TOLERANCE

6x9 oil on canvas

You might see more paintings of this couple, the cow did not change her posture very much, but her friend flitted about displaying her fine plumage for all to see.

Isn't summer great? My summer has been filled with a lot of painting and a lot of lunch dates with friends. Today began with a few hours of painting, then a 5 hour lunch with a long lost friend. Later this week I am joining some very special blogging buddies for lunch, two I have already had the pleasure of meeting and two I look forward to meeting.

Like I said, summer is great...painting and lunching...lunching and painting! ;-)

BALLERINA BELLA

9x12 oil on canvas board nfs

Summer before last a wonderful friend came for a visit and she brought her granddaughter, Bella with her. Bella arrived dressed in her little ballerina outfit and happily posed for the camera. Not only was she creative with her poses, she had most expressive eyes that seemed to match each pose she struck. For once I enjoyed painting a hand, especially her little knuckles.

Happy Fourth of July to all of you!

LONGHORN LADY

8x8 oil on board nfs
It's my turn to paint in Sheila Tajima's book for The Flying Moleskins and Sheila has requested we paint something that we love, for me that would be cows! I have always loved cows, but it was not until we moved to Texas that I fully appreciated longhorns. Of all the different cattle breeds, the longhorn breed is one of my favorites; they are massive in size and so elegant with their huge set of horns, to see them up close and in person is amazing. Thank you for visiting and please visit here to read more about this particular longhorn lady.

THE COWBOY ARTIST

8x10 oil on canvas

I'd like to introduce a new blog called Some Texas Artists Like To Paint . We are a small group of Texas artists who have agreed to paint and post monthly challenges established by each other. This month, our first month, has 2 themes, I have chosen to paint something for our Anything Texas theme. We'd love for you to visit our blog and become a follower to see what else we will be painting in the weeks and months to follow.

This Cowboy Artist was quite the character, he was dressed in complete cowboy attire, all the way from the spurs on his boots to a turkey feather in his cowboy hat. In addition to his beautiful art, he even had his white horse saddled up right next to him at his booth. He definitely knew how to draw a crowd to his art. I have quite a few references of him, so I plan on painting a little series of this cowboy artist. Thanks for visiting!

GOLIATH & SCARLETT

8x8 sold

I don't have the opportunity to paint a lot of cats, so when my newest client approached me about painting her 6 cats, I was more than pleased! So as not to overwhelm you with all 6 paintings, I am showing you the first and the last one that I painted.

At 3 weeks of age Scarlett, with the olive green background, was an itty bitty thing living on the side of the road at a vacant general store. My client's family was passing through Kendalia, TX as a major thunderstorm was approaching when Scarlett and her brother, Paxton were discovered. Too tired and weak to even try and run away, they were rescued and are now 3 years old.

Goliath (light blue background) came to live with this family only 6 months ago. Goliath is about 12 years old and came to live at a local vet's office after his owner died and his foster mother fell and broke her hip. He is arthritic and has several medical issues, but he can rest easy because he has found a wonderful forever home.

There were many challenges I had to balance in this assignment. Because I do not have as many cats under my belt as I do dogs, I really had to concentrate on the individual and unique features of each cat. This collection will hang as one group and the client requested that each background be a different color. In addition, I had to make sure that the cats were all about the same size so one would not stand out from another. Whew, I learned a lot about cats and certainly fell in love with each of these precious babies.

Thank you for visiting and commenting on Gus' portrait. I will post and share the companion portraits to Gus one day soon. If you hear any whooping and hollering in NE Texas, it's only me celebrating because school is out and I can be a full time painter for a little while!

GUS

8x10 oil on canvas sold

This is one of 3 portraits I recently painted for a client. Without a doubt, it was difficult for me to part with this portrait. As I began my blocking in process and began to see his portrait develop, I could not help but feel that it had an old fashioned and nostalgic quality to it. I loved his one floppy ear, his warm eyes and the way the light fell across his face.

My client's children found this bulldog mix sleeping next to a gas pump at a gas station outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The owner of the station thought he had been dropped off by a trucker. They tried unsuccessfully to find a shelter that would take him, but there was no room for him anywhere. The only thing they could do was bring him home to, you guessed it...Mom in North Texas. Promises were made that the bulldog mix would only stay with their Mom for the weekend and then first thing Monday morning they would contact the Dallas area shelters. Somehow this bulldog mix dog knew he only had the weekend to win this family over. He got along beautifully with their little terrier, bonded with Dad on his evening walks, and Mom, admittedly a sucker for a cutie, fell in love with him. Well, come Monday morning, this bulldog mix had found a home and a name, Gus.

