Black on Grey on White

Schools out... Yikes, I'm way behind schedule... no worries... I'll work nights! Since relaunching my art carrier and having to team it up together with being a full time mum,  I have learned that everything is possible, do-able and have-able! As long as your are not too picky about when, are quite an expert at cutting one or two unimportant corners and can focus on at least 3 things at once... Sunday, I exhibit in Chimay and am busy translating my promotional material into french... not great fun but do-able. I finished pricing and invoicing the prints and ACEO s I'll be taking with me. Sticky prices were everywhere much to the girls and kittens' delight.   I am looking forward to the event mainly because it is going to give me a very focused understanding of my "close to home" market and clientele. (No better way than going out there and mingling) I can't help thinking there will be a lot of children there and couldn't resist printing "Over the...

It has been  a quite while since I last posted about what was actually on my drawing board...I seem to have taken to talking about what's going on around it more than showing you the actual creating. I  really have been busy drawing as well as typing. A new commission  has started. It is a portrait of 2 Riesenschnausers (Giant Schnauzers.) Jack and Libby. Both are dark and have beautiful expressive eyes hidden under their long haired fringes. I researched a little to find more about the particularities of the breed - this helps me really pin-point elements which are crucial and typical to a specific breed. Here is the first stage of the portrait: it is an initial layout and the beginning of detailed work on the eyes.  This is Libby. I am using 6B and 3B Staedler clutch for the hair and 2B and 2H Derwent pencils for the eye. This portrait is being drawn on Steinbach paper (250gr. 73 x 110cm).  I have penciled in the second dog Jack and will start on his eyes in the next session... ...

I cannot and will not let another year pass without mentioning a great British tradition: Royal Ascot.   I missed Ladies' Day yesterday and do not plan on missing the big day tomorrow. Founded by Queen Anne in 1711, Royal Ascot is 5 days of great horse racing. Dreams of going to Ascot have been in my mind since I can remember. Even as a wee girl the smell of the scones and the frivolity of wearing extra nice dresses as of course the sight and sound stunning thoroughbreds zoom past totaly mesmerized me...  The closest I got to this dream was to have seen youngsters training for the event very early one morning in Newmarket...an unforgetable visit I must add. Well, I watched two races today - the Albany Stakes (six furlong race won by a 2 year old Irish filly Cuis Ghaire) and the King Edward VII - 1&1/2 mile  race won by Franke Detori (his 40th Ascot win) on the stunning Campanologist.  They are sooooo beautifullllllllll (I'm referring to the horses of course ... the hats and...

Beauty (illustrated above): the smallest hairiest equine I've ever drawn... The Equine Art Guild 's 4th virtual show has gone online and is well worth a visit.   It's a great show which has gathered a strong collection of equine art work in various mediums.  You love art, you love horses or are just curious to see what I'm referring to click on the following link and enjoy....  Here is The Best of 2007

A great sigh of relief ....I thought I was the only one experiencing "slight" email & blog problems... I believed to be the only owner of an inbox without an active "In" feature and a send option that listens once every 4 clicks.  I believed this until I read Katherine Tyrells' last entry  in her blog   Making a Mark. It wasn't until then that I realised that this IT problem (because it is a problem!) was not just specific to my computer but a problem that was wee bit bigger and a problem that needs to be DELT with. Katherine's problems seem to be directly related to google and Feedburners ' lack of quality performance whereas mine seem to be more Googlemail related. Here's what's been going wrong at my end (all Google related I must add). Feeds I am meant to get from  Feedburner have not been arriving... Emails sent to me have reached my inbox a tad late .... 24 hours!  (I can't help thinking that some have never reached me at all...

Sometimes iron will is just not enough.... and you really just have to go with the flow... I had finished my morning session in the studio and was on my way to grab another cup of coffee before sitting down to do some research for my new post when... Jess appeared... out of  a shoe box! Deadlines were plugging at the back of my mind, phone calls had to be made, research started, end of the month exhibition logistically sorted out, washing sorted (yep I work from home!), printers organised (that's another story), promotional material indexed, shipping forms understood, prints priced, emails answered, filing done (not too difficult to postpone I agree) but, oh no, the list was still not long enough to shoo (no pun intended) away temptation!  No... I had to pick up my camera!  I had to get this cutie-pie on film (card!)   The battery was nearly full (good), the card empty (excellent), the light workable and the subject (Jess) in full action.   I shot nearly 50 pics before she stopped,...

Last Sunday was not only an inspiration for my equine art but turned out to be quite inspirational for my canine art as well.  The show brought back vivid memories of our beloved Border Collie Bess. (Working sheepdogs were present and were just as keen, responsive and sharp as I remember our wee Bess.)   Reflecting on those memories, I came to the conclusion that I am clueless about the history of Border Collies (part of my heritage) and the making of the modern day Border Collie. We (my parents) bought Bess from a working shepherd in Scotland nearly 30 years ago.   In those days the breed was purely a working dog and had not reached the international and commercial notoriety that it has today.  Bess was small making her very agile and fast, had a slow heartbeat allowing for very fast recovery, had the kindest disposition and temperament, herded cats, horses and cars all with the same dedication and skill.  Not a very extensive knowledge to say the least. Today's post is, I shamef...

The Canine Art Guilds' 4th online exhibition, "Canine Pot Luck," is now online at www.canineartguild.com/gallery . The show is essentially an artists' choice, and there is a beautiful selection of artwork by CAG members. There's also cash prizes for People's Choice, so please, stop by and cast your vote!! ( This is my very subtle hint for you to look out for my 3 entries...!) Seriously the work is great and picking any one piece to vote for is pretty darn tough. The CAG is made up of artists from around the world, artists who love to draw, paint, scultp, photograph and study canine subjects, artists of all levels, working in all mediums, producing work of all shape and sizes. It is quickly becoming the place to find quality canine art on the web. Have a wee look and see if I'm wrong...(I know you'll like the selection .!) Ciao for now

Would you agree if I said the best things in life are free? Would you still agree if I went on to say the  best  things in life are not things at all?  Today the best thing was equine. My collection of vital reference photographs grew by 300 pics...  A little thing for most people.  For an artist who needs loads of well detailed photographic info as well as home made photos for inspiration it is pretty major. We went to a small local show.  The weather was good.  The children love horses and are up for anything that allows them to be exuberant lively little girls.  Well by the time we had closed the car doors and had our first peak, they were not the most excited exuberant giggliest wee things there... their mother was like a child in a candy story!  Thrilled to bits...  Cold bloods were lined-up, rustic, unpolished, straight off the farms, out of their fields, foals in tow, the real deal. Authentic Belgian (Brabant) draught horses.   Heaven... I had my camera...a full battery, an extr...