Category Archives: Acrylics
Another Sad Dog
Shelter Me: No Name, Acrylic on canvas (in progress), 12" x 30", 2012
I have a vision in my mind of a series called Shelter Me. I want to honor the many dogs who never make it out of shelters, but I have so much trouble painting sad dogs. I hate to see them that way and it pains me to look into their eyes and see the depth of their fear and sadness. I started trying again to day. While this one is sad, I think I may be capturing a little feeling of hope. This may be the direction that I need go to make these paintings work.
I LOVE Painting Wolves!
No matter how hard I try, I can’t get away from the fact that I just LOVE painting wolves. They are perfect subjects: mysterious, expressive, beautiful, fierce. They embody all of the characteristics I love in art.
Lakota Listening, Acrylic on canvas, 30" x 24", 2012
Like this:
Let’s Goat Together
I started this one a while ago and let it percolate a bit. I had an image in my mind and it wasn’t quite showing up on the canvas the way I had envisioned it. So I worked on other things and let it sit. Sometimes I just need to mix it up a bit and give certain paintings a little time to breath…or is it age?
I took the photograph that this painting is based on at the local petting zoo. The goats that greet you at the fence are just so sweet. You would think they were dogs looking to be adopted. Really I think they are just hoping you have some of the got food from the little vending machine, but they will settle for a scratch on the nose.
Let's Goat Together, Acrylic on canvas board, 16" x 20", 2012
Close to My Heart
Three Paw Prints on My Heart, Acrylic on canvas, 16" x 20", 2012
I painted this for friend who had adopted a dog from me years ago. He was a sweet husky who came to me very broken. He had been hit by a car and was running loose on a broken leg for over a week. When animal control finally caught him, he was in bad shape. The shelter the was taken to put a cast on his leg, but that was absolutely NOT what he needed. His leg was horribly infected and he was slowly dying. We got the call and moved on it immediately! One emergency surgery and several days and 38 staples later, he was safe and sound (although missing a leg!) in my home. He stayed with us for over a month while he healed. Finally, he was ready for his forever home, which he found with a colleague from work. Over the years, we became friends. His “mom” started volunteering for the husky rescue I work with and we have all remained connected over the years.
A couple months ago, at the approximate age of 14, my three-legged buddy passed away. He left many broken hearts behind. The photo I used for reference for this painting was taken just last year. You can see that he is an old boy, but still so handsome!
Where is My Comfort Zone?
Last Dance, Acrylic on canvas board, 16" x 20", 2012
I made another attempt at painting a figure this weekend. I have had this “picture” of a woman dancing in my head forever and I just can’t get it out onto the canvas. This is my most recent attempt. Nope! Not there!
So, back to my comfort zone. I dug out an old photograph that I shot years ago at Lakota Wolf Preserve of an arctic wolf. This time I changed things by trying a new surface, something called Gessobord, It’s interesting! Very smooth, not texture, just a hint of tooth. I used brushes and a palette knife. While it was a lot of fun to paint, I’m not completely sure I love the result. It is definitely better up close and in person than in a photo. It is hard to capture the texture and the subtlety of color. I may go back and rework it a little bit when I get past my “figure drawing frustration”. We’ll see…
Autumn Frost, Acrylic on Gessobord, 16" x 20", 2012
Rescue Me: Puppies
Rescue Me: Puppies, Acrylic on canvas board, 16" x 12", 2012
This is a painting of one of the little pups that is being cared for by Husky House in New Jersy. This guy is very sick and fighting for his life at the hospital. Several of his puppy friends are also quite ill. Husky House has a huge vet bill looming! I will be selling this painting as well as Rescue Me: Prince to help raise some money for their care. Please think positive thoughts for the pups! Stay tuned for information on where these two paintings will be posted for sale!
Stretching
I started running this year. I usually like it. Sometimes, though, it causes a lot of pain. I’m told, that stretching after every run will do a lot to alleviate that pain. But I HATE stretching!!! I’m pretty sure everyone does! So how do I talk myself into doing it? I know it’s good for me…but I just don’t like doing it.
I also find it difficult to paint outside of my comfort zone. If you haven’t noticed already, I really like dogs. I like them as living creatures and I especially like them as subjects! To strengthen my painting ability, though, I think I need to STRETCH a bit. It’s good for me! I know that…so how do I get myself to do it. Stay tuned! I will be testing out some new subject matter over the next few weeks!
Stretch, Acrylic on canvas board, 16" x 20", 2012
Time to S-T-R-E-T-C-H!
Rescue Me: Kiernan
Rescue Me: Kiernan, 12" x 30" x 2", Acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 2012
I finished up another painting for MaPaw Siberian Rescue today. This is Kiernan, a young boy who was rescued by MaPaw and is currently looking for a new home. Hopefully this painting can raise a few much-needed dollars to help the rescue. It will be auctioned at their Beef & Beer next month. Visit MaPaw for more information.
Just Another Morning in Africa
A couple of months ago, friends asked me to painting something for them based on the following quote: “Every morning in Africa, a Gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a Lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest Gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a Lion or a Gazelle… when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.” This is what I came up with…
Just Run! Acrylic on canvas; August 2011
I was really happy with the result, but I still had another idea bouncing around in my head. I did several sketches, playing with the position of the gazelle until I finally found what I was looking for. Here is “Another Morning in Africa”
Another Morning in Africa, Acrylic on canvas, 24" x 30", 2012
This painting has a slightly more intense feeling to it, but that’s what I was hoping for.
This painting is available from Etsy.
I’m In Love!
Shelter Me 1, Acrylic on canvas, 18" x 24", 2012
I bought a palette knife the other day. I didn’t really have anything in mind when I bought it, but thought it might be fun to fiddle with. I LOVE it!!! I wasn’t happy with the direction my first Shelter Me painting was going so I decided to give the palette knife a try. What fun! I love the texture and the way you can ALMOST control the paint, but not quite. I can’t wait to try it on a figure painting….think I know how I’m spending my weekend!
This painting is available on Etsy! Click here for purchase details.
