Two Weeks of Bluebonnets

Blue Sky and Bluebonnets
oil on canvas

    Last Sunday, Kent Brewer and I went down to Ennis to look for bluebonnets to paint and to scout for a place to paint this weekend. We drove around quite a bit looking for a place. They are really thick along the roads and highways, but finding a place where you can safely pull over and get some distance from them was not so easy.

Kent painting on Liska Rd.

     We finally found a place along Liska Road. I reworked the painting from Glen Rose since the scene had the same elements of cedar trees and bluebonnets. Then started a second painting. I've still got to rework it before posting.

Me painting on Liska Rd

     It was a really pleasant place to paint. After we finished we continued looking for a place for our group to paint out, as nice as this place was there wasn't enough room for a large group. We found a Corp of Engineers Park on Lake Bardwell called Love Park. It had wildflowers, places to park, and clean restrooms. We decided this place would work well. So we headed to our houses. Later during the week I started calling, texting and emailing my friends to come paint there on Saturday.

Part of my gardens.

     The bluebonnets have been really pretty this year as are the flowers in my garden. I always am thinking that I'll have to paint my garden but I never get around to it. So I took more photos and today, Saturday, we all went down to Ennis to paint.

 

The view I chose to paint.

    It was a beautiful day. Sunny and warm with a pleasant breeze. I had a nice drive down, a little over an hour from my home, until I stopped for an iced tea and realized  that I'd left my wallet  with all my money, driver's license, and credit cards at home. Luckily I brought my lunch.

 

Some of my friends painting.

     We had a really good group today of about 20 including my friends Kent Brewer, Candy Clynch, T.K. Riddle, Olivette Hubler, Hai Chi Lee, David Trip, Chris Toplyn, Dan Spangler and his wife, Sheri Jones and her husband, Nancy Bozeman, Trish Wise, Tina Bohlman, and artists from the Trinity Arts Guild, Texas Artists Coalition, and the Ellis County Art Association.

Some more of my friends painting

 There were two large fields of bluebonnets that most of us painted near. Some of our group used watercolors, some used oils, some used pastels, and others used acrylics. Many of the artists finished more than one painting. We were there from around 9:00 to 4:30, so a full day.


David and Chris, two of our watercolorists.

 

 Sheri and her husband B.J. drove their antique truck down for the group to paint. Some really great paintings were created of the  truck surrounded by wildflowers and mesquite trees.



Sheri and her husband brought down his restored old truck for our group to paint.

 After we had had enough painting, many of us  went to dinner in Waxahachie at the Tuscan Slice. It was a super day, spending it outside with friends and then going to dinner together. Special thanks to my friends Kent and T.K.,  who loaned me money for dinner and for gas to make it home.


Kent and Olivette painting.

Art in April

Some of my art at Chandor Gardens

    Spring is here and a very busy time it is for me. Last weekend I participated in the Spring Fling at Chandor Gardens. it is a smallish event but growing and in a beautiful setting. I painted a few paintings while I was there and had a very enjoyable two days.


Little Range Rover
8 x 10
oil on canvas
SOLD

 

 Several of my artist friends participated including Sheri Jones, Jill Randal, Dan Spangler and Olivette Hubler. My friend Tosca bought the armadillo painting above that I recently finished. The garden is always beautiful but it was filled with song on Sunday.( The song of mating toads.) The fountains were full of courting toads.


One of the fountains full of toads in Chandor Gardens.

 I placed an add in the April edition of Western Art Collector and it really paid off this time. I sold one sculpture last week and three this week so my thanks go out to the good people at Western Art collector.


Glen Rose Goats

 Today, Saturday,  a group of us went down to Glen Rose to paint bluebonnets. It was a beautiful morning. We were going to meet at the back entrance of Fossil Rim, the wildlife park. I got down early to look for a place to paint. The area around Glen Rose is a very hilly region and famous for its dinosaur tracks, hence the name Fossil Rim.


