Forget Economic Recovery, What About Image?

Horse racing is my passion. As an equine artist, it's my precious muse. I worked almost thirty years in the industry beginning as a hot walker of course, making my way up the ranks to groom, pony girl, exercise rider, assistant trainer, trainer and owner/breeder - to real jobs in the racing office as program production coordinator, clerk of the course and placing judge. The first time I got on a horse in 1968 at Lincoln Downs almost created a national scandal. Race trackers know what I'm talking about.

I tell you this so you know from whence I speak. Horse racing is in a sad situation. Yes economically, but also from a self-induced bad rap. As I listened to the not so subtle snipes quipped during the Eclipse Awards on Monday night, one has to wonder what it will take to bring my beloved sport back to respectable legitimacy.

Let's see. Steroids. Milkshakes. Cobra venom. Eight Belles. Rick Dutrow. PETA. Questionable synthetic surfaces. Drug violations for Asmussen, Pletcher, O'Neil, Mullins et al. Our beloved Jack Van Berg told a congressional sub-commitee: “It’s chemical warfare out there." Ouch. Of course he's right but I'll tell you that EVERYONE is responsible. From the owners who place extreme pressure on the trainers to produce, to the vets who research the next undetectable in their basements, to racing management looking elsewhere. And all the shysters in between.

What does this mean to me as an artist? A good portion of clients purchasing my artwork are not associated with racing or even horse racing fans in particular. They tell me they love the action and color. Recently, their response to my latest paintings is (politely) : "I'm not into horse racing, do you have something available in foxhunting? (or hunter/jumper, dressage, polo, western, reining, driving, paso fino, arabs, pintos, farm scenes and all the rest)

As I diligently ply my trade - working long hours in the studio daily, finally making inroads with various race track marketing departments, creating the next innovative dynamic - how do I respond to all this? I'm a painter attempting to portray the beauty, power, speed, excitement and every other adjective to describe the extreme commanding force that is horse racing.

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On a lighter note: my client informs me that her champion western show horse is legs only steering. Keep your hands still. The artist attempts to keep her hands still...

The added bulk is from advancing age, not steroids. Honest.

"His comment about the industry’s movement to eliminate drugs and become more transparent was well received." - quoted from Paulick's live blog regarding a statement made by Jess Jackson.

Thawing, Not Chilling Out

Last week was crazy. Guests. Very cold weather. Power outage during very cold weather. House freezing. Inauguration. My b-day. More very cold weather.

For my birthday, I planned a day of beer and subs on the river. However, the thermometer read 25 degrees in the morning and even I'm not that tough. Been living in Florida too long - I just don't do cold anymore.

Plan B sent me to Gainesville to visit the Harn Museum of Art at the University. Warm inside. Diminutive but impressive as small museums are, this one possesses a surprisingly respectable permanent collection. It includes a nifty little sculpture by Nevelson as well as Rodin and Lachaise. Paintings by Monet, Bellow, Burchfield, Hassam and Soyer took me aback.

I was mesmerized by three Herman Herzog's as I didn't realize he had spent so much time painting in Florida. His landscapes are a bit nineteenth century academic, but stunning nevertheless.

"Florida Sunset" oil on canvas, 25"x19", Herman Herzog

"The view is loaded with Light, Light, Light, ever changing and so wonderful in its myriad colors." - Candace Faber

OoHA Goes National

I almost forgot to post this bit of news. Featured in the February issue of Art Calendar is an interesting article about renewed interest in artists salons. It's authored by art marketing maven Alyson B. Stanfield of ArtBizCoach.com and includes a portrait of our salon, Out of Hand Artists. We've gone national!

top, l. to r.: Carlynne Hershberger, Kelli Money Huff, Jessica Miller, moi, Mary Verrandeaux, Moe Hahn. bottom: Lorna L. Effler, Nancy Moskovitz, Merrill Anderson, Margaret Watts, Jackie Shindehette

Alyson provides structured guidelines to assist artists in organizing a salon and starting the conversation regarding marketing and business. The plan is available free at ArtBizConnection.com. Of course I highly recommend it - we're entering our third year together. Our salon has evolved into a strong group of professional artists who network and support each other in every imaginable manner. The exchange of ideas is priceless. Our vision:

We are dedicated to elevating the value of art and artists by recognizing our work as a business and ourselves as entrepreneurs.

