which was most helpful in trying to photograph her for this painting. Also, Ibizans have the most graceful necks and a regular dog collar will simply slip off their heads, instead they need a martingale collar. Cassie and Pocket (you'll see her portrait next) have a collection of collars from 2 Hounds Design, please take a look at their beautiful collars and leashes here, truly works of art. Although Cowgirl does not have the graceful neck that Cassie does, I will be ordering a gorgeous collar for her, she does deserve it, does she not?

TINKERBELL

8x10 oil on canvas sold

Many of you know we adopted a cute little rescue puppy named Cowgirl this past May. She is a tail wagging happy dog and has brought us much joy and love after we lost our little 15 year old schnauzer, Zoe. Seriously, we should have named her Happy Girl, instead of Cowgirl. In addition to all that unconditional Cowgirl lovin' she brought us, she introduced me to her foster mother, who just happened to commission me to paint her 5 family pets! So, here is the first of five, Tinkerbell, a Devon Rex.