A friendly donkey near Glen Rose

The area abounds in wildlife as well as farm animals of all kinds. I saw lots goats, sheep, horses, donkeys, longhorns and other cattle. Everything is green and lush and there were many fields of livestock that would have made beautiful paintings.


Texas Bluebonnets - in the lupine family.

The one thing that was somewhat lacking were the bluebonnets. However a short distance from the back gate I did find a nice patch of bluebonnets. They were not as thick as usual but beggars can't be choosers.


View from the Overlook.

I went back to Fossil Rim and the overlook to wait for our group. In the photo above from the balcony of the Overlook restaurant you can just make  out part of a herd of giraffes. Fossil Rim is most famous for its conservation of endangered animals especially rhinos, but I didn't see any where I was.


Olivette, Maryann and Sheri painting bluebonnets.

 Our group today consisted of Sheri Jones, Olivette Hubler,Maryann Brummer and Candy Clynch. We parked along the Side of the road and painted the bluebonnets I found. It was a beautiful spot and a beautiful day. We all enjoyed it very much. I painted bluebonnets and cedar trees with a trail going through them. I had to meet my family for a movie so I had to leave before I was really finished. I'm posting it now but I'll do a bit more on it still..


Texas Spring
9 x 12
oil on canvas

Looking ahead,  I'll be painting at Prairie Fest at Tandy Hills in East Fort Worth on April 27th. On Saturday May 11th I'll be doing a sculpture demo at Dutch Art in Dallas where Sheri Jones will be doing a painting demo. The next week I'll be painting at one of the homes in my neighborhood, Ridglea Hills, during the Historic Society's Hidden Gardens Tour. The gardens will be large, one to three acres in size. Finally at the end of the month I'll be painting in paintout in Waxahachie.

Spring Break 2013

This is the painting that I did out at the Fort Worth Nature Center, in progress.
 

This week was spring break. We were blessed with beautiful weather, and I had many opportunities to work on sculpture and plein air painting, as well as some yard and gardening work. Eight of us went to the Fort Worth Nature Center to paint on Wednesday. We had a beautiful day of it.

This is the view I chose to paint.
 

    I chose to paint part of a trail as it wound up a hill. I'm not finished, and I used a lot of artistic licence and editing, but I am enjoying it. I thought the composition was interesting. Some people did two paintings, one before lunch and one after. But, I came back after we took a break for lunch and continued working on the same painting. 

Some of the marsh grasses and ducks near the causeway to the island.

  There are still many ducks, pelicans, and other waterfowl residing in the wetlands at the nature center. Most of our group chose to paint  the water and grasses or shoreline.

Some of our group already left, but here I am with Janice, Trish, TK, and Olivette ready to have lunch.

    On Thursday some of our friends went to Weatherford to paint at Chandor Garden. We had a glorious day of it. The garden was looking very nice as a lot of work and painting has gone on during the winter. We ordered lunch (chicken salad sandwiches, iced tea, chips, and brownies) delivered from Yesterday's Sandwich Shop.



The scene I started painting.

   I chose to paint the stream, bridge, and fountain. It is a beautiful location to look at as well as to listen to the bubbling of the water.


The flower bed across the back of my yard.

   Spring is in full swing. Every morning I go out and see new plants in bloom and hear more birds singing. I love the colors of fall best, but the promise of spring is my favorite time of year.  I spent a great deal of time working in my gardens. I also worked in the vegetable garden planting asparagus, tomatoes, peppers, and raspberry plants. I already have peas and potatoes planted. 

Some of my daffodils in bloom.

The Texas Masters Show

Me working on my demo at The Texas Masters Show at the Insight Gallery
 

     This weekend was one of the ones  I most  look forward to every year. It was the start of the Texas Masters Show at the Insight Gallery in Fredericksburg. This year I did a sculpture demo during the opening reception.  It was really great meeting some of my collectors. I was truly impressed by them.
   