I thought about organizing a salon for two years. My advice is do not take that long! Reach out and make friends with other artists. You don't have to always be alone in the studio.

"I'll lean on you and you lean on me and we'll be okay." - Dave Matthews Band

Trepidation

New painting started. It took me two days to draw the complicated composition. All those legs in front of and behind, all those bodies both horse and human, stacked up one after another. My inspiration is from a photo I shot at the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga last summer. I'm not so sure it's wise to take on an intricate composition like this when I'm under various guns to produce lots of paintings.

oil wash on canvas, 24"x48"

Remember in the film "Pollock" when Lee Krasner screams at Pollack: "Paint! Paint! Paint!" Michael has adopted that line and made it his own. Standing in the doorway of my studio, he proclaims variations on the original such as "just paint it" or "you can paint anything" or "are you painting yet" or "is the painting finished yet" or "the painting just doesn't feel right" or "you've got paint on your face".

Thank goodness for profoundly committed partners.

"The complexity of yourself being poured into the painting is the issue." - Elmer Bischoff

Paintings Finished

The finished farm scene I started:

"Marion County", oil on canvas, 30"x40

"Duel", oil on canvas, 26"x20"

Every once in awhile, I revisit a favorite thematic element - how the eye focuses on action. We can "see" an entire scene such as a horse race, but we can only concentrate our sight on certain areas briefly. In fact, it's fleeting. Edges appear sharply and then blur, colors intensify then fade into the background. Our sense of observation is challenged by the speed of the movement. It's difficult to focus on detail as shapes converge then explode.

"Perceptive observation is seeing with your brain, feeling with your eyes, interpreting with your heart." - Robert Wade

Horse Stuff

It's my business to schmooze with my peeps whenever the opportunity arises. It was all horse people this week, beginning with a visit to Signature Stallions owned by William Schettine on Saturday. They were announcing the homecoming of Chapel Royal.

He's a hunk of racehorse and a cool character to boot. I inquired the handler as to his blase disposition amidst the hoopla. The reply was "he's always this way". Hmmm, mellow is he?

Then it was on to the dreary mid-winter sale at OBS. We knew it would be dismal (he's not president yet) but it's a chance to see and be seen. The powers that be granted me permission to hang a painting with accompanying info at the entrance to the main sales ring. Makes me happy.

It should have been called the low-end mares of Adena Springs sale. For value, I'd consider them a ginormous bargain considering who the mares were in foal to. If only I had a pocketful of money and a bigger back yard. Here's one of many A.S. barns with all the mares in a row awaiting inspection.

A good friend informed me that this is not a dappled gray, but rather the coloring is referred to as "marbling". All these years and I did not know that. This beauty looks like she just stepped off a carousel.


“Somewhere along the way, maybe at Jamestown, America decided the sales figures were going to matter more than the product.” - Steve Johnson

Why Celebs Despise the Media

John Travolta and his family live about a half mile north of us in an exclusive fly-in community. As Michael traveled to our little country post office this afternoon, he was besieged by the media lining both sides of the road.

Here's our local TV stations, camped at the gates, descending into the lowly depths of tabloid journalism:


One would think respect, dignity and privacy would be in order during this time of insurmountable grief.

“Where grief is fresh, any attempt to divert it only irritates” - Samuel Johnson

Dynamic Canine Paintings

As I've mentioned previously, I received more doggie commissions this recent holiday season that ever before. Go figure. I hope I don't have to change my brand to dynamic canine artist.

Are you aware of some of the canine paintings executed by notable artists of other specific genres? A few examples:

Perhaps a precious pet of can-can companion...

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, "Touc, Seated on a Table", c. 1879-1881

Or, the pet of a secret lover...