JOLIE FOR DANA COOPER

approx. 5.5" x 16" nfs

oil on gessoed moleskine

For Dana Cooper's moleskine titled Dreams and The Flying Moleskins blog, I chose to paint this beautiful retriever named Jolie. This is a preview for an upcoming memorial portrait I will be painting for Jolie's family. She was named Jolie Blonde after a very well known and beautiful Cajun song. There are many versions of the song Jolie Blonde and you can search ITunes to listen a bit. When I complete Jolie's official portrait, I'll tell you more about her and the joy she brought her sweet family.

Thank you so much for your kind comments and e-mails about the video I posted for my school. It is truly a special place, filled with the most wonderful people! Take care.

West Dallas Community School

I'm taking a break from posting a new painting to share this video of my school. It would mean so much to me if you would take a couple of minutes to watch this short video. West Dallas is one of the 8 poorest areas of the United States and we are funded through private donations. These are the smiling faces I get to see and teach every day. Thank you so much for watching, Enjoy!!

TAHOE

8x10 oil on canvas sold

One of my very favorite clients commissioned me to paint Tahoe for a friend of hers. As I painted this portrait, Tahoe was in the battle for his life. Despite their giant size, Great Danes are known for their affectionate and gentle temperaments.

Memorial pet portraits are the hardest to paint because I cannot meet the pet and sometimes I am limited on whatever photos are available. In all of my pet portraits, I really try to capture the uniqueness of each family pet, and I hope, in this case, that Tahoe's portrait speaks of sweet love and gentleness.

LAKE MARTIN AGAIN BETTER PHOTOGRAPH

This is the same painting for Dominique Eichi's moleskine, just re-photographed, and a much closer representation to the actual painting than the previous post. Thank you so much for your earlier comments, as always your visits are much appreciated.

More pet portraits and other paintings to post soon. Take care; I do hope you are enjoying a beautiful Spring wherever you live!

LAKE MARTIN PATHWAY FOR DOMINIQUE

oil on watercolor moleskine sketchbook paper nfs

This is my contribution for Dominique Eichi's moleskine and for our blog, The Flying Moleskins. The theme for Dominique's book is landscapes/pathways. Dominique is from California and I'm not sure if she has ever been to SW Louisiana, but now she has a painting of one of my favorite locations called Lake Martin. Please go to the flying moleskins blog here and you can read all about this colorful swamp. Thanks for visiting my blog; I appreciate your comments and e-mails very much. Take care.

BUDDY & IZZY

11x14 oil on canvas sold

I received several photos to work from for this portrait. In each photo sat Buddy, ever proud, faithful and solid as a rock and then there was the other little guy, Izzy! Izzy was all over the place in the shots and I could not help but think of him as a child's toy. Wind Izzy up and watch him pop up out of the bluebonnets! Speaking of bluebonnets, soon we will have fields of the most beautiful display of Texas wildflowers, a gorgeous sight to behold. Take care and if you're on Spring Break, as I am, I hope you are having a great start to this beautiful Spring season.

LAKESIDE PARK

8x16 oil on canvas

After a very difficult week, I joined several artist friends today for a much needed respite from school and home. This painting did not begin easily, it began as a different view of Lakeside Park, but it soon became a lovely color of mud after wiping down my first start only to begin anew. As beautiful as it was in Dallas today, my mind was on information overload. This area in Highland Park is lovely, trees are beginning to bud, children were romping through the park, and dogs were happily tugging on leashes, but boy did I struggle. This painting almost became another wiped out canvas until I picked up the palette knife and attempted to try something a little different.

In addition to my regular painting friends, I had the pleasure of painting with Ann Rogers. This was Ann's first time to try a little plein air painting, and despite my painting difficulties and whining because I was cold, Ann happily painted and her amazing results can be seen here. Apparently I did not whine that much, because Ann has agreed to meet up with us again.

Thank you so much for your thoughtful words of comfort for our little Zoe; you have each helped my family more than you could ever know. Take care!

OUR ZOE

8x10 oil on canvas nfs

15 years ago when our daughter was 5 years old and in Kindergarten, our little Zoe came to live with us. Today, Zoe died peacefully in her sleep. Our hearts are broken and empty, but full of the most wonderful memories and unconditional love that only she could provide. One of the many things I will miss about Zoe is her company while I paint, but tonight, I missed her 7 p.m. bark demanding her evening treat.

Rest in peace, Zoe.

SOUVENIRS OF MY CHILDHOOD

oil on moleskine journal nfs

Do any of you remember Golden Book Encyclopedias? I absolutely loved those books when I was a little girl and constantly entertained myself drawing from the whole set of books. This is my contribution for Michelle Burnett's journal's Souvenirs and Postcards theme, and for The Flying Moleskins Blog. Several years ago my Mom gave my brothers and I each a box filled with school papers and mementos of our childhood. Inside the box were some of my little drawings, so it seemed fitting to include those drawings with my favorite illustrated book covers.

