Busy, busy...

This is two in a series of songbirds I have been commissioned to do. Hopefully I will finish it today and get to work on the others! No rest for the weary...

My secret passion....

I am a huge carousel fanatic. Ever since my first visit to Disneyland as a kid, I saw my first real, life size horse carousel and I was hooked. Since then, I take every opportunity to see every carousel I can. On my trip home from a recent visit to Oklahoma, I found an early 1900 vintage carousel in Iowa. This weekend, I visited the Cafesjian's carousel in Como Park in St Paul. This 1914, 68 horse carousel has a fascinating history...it was commissioned by a private investor in 1914 from the Philadelphia Toboggan Company for 8,500 dollars, barely survived a fire in 1939, and then in 1988 was rescued from an auction. The carousel is definitely a lost art in this country, and one to be treasured. The artistry and craftsmanship is a sight to behold. I was lucky enough to visit three of these historic landmarks this summer, and I hope to see all of them someday. Each one has an amazing history, from the hand carved animals to the restorations and "rescues". Visit the website http://www.ourfaircarousel.org/ for more information on this amazing landmark and more on the precious few carousels left in the U.S.

And by the way...yes...I rode the carousel today, and yes...I was a child again for just a moment.

You can see the fire damage on this horse...the restorers decided to keep a few of the horses in their damaged state so the delicacy of these treasures could be realized.

Each horse is hand carved and one of a kind...

For only $1.50, you can be transported back to your childhood...money well spent in my opinion.

Finished...

I still have some clean-up work to do, but it is basically done.
"Royal Colors" Pastel 5"x7"

Putting it together...

My husband and I live for our weekend trail rides on our horses. The farm where we board them has wonderful trails, including trails through the woods and through a prairie area. The prairie trail is full of thistles and a few weeks ago we noticed that they were in that transition period from the beautiful purple blooms to the white fluffy seed pods. Among them, there were hundreds of goldfinches that we scattered as we rode through. This is a painting from a ride that I took my camera on. I love the contrast in colors and the blend of sharp thorns and soft textures. I will be putting in the goldfinch today and I can't wait!

2009 Artist Ride

Another year, another Artist Ride...and this year was one of the best. Every year, this invitational only event takes place in South Dakota. Artists come from all over the country to photograph at the Shearer Ranch. Native American models, cowboys, civil war recreationists, mountain man recreationists...you name it, are made available to us. I call it eye candy and I take on average 7 to 10 thousand photos over the course of four days. This is just a sampling of what I took...This is Chelsea, the Shearer's youngest daughter. She turned 17 this weekend and is probably the best rider I have ever seen.

This little foal was born on Friday night. The funny thing about his birth was that no one knew the mare was pregnant!!! Talk about a surprise...

My favorite little Lakota model.

Another great weekend and a lifetime of paintings just waiting to be done.

Many thanks to Jim Hatzell and the Shearers for making this once in a lifetime event possible. Be sure to check out www.artistride.com to see a sampling of some of the very special artists and models included in this amazing weekend.