Carter's Rainforest Mural

Carter was involved in this mural, requesting the rainforest theme and giving good suggestions for the animals in it.

His parents finished the room with a bamboo mat floor cover and natural fiber window shades that complement the light colored wood.

Double click on the images to enlarge them.

Beginning the Mural at Vernon Creek Gallery of Art

I've already taped off the dimensions for this large painting and given the wall a texture with joint compound. I used a grid to enlarge my plan for the mural to full size, and then used carbon paper to transfer it to the wall.

Van Gogh mural in progress

Van Gogh Mural at Vernon Creek Gallery of Art, in Progress

Yesterday I worked on a mural for Vernon Creek Gallery of Art in Mount Vernon. http://www.vernoncreekgallery.com
It is a composite of Van Gogh's "Starry Night" and "Starry Night over the Rhone." What fun! I aligned the horizons of each painting, and have connected the two with some imagination and a few buildings bearing a striking resemblance to certain landmark buildings in Mount Vernon. Mark your calendars for the Spring Open Studios Tour for this region, June 6th, 7th, and 8th. www.MHAAA.org. The Vernon Creek Gallery and my apartment studio will be open and we'll be showing you our working process. We are honored to have one of my favorite artists, Jaroslava Sobiskova, showing her work at our Open Studios. http://www.jarka.ws

Rowdy and Rainy

Here are the infamous Rainy (on the left) and Rowdy (the brown miniature.) Rainy has been learning to hand things to me, and Rowdy seems interested in learning to paint. He is not trying to eat the paint brush anymore! He's very proud of himself and likes learning new tricks.

Rowdy and Rainy taking turns in the sand

Here are my two honeys enjoying the sand. We had a rare 40 degree day (heat wave!) and their thick fur coats felt itchy and hot. Two days later it was North Pole weather again, so I'm glad for their coats. Rainy wears a blanket which soaks up heat from the sun and blocks the cold wind. Rowdy has been mistaken for a bear by the other horses. He has a private mini sized shed in addition to his thick fur.

Magnolia Tree and Mountains Mural

This is my latest mural, a Magnolia tree in bloom (also known in China as the White Jade Flower) and a mountain and water scene behind the shower.
The magnolia tree was painted and then muted with a soft glaze effect over the entire wall. I bought stencils to do the Chinese characters, but ended up painting them all by hand because they looked more authentic that way.

Please feel free to pass along my blog to anyone whom you think would be interested in a mural or a custom painting. (See the archives for more painting examples.)

Four paintings by my horse Rainy

On Saturday Rainy made these. Below is a video clip of her painting one of them.






Have you seen the fabulous website www.paintinghorse.com? This spring we will adopt some of Cheryl's ideas and methods. Maybe Rowdy would like to paint too. Last time I tried it with him, he thought he was supposed to eat the paint brush.

Rainy making a painting

Here Rainy is making one of the paintings featured above. We are still working out some of the details, such as how it is preferable to paint on the canvas rather than on Sara or in the sand. When it warms up, we'll spend more time doing this. Rainy really enjoys it.

Playing with Rainy

Rainy and I participated in the Charity Fun Horse Show at Saddleridge Stables this Saturday. After the classes, Rainy showed a few people some of her tricks. Here she shows how she's learning to do the Spanish Walk. I use positive reinforcement and a clicker noise as a way to communicate when she's on the right track.

india ink drawings

I made these in December just before Christmas, 2007. Somehow these ladies got overlooked!
They are 4"x6", pen and ink.

Rainy's new work

Rainy is my beautiful Morab horse, 4 1/2 years old. She paints by holding the paintbrush in her mouth and waving it over the paper/canvas.


Note the bite mark in the upper left corner of the second painting. This occurred when she grabbed it with her teeth and began waving it around. Next she dropped it to the ground and began to do the Spanish Walk on top of it. I made a quick rescue before the painting became completely destroyed.







Soon she got into the painting mood, and enthusiastically painted the two other tall paintings. We stopped because it was cold and I ran out of carrots. I'll need a helper to take photos or a video the next time we do this!





Sales of Rainy's work go to pay for her boarding, hoof pedicures, special feed and vitamins, etc. She has also volunteered to paint for a horse charity or other cause.

Painting Joey's mural

Here's a short video of Joey's superhero mural in progress.

The Batman wall - Joey's Superhero mural

Only one wall of this mural is depicted as night time, so that the room wouldn't feel too spooky.

Joey's Superhero Mural

Here are the other finished walls. This was a fun collaboration with Joey and his mom. I included elements that have personal meaning for them into the mural.

Joey checked on my progress regularly, and it was satisfying to hear him state, "I really like my room!"

Wooden Coat Pegs

This weekend I painted 10 coat pegs. Here are details of three of them. These little darlings were worth the time and effort, and I hope you enjoy them. You can see all 10 of them (press the play arrow) in the following post.

Video of Painted wooden coat pegs

This video shows all 10 wooden coat pegs, sized 6-8"x6", painted in acrylics. They will be shown in coffee shops or at my studio during the spring Open Studios Tour in the Mount Horeb area, or you can buy them directly from me and save! Each one is an orginal painting, not a reproduction. $24.00 each

birds and horses in landscape

I just painted these, and am having so much fun! I would love to do special requests for a certain subject, or larger sizes if desired. (Valentine's day gift idea?)





Each painting is 8"x9"
acrylic on board

The ones with horses have been sold. 2/10/08

The painting with flying doves is still available for $45.

"Quickie" painting for Dylan's room

I painted this while my young friends Dylan and Harper were napping. Dylan loves giraffes, and Harper loves horses. She got a horse drawing which we collaborated on together with paints.

Harper proudly displays this 3'x15" painting.

It was fun to whip up a painting like this that the kids will enjoy. I'm making paintings like this for $35 bucks each (ask for a "quickie painting") if you want to comission a birthday gift or surprise a child who loves a certain animal.

new landscape paintings

These are really fun to paint! The triptych will be joined by more paintings and then maybe sold at Absolutely art, or if you want to buy those three or individuals from this group, please contact me soon. They are $40 each.

The bottom painting with blue horses was donated to Country Day School's Winter Carnival, as a raffle prize.