John Singer Sargent, "Pointy"

And one of my favorite canine AND equine British artists:

Sir Edwin Landseer, "A Toy Terrier Looking Out of a Kennel", c. 1837

Forgive me, but I often think George Stubbs should have concentrated his talents on dog paintings instead of the horse. This one, exquisite...

George Stubbs, "King Charles Spaniel"

Sharon Crute, "Chihuahuas", oil on canvas, 16"x20", c. 2009

"My little dog - a heartbeat at my feet." - Edith Wharton

What I Did 2008

Challenging year for many artists. Still, we managed. Never missed a meal and somehow paid the bills. It was a terrific year for the creative and ambitious to build up inventories of artwork and reassess goals, restructure business plans, sharpen skills and now focus intentions for 2009.

I'm doing okay!

• Twice featured in Art Business News. With gallery owner Terry Lindsey at Equidae Gallery in Saratoga Springs, NY in January. I was then highlighted as an "emerging artist" in the November issue which attracted multiple opportunities from differing sources. The most attractive is a licensing deal with a couple of large, respected companies - contracts pending...
• I applied for and was accepted into the 2008 Developmental Workshop in St. Petersburg.
• Participated in a group equine art exhibit at Gallery Central in Hot Springs, Arkansas. My artwork was featured on the cover of Springs Magazine, a local hip/happening monthly. Gallery also used my artwork for advertising in the Springs Magazine.
• Participated in my first museum exhibits, the first at the Museum of Florida Art in Deland. The second was a group exhibit with several of my Out of Hand Artists salon members at the Elliot Museum in Stuart, Florida.
  
• Speaking of Out of Hand Artists, my salon is stronger than ever and entering it's third year! Most members have benefited from the mutual support and encouragement. Some have demonstrated exciting leaps in their professional careers. Like attracts like.
• Lisa Wilson wrote a great article about my artwork in the Hot Springs Travel Host Magazine.
• Recipient of a Florida Division of Cultural Affairs Artist Enhancement Grant.
  
• Began exhibiting with the Alec P. and Louis H. Courtelis Equine Teaching Hospital at the University of Florida in Gainesville.
• Exhibited at Great Art and Frame in Tampa at their group equine art show to benefit Bakas Equestrian Center.
• Exhibited at Equidae Gallery in Saratoga Springs, New York.
• I finally installed my nine-canvas project "Diagonal" in the Florida Thoroughbred Charities Equine Art Exhibit 2008. It hung 15' up the wall and was a show stopper at the opening reception. Featured on the front page (and center) of the Star Banner's Sunday Arts & Travel section.

Here's the biggie that I'm most jazzed about:

• My biggest coup and most exciting accomplishment was acquiring an audience with NYRA's (New York Racing Association) marketing department at Saratoga. With Michael's help and persistance, I was able to present an impressive promotional package. The powers that be have expressed a genuine interest in my participation as a backstretch vendor at the next meet. There has even been mention of of a long sleeve t-shirt designed by moi.

And of course I couldn't realize any of this without the support of my friends, family, galleries, investors and collectors. Those of you who have faith in my abilities and ambition (even dreams!) are a blessing in my life.
Thank you.

"The spirited horse, which will try to win the race of its own accord, will run even faster if encouraged." - Ovid

Farm Painting Almost Finished

Unfinished painting, oil on canvas, 30"x40"

Back in the studio today after a mini vacation to work on this painting for a few hours. I increased the value and contrast on the moss at the top left to make it belong to the foreground tree. I'll also make the horses sun-dappled under same tree. And that horse on the left...you've seen the classical pinned ears of horse portraits by George Stubbs? Just standing there, ears pinned, eyes wild and nostrils drawn back in a sneer - what did Stubbs observe, what was he thinking? An artist after my heart.

Hollyhock by George Stubbs, c. 1765

Working on the accomplishments list and promise to post before the new year. Stay tuned.

“A vacation is over when you begin to yearn for your work” - Morris Fishbein