      Another thing that I thoroughly enjoyed was visiting with the other artists. Because I was doing my demo I didn't get to talk with all of the great artists there, but  some of my favorite artists that  I visited with were Gladys Roldan-de-Moras, Jill Carver, D. Larue Mahlke, Bob Guelich, Mary Buchholz, George Halmark, and Chuck Rawle.


       The next morning after the show I drove around to enjoy the scenery and wildlife of the Hill Country and then went back to the Insight Gallery to watch painting demos by Cheri Christensen and Mark Haworth. It was a very interesting demo and a nice way to wrap up the weekend at Fredericksburg. This turned out to be a profitable and enjoyable weekend.

Two of my bronzes in the show.

 

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Three of my bronzes in the show.

Two more of my bronzes in the show.

Texas Masters show Demo, Painting at the Fort Worth Nature Center, and Jill Carver's Workshop

      First my big news, Friday, March 1st, I will be doing a sculpture demo  at the Texas Masters Show at the Insight Gallery from 6:00 to 8:00. They always have a really top notch opening to the show with Texas foods and drinks and some of the best artists from the state will be there. I was so thrilled when they asked me to do the demo. Other artists who have done demos recently there are Scott Christianson, Quang Ho, and Jill Carver.



View from the boardwalk at the Fort Worth Nature Center

   Today I went with six of my hardiest friends to paint at the Fort Worth Nature Center. I say that because the temperature was about 40 when we started. If it had been warmer we would have had about 15 artists instead of just seven of us.


Me Painting on the end of the boardwalk at the Fort Worth Nature Center.
 

    When we got there we decided to go and paint out on the boardwalk. This was probably the worst place for us to set up as it was really cold being there above the water, exposed to the wind and in the shade. However we liked the color of the grasses and the water. There was also an abundance of ducks and other waterfowl in the area..



Steve Miller, Dan Spangler, Olivette Hubler, and Linnea McKinney painting at the end of the boardwalk.

   Despite the cold it was a great place to paint. After we got to a stopping point some of us left and the rest of us went to lunch and then back to paint. By this time it really had warmed up to a very nice temperature. We were glad that we had returned. The nature center is such an amazing place. Several of us said that we felt like we were  on a vacation just being there surrounded by the beautiful scenery.

The second  study  I worked on today.

We went to a different location to paint in the afternoon. I chose to paint a study of some cedar and prickly pear cacti, a very Texas scene. I took a workshop last week at Acton Texas with Jill Carver. We worked on values mostly but also on painting looser. I was pleased with the looseness on this one but am still working on the values.

The paint was wet and shiny, so my study looks lighter here than it really is.

    The Jill Carver workshop was really super. She is an extraordinary teacher.  The workshop was at Campfire USA's El Tesoro campground in Acton, Texas. It was three days, Tuesday through Thursday. I love Jill's work and without doubt this was three of my most productive days with regard to education.

Jill brought several paintings showing her work . I bought this one she painted at Port Aransas, one of my favorite places.

      The subject of the workshop was composition (using Notan - creating a black and white  painting to simplify and check the composition before beginning the actual painting) and value by limiting the painting to three or four values. This was a very different way of approaching painting and all of us felt like beginners. .


Some of our group at Maryann's in Acton.

      This was a very intensive class. I think all of us were exhausted at the end of each day, but still we had time for fun. There were 15 of us in the class and I knew, and had painted with all but one of them. The first evening after class we met at my friend Maryann's property for a bonfire and cookout.We had  hot dogs and wine and a lot of other great things.



A view at camp El Tesoro

The last day of class was one of the best, the weather was incredibly nice. Warm, sunny and no wind. We painted along the stream bed with the limestone cliffs, winter grasses, and cedar trees. Then Jill bought us pizza for lunch and she did one last demo that afternoon.  I would recommend her as a teacher to anyone. She talks about everything from the creative process to safety issues regarding artist's materials. I will absolutely take another class from her when I  have the opportunity again.


