Un-reliance

We artists can sometimes get lazy. Relying too much on photographic reference, our paintings can conjure a feeling of artifice. They stiffen and fall flat. Feel contrived. Overly orchestrated.

To avoid the bland, I turn to drawing from scratch. I love to draw and wonder why I don't sketch more often. Other artist's drawings intrigue me. Drawing can illustrate line, direction, speed, chains of bodies in space, ovoids, nuance, milieu, tenor - okay, so I'm sounding like my art history professor and you get the point.

In an attempt to express the dynamic:


I considered foreshortening the front leg. In a large canvas this could be effective, on this small panel I decided it would look awkward.

"Lively Wave" oil on panel, 14"x11"

Fun exercise. It ended up with a slightly Asian feel. Like it? Make me an offer...

“When you do dance, I wish you a wave o' the sea, that you might ever do nothing but that” - William Shakespeare

OBS Pics

Another cold and windy day here in Ocala, Florida. Here's a few pics from yesterday's OBS Day at the Races and this morning out at the Select Two-Year-Old Sale.

See? See the crowd when we're not over saturated with racing? Okay, so we only have live racing one day a year and due to the economy, some prime sponsors had to rescind leaving us with a mere four races. But the entire county (it seemed) savored every hoofbeat.



It was great to see all the horse people I so dearly miss. In talking with the curious while ever-promoting my downtown studio/gallery, it was quite sad to admit I'm not painting horse racing scenes. And this is a horse racing blog. Boo-hoo. Gotta make a living, kids and diversification is the key to survival. Take a moment to read this article featured in our local Ocala Style Magazine: We're in for Lean Times. Says lots with honesty and some viable optimism.

"I'll be back." – The Terminator

Splish Splash

Ever go riding into water? Be prepared to get wet.

Most horses love water and are excellent swimmers. They stomp, play, blow bubbles and find great joy in splashing themselves and everyone else in their vicinity. Some will attempt to drop and roll with rider still aboard.

"Splashing" oil on canvas, 18" x 30"

Now I'm hooked on painting water even if it is just a big puddle. Working on this piece brought back memories of my childhood: summer trail rides ending in the pond, bareback, fistful of mane, blissful, madly in love with my mighty pony. Even this group of formal equestrians acknowledge the bliss of horse + water.

“There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in.” - Deepak Chopra