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!

IGGY

8x10 oil on canvas sold

Iggy was a commissioned portrait I did before Christmas.

Today was so busy, I worked on a landscape commission, tomorrow it will be an animal painting and some time this weekend I have to begin painting in Camille Olsen's moleskine. I have put off working in her book long enough, time to brush off the intimidation and just move on. Camille's portrait of her husband in her moleskine is amazing, take a look at it on her blog or on the flying moleskin blog.

Today, my parents adopted a little Shih-Tzu just like this one. Her name is Bell, but Mom likes to call her Miss Bella. I'm certain Miss Bella will be on canvas shortly. Thank you for visiting, take care!!

LADYBUG

8x10 oil on canvas sold

About a year ago, I was commissioned to paint a portrait of a little pug named Catfish, here is Catfish's little sister, Ladybug. Ladybug was brought into the family because it was decided that Catfish needed a playmate. (Actually, my client says they were tired of Catfish biting them when he was a puppy and decided with another pug, they could just bite each other.) It has been reported that sweet Ladybug never bit Catfish, nor has she ever growled, scratched or bit anyone. She is very gentle and their children love her, especially her little tongue. Ladybug's tongue is about twice the length of her little pug snout, so it constantly hangs out of her mouth. Most days Ladybug can be found sneaking naps while she lounges on the furniture - a place she knows is off limits to her.

Take care all and thank you for visiting and commenting, it is most appreciated. I think Ladybug has the right idea, a nap on the couch sounds like a very good idea on this cold, crisp Sunday afternoon.

BAILEY

10x10 oil on canvas sold

Another black dog for me, I recently wrote on facebook how the last 5 or 6 dogs I've painted have all been black and I have 2 more black dogs this weekend waiting for their turn on the easel. Bailey's portrait was commissioned for her owner's birthday, it was important her collar be part of the painting because she goes no where without her jewels. I have not painted a lot of square canvases; I like this format and hope to do more in the future. Take care and thank you for visiting!

THE FLYING MOLESKINS

I've been invited to join a group of artists that will share their moleskine journals for a little traveling adventure. This is a sketch of my painting/working space that I did in my moleskine sketchbook. I don't do enough drawing, so thank you for this opportunity, Dominique! This was done with a black pen and Derwent watercolor pencils.

On Saturday, my sketchbook will be dropped off in the mail and James Parker will have his turn creating something in my book. Check out the new blog here to see the other artists that are participating in this exchange. We'd love for you to click on the follow link and see what we will be creating in each other's journals.

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BOOTS

10x20 oil on canvas nfs

This is Kate, the first grandbaby of one of my very dear Louisiana friends, Tina. When Kate was born 2 years ago, I wanted a very special baby gift and when I saw these pink leather, silver tipped cowboy boots, I knew this was the perfect "welcome to the world" baby gift. Never mind the pink boots would not fit her until she was about 4 years old, a girl can dream and wait for the perfect day and the perfect outfit. Several months ago Tina sent me photos of Kate posing in her favorite pink tutu pajamas (yes, those are p.j.'s minus the pajama bottoms) and the pink cowboy boots! Kate is absolutely beautiful and not only does she know how to put an outfit together, she's a natural in front of the camera, lucky for me (and Tina) I have more photos and hopefully more paintings.

I sketched this little painting out a few months ago, but did not get around to painting it until Dec. 23, thankfully it came together very quickly as it was a Christmas present for my sweet friend. Merry Christmas, Tina.

MY AFRICA

6x9 oil on canvas sold

My commissions come from many different sources, but I have to say receiving a commission from your daughter’s long time friend is a first for me. My daughter is 19, soon to be 20, and I've known her friend, Laynie since she was a little gap-toothed 5th grader. Laynie commissioned me to paint something from her mother's mission trips to Africa.

Cyndi received her painting on Christmas Eve and very kindly shared her journal entry about where the original photo was taken for this painting. As I read her journal entry, I was in tears thinking of my own family, how very different our lives and circumstances are and it’s only by the grace of God, I live in the United States and not someplace else.