Jill doing a demo at camp El Tesoro

Two Projects Finished

Fort Worth Nature Center
oil on steel star
Donation for the North Texas Alzheimer's Association

      Here are two pieces of art I've been working on recently. The first is a painting that I've been working on for a while. It is a steel star that I painted for the North Texas Alzheimer's Association. I, along with several of my friends, decorated these stars and they will be auctioned off at a fund raiser at Ridglea Country Club early in the spring for the group. My painting is inspired by the landscape and animals of the Fort Worth Nature Center. I'm really looking forward to seeing what the others come up with.

Marine Creek Schoolhouse
20 x 24
oil on canvas

     The second is a painting of the Marine Creek schoolhouse, Fort Worth's first school. This school was originally in Fort Worth's Northside and now sits in Log Cabin Village.It was built as a school for the 20 or so school age children in Fort Worth at that time.
      Today Fort Worth has beautiful trees everywhere but in the oldest photos of the city there are very few trees. I imagine most of the first trees were cut down to build the early structures in the city and also as fuel for heating and cooking. I wanted to capture that empty feel but decided to add a few bare trees for the purpose of the composition.
       

Time to Cowboy Up in Cowtown

Texas Bison
8 x 10
oil on canvas
$150
 

     We had some nice weather today, for a change, so I worked on my art outside and went to two great annual events here in Fort Worth. But first I will talk about the art. I painted the bison painting above  earlier this week. Bison are one of my favorite animals to sculpt and paint. However when I looked at it today I saw there was a scratch where the paint was missing so I fixed that.



Star I'm painting for the Alzheimer's Association.

   Then I began working on a new project. I was asked to be one of a group of metroplex artists who will be decorating steel stars to be auctioned off for the Texas Alzheimer's Association. Other participating artists are Blair Curren, Nancy Boren, Sheri Jones, and Olivette Hubler. Earlier in the week I bought primer and sanded and primed the stars that had not been picked up yet. Today I started mine. It will be a Texas landscape with bison, trees, cacti, and maybe bluebonnets. This photo was taken after I blocked in the sky and tree line. I actually worked until I got the whole painting blocked in.
 



The Six Flags of Texas in the Stock Show parade.

    The other part of my day was spent in large part at the Fort Worth Stock Show parade and later at the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show. I used both opportunities to take lots of photos for future art projects as well as just enjoyed some of our great Western Heritage and History.
 

The US cavalry from Fort Hood.

     The parade is in downtown Fort worth and is the largest all horse and horse drawn vehicle parade in the world. There are over 2000 horses, mules, and donkeys. It seems like every one who is anyone shows up on a horse, in a wagon, buggy, or stage coach. The mayor and city council always ride in it. So to do representatives from the TV stations, radio stations, banks, local businesses, surrounding Sherrifs' posses, branches of the military, churches, and even groups like the Texas Girls Choir. There are also reenactors from various groups.

The TCU marching band.

   Like any parade their are lots of marching bands. As always TCU's marching band was the first band, and they sounded great. Some of the local high school bands participated. There was even a really good band that came all the way from Mexico.




Riders from a Mexican riding club.

    In addition to the band from Mexico several riding clubs from Mexico come up for the event. They wear traditional Mexican clothing. The women almost all ride side saddle. Some of the men perform rope trips. Others ride along talking on their cell phones.



A stage coach in the Stock Show parade

The parade is really a great annual event and a chance for everyone who doesn't usually do so to wear their cowboy hats and boots. I heard there were about 100,000 watching the parade today. Of course the important thing is that it is the start of the Stock Show and Rodeo. So later, after the parade, that is where I went.

A longhorn steer in one of the cattle barns.

This was the first day of the show. The show will run into February and different breeds of livestock are there at different times. The longhorns, one of my favorites, are some of the first there. Today I just took photos. I'll try to go back and  sculpt them while they are still there. When I was growing up Brahmas were my favorite breed of cattle. I may have to try one of those some time.
                                        


Brahmas in the Stock Show.