Untitled WIP

The current painting on the table. I photographed Amber in South Dakota while she was ponying three horses across the Cheyenne River. This is a departure for me, I am not really comfortable doing people, but this had an intimacy that I really liked. Amber is an amazing horsewoman and one of the best riders I have ever seen. Here, she is looking back to make sure everyone is onboard and ready to go into the water. I hope to finish this up today or tomorrow, but it has a ways to go.
I am still struggling with the hand injury, so I listen to the pain to tell me when to stop. This is not an easy thing to do when deadlines loom. I will post the final when it is done. Now I just have to come up with a title.

Golden Girls

A few years ago, I attended the Draft Horse Classic in Grass Valley, CA. It was here that I got the opportunity to photograph the American Creme Draft Horse. There is so much to these "gentle giants" but the most amazing is the way their coats glow in the morning sun. This is a small painting, 5"x7" in pastel.
Please go to the website www.acdha.org for the history of this amazing breed.

San Dimas Festival of Western Arts

This weekend was the 33rd annual San Dimas Festival of Western Art Show. I was honored to be featured artist this year. This is one of my favorite shows to do, the people who run this show, board members and volunteers, really do a wonderful job and take such good care of all the artists. The show was moved to the historic Walker House in San Dimas for the first time this year and proved to be a good move for both artists and collectors. The 100 year old house was the perfect setting for the collection of artwork presented by the 40 invited artists and also for the permanent collection.

I had the privilege of being one of the judges of the student art competition for the 7th year. I swear, the art of the kids gets better every year and I think that we old guys should watch out for the young artists on their way up. If this weekend is any indication of what we have to look forward to, I don't think collectors will be disappointed.

As featured artist, I was also asked to give a talk to students, artists and collectors. I was nervous, but I think it went well. I received a lot of good feedback so I hope those of you that were there enjoyed it. My topic was, "How long did it take you to paint that?"...probably one of the most asked questions we artists hear.

I was shocked and surprised to learn that 5 of my paintings were nominated for awards. At the Saturday gala, I was awarded the bronze and silver medals for Pastels, and the silver for Pencil. It was a great show and sales were good in the gallery and in the quick and slow draw auctions. A sure sign that even though the economy is struggling, we continue to appreciate good art.
Thank you to those of you who made it out to see the show, I know that you were not disappointed by the art that you saw there. And for the rest...you really missed a lot of great art, cowboy poetry, music, food and fun. Maybe you can make it next year!

Next weekend it is the Reflections of Nature show in Fallbrook.