This is oil on lightly gessoed watercolor paper and was so much fun to paint. In order to paint these covers accurately, I had to pull out some paint colors that I never ever use, but have them because they were on some workshop list that required specific colors. In addition to my regular palette, one of the colors that I had to rely on was Pthalo Blue...whew, can you say a little goes a long way with the Pthalo. Please take a look at The Flying Moleskins blog to see what the other artists are painting and sharing with each of us. Thanks for visiting!

AMAZING GRACE

8x10 oil on canvas sold

Thank you for your recent comments and e-mails it truly means a lot to me. I try to visit as many of your blogs as I can, but I seem to always run short on time.

I had to go out of town unexpectedly this week and am just getting back to viewing all of your paintings and catching up on a pile of e-mails and other business. I spent 8 hours in the car today with 4 of those hours viewing the most beautiful rural landscapes. Most of my day was spent painting in my head while I watched the changing landscapes right before me. Next Saturday is our first Spring plein air day and I feel ready to begin painting landscapes again.

This is Grace, hunting dog extraordinaire. She is such an awesome family dog, that Grace was given the nickname Amazing Grace. Grace's portrait was a birthday present for her owner and his favorite color in the whole wide world is orange. I don't think of orange as a typical favorite color and I have to admit I could not wrap my head around orange as a background color for Grace's portrait. I was pleasantly surprised at how happy orange is and I, and my client, both liked the final results. Thank you again for visiting, take care!

WINSTON & OTHER NEWS

8x10 oil on canvas sold

Winston is a 2nd commission for a couple of outstanding actors in New York. Brian originally had wanted this portrait as a Christmas present for his wife, but my commission list could not accommodate him, so he agreed on his 10th wedding anniversary for his sweet wife, Ashley...congratulations Brian & Ashley! Winston is a little black pomeranian and his portrait will join the portrait I did of his brother, Little Sweetheart Emmett.

As you can see Winston was another one of my black dog commissions, but painting this black dog was a little different from the others. Unlike the other black dogs I've recently painted, Poms have a dense coat so I had the added challenge of not having the sleek shiny coat to paint...instead, I focused on Winston's "come play with me" smile.
February 12, 2010

So, by now I'm sure ya'll are sick and tired of hearing about our snowfall last week, but this was big news for us in Dallas. We received 12-1/2" of snow and it resulted in a day off from school and an appreciation that I know I love snow for a couple of days, but not a real winter's worth of snow like some of you experience.

February 16, 1985

Yesterday, my husband and I celebrated our 25th anniversary and well, I'm feeling a little brave so, why not show you what we looked like way back when...

Thank you all for visiting; I appreciate your comments very much! Take care. :-D

KARIN JURICK

5x7 oil on canvas

Last year (or was it the year before) Karin Jurick created a blog called Different Strokes From Different Folks where artists joined together to participate in some inspiring challenges. The year end challenge is a fun exchange of artists painting artists! In an effort to thank Karin for her extraordinary efforts, Jill Polsby (thank you Jill!) requested we paint a portrait of Karin Jurick, 118 artists have participated and you can see the entire portfolio here.

Thank you Karin for DSFDF and creating a wonderful network of artists and friends!

BEAGLE IN WAITING

8x10 oil on sketchbook moleskine nfs

It was my turn to paint something in Camille Olsen's moleskine, and this is my contribution for her theme of peace. There is more information about this little painting on The Flying Moleskins blog; you can read about it here.

TUX

8x10 oil on canvas sold

This little painting was commissioned as a special anniversary present for a husband who dearly loved this little guy. Tux came into the family when their 3 little daughters, all wanted a Cock-a-poo puppy. Tux was purchased with the understanding that he was a Cock-a-poo, but the vet determined a Cock-a-poo, he was not! Regardless of the mix-up, Tux became the most loved dog in this family of 5.

For 16 of Tux's 17 years, he ran leash free all over Dallas at his master's heels. People had become so accustomed to seeing the 2 running buddies over the long span of time, that when Tux could no longer run, strangers would come out of their homes to ask about him. He befriended a little Burmese kitten, often sleeping together and he tolerated a wild rabbit that hung around the family's yard, but the one thing that Tux was not fond of was other dogs...he would simply ignore all dogs.

Tux, the little Cock-a-poo-Not was loved by this family of 5 and for his 17 years Tux loved them right back with the biggest heart ever.

Having 17 years of photos to choose from for Tux's portrait, I really liked that a long ago puppy picture was selected. Once again I found myself painting another black dog, but this one offered an interesting challenge in trying to portray that super soft puppy fur.

For those of you from the Dallas area, a group of us have committed to do a little Spring plein air painting beginning the second Saturday of March. Turtle Creek is a favorite place and I'm sure we'll plan some painting time in that area, in addition to other places. We'd love for you to join us, e-mail me and I'll send you the details, I promise we're fun folks! Thank you for visiting. I do try to visit your blogs and comment, but right now I have fallen behind, hopefully I can catch up real soon. Take care and enjoy your Super Bowl weekend!