Through Cyndi’s church in Dallas, Watermark Church, she and a group of lawyers go to Africa annually on a mission trip in the fall. Among many things, their mission is to assist Congolese lawyers, visit prisons, and spread God's word. The following is an excerpt from Cyndi’s journal upon visiting The Women's Sexual Violence Treatment Center:

"We stopped in front of a small house with a sign in front and picked our way carefully down the rocky slope to the front door. There were people to meet us at the door, and a happy group of women who clapped and sang their welcome to us after we had found a seat in the tiny gathering room. It was hard for me to wrap my brain around the reality of their circumstances. They were counselors to the women who had been violated, but my gut tells me that they too had been brutalized as well. Shara opened the suitcase full of bears and blankets and explained why we had brought them, and they were so appreciative - again they sang and clapped their thanks. Then Rick stood up to speak for us all and explain why it was important to us to be there with them, that we wanted to remind them that God had not forgotten them, that the world had not forgotten them. Then he pointed to a box of Healing the Wounds of Trauma books, to which again we heard the clapping song of gratitude. And then he leaned over and opened an ordinary looking cardboard box packed with Swahili translations of the Bible. And the women literally leaped for joy, they squealed with excitement, they were exultant, and their gratitude was uncontainable. I began to cry and did not stop crying for a long while. We prayed together and one of the women prayed for us. She sang the prayer, and the women joined in the refrain. I joined hands with a woman with a beautiful infant swaddled to her back. Our eyes never met. One squeeze as we said "Amen". I never heard the translation for this but I knew for certain this to be true, GOD was in that place. He was filling their hearts, our hearts, with His Spirit, and the conviction that His word is true, that there is power in His work and that He is able to accomplish His will with those who seek Him and trust in His word.

I was humbled and convicted. They knew what I often forget or take for granted, that the LORD God has revealed Himself in His work, and His greatest desire for us is to seek hard after Him, whether it is at the kitchen table in the suburbs, or the desolation of a place like Goma."

I know this was a long post, thank you for visiting and commenting. Thank you Laynie and Cyndi!

END OF THE YEAR SELF-PORTRAIT

6x9 oil on canvas

Because a few other blog artists recently painted their self-portraits, I thought I'd try the same exercise. It's hard not to fix what you want to change (erase, smudge, de-emphasize, lighten or darken, in my case) as you paint yourself, but a worthy exercise nonetheless. If you have not painted yourselves lately, I would strongly encourage you to do so.

Thank you so much for viewing, reading, and taking the time to leave comments on my blog. This is a community of incredible, committed artists and I am happy to "know" each of you.

I wish all of you a very happy, healthy, and safe 2010.

Happy New Year!

SULLY

8x10 oil on canvas sold

This is one of several commissions I've been working on before Christmas. Sully is an English Labrador Retriever, otherwise known as a "Blockhead" Lab. They are given this name because of their square or block shaped head. I understand, Sully works hard, plays hard, and in-between, naps hard. At the end of his hard day, I've been told he sleeps hard!

I wish you and your families a very Happy New Year, one filled with lots of art: buying, selling, collecting, and most importantly creating!!

DSFDF PORTRAIT & MY 100TH POSTING

6x9 oil on canvas

So much to say, I've been overwhelmed with painting commissions, but cannot post much until after Christmas; however, I can post my DSFDF portrait painting. I was VERY intimidated when I first received my photo and then literally just threw my hands up in the air, and remembered it's just paint. Slowly my intimidation turned into fun, and I hope the end results show that I enjoyed myself through the process. I do not know who this fella is, but if you recognize him, please let me know!

Yesterday I had the most wonderful day. I met a fellow blogger and now friend, Ann Rogers, for an afternoon of drooling over the most spectacular plein air paintings. After a couple of hours of oohing and aahhing, we had lunch together and continued our conversation about the gallery exhibition and everything else we could possibly visit about...this may surprise you, I am a talker and so is Ann, there was never a moment of silence throughout our visit. Thank you Ann for a delightful afternoon!!

For those of you in the Dallas area, I would encourage you to see Southwest Gallery's Outdoor Painters Society exhibition (open through January 4th) and for those of you not in the area, here are some of the Texas artists I greatly admire, please take a look at some of these sites, you will not be disappointed!

John Cook

John Potoschnick

Laurel Daniels

Bob Rohm

Jill Carver

Rusty Jones

Ann Hardy

This is only a sampling of the artists whose work we viewed, but definitely these are some of my very favorite Texas artists. In addition to all of these links, here's another one for you: Outdoor Painters Society, there you will see all of the members and their incredible works. Ann, thanks again it was a wonderful cold, wet, and rainy Saturday to meet a new friend and talk art!

Thank you so much for visiting and commenting; I truly appreciate your visits, take care!!