there was a new baby born at our barn.  there is nothing like a little one with long legs.

 just 2 days old

 and when i went to pick up my daughter the other day, this is where i found her.

 she has a way with animals.  she thinks of what they are thinking or feeling and they feel safe.

the owners of this horse were calling this little filly a wild one.  they were saying it would be hard to try her out with a halter.  they need to have my horse whisperer daughter do it.

 even mama approves.

vaca in the sun...

we spent spring break in palm desert.  oregon right now is wet, wet, wet.  it seems the weathermen say it's raining, sprinkling, showers, etc...they just try to make it sound different every day...but it's rain.  so going to where it was warm - like 80-95 warm - was shocking and soooo needed.  these are views from our room...

we ate out lots and one place was so lovely...palm desert is laden with flowers and palm trees, and this place was no exception....

the rooms had that 1920's glamour...with the vines growing up and over the arches...

and having a cold one outside in the warm air was wonderful!

we stumbled on a polo club which we didn't even realize was there...and we've been going to the desert for so many years...

there were canopies where you you sit under to watch the match and stay out of the sun...

 here are some of the statues and beautiful grounds....

here's a mermaid in the pond...

and on to the art museum...they were having an exhibit with rodin so had to go...only sculptures here...

rodin...

picasso...

and driving home just love seeing the wind power of the desert...

it's futuristic looking...and beautiful...notice the blue skies.

we then stopped by my sister, dolly's beautiful house where my mother has recently moved in and had such a great time there.  then off the next morning after a home cooked breakfast to drive the rest of the way home...and like clockwork, the rain started just after we went through southern oregon...

i'm loving my iphone and the photos apps available!  here's a picture of a statue i have...

here's another painting i did recently...this shows the progression and my re-working...

 i used acrylic and pastels...

i wasn't happy with the color on one side...i then put color on both sides, and kept working on her face.   i still wasn't thrilled, so i kept at it. i gave her more hair.   i lightened it up quite a bit and added flowers.

then i didn't care for the flowers and how detailed they looked.  i painted and pasteled and chalked over them, leaving a bit of color showing through.  i then added more of a creamy color to the white, which looks better with her hair and the tones in the painting.

here's the finished piece.

chalked another event board at native foods cafe at the bridgeport mall.  i just love the whole vibe i get while in there.  i am blessed to be able to do their event board at the end of every month for the next month.  it feels great to be a part of such a cool place.

and my grumbacher paint classes at michaels are so much fun.  my students are churning out such great work!  i'm really proud of them!

we did a series of van gogh paintings...here is the still life...

here's the floral...

and here's the landscape...

 

i got my hands pleasantly messy with clay.  i sculpted this little guy.  i used an armiture of wadded up newspaper and formed from there. 

i didn't know what i was doing or where i was going with this.  it was so much fun.  i used woodburning letters to make the word faith on his chest.  and i decided to make him functional and be able to hold something.

it took a few days to really dry out.  i kept checking him on the kitchen window sill.  when he finally didn't feel cold and clammy, i knew he was ready for paint.  i first used adirondak dyes and then used some acrylic to make some of the color more intense.  some of the dyes that were more greenish, i thought looked kinda mossy, which i loved.

looking around i put some tree branches and a little bird in his arms.  i was thinking shells, or leaves in the fall would look cute too.

still lovin' those apps on my phone!  this was all on instagram.

i am in the midst of misty mawn's 5 week online art course.  i wanted to take this course because i just love misty's open and free work.  she is spontaneous and uses many different mediums and i wanted to get a taste of that.  i will post as i do new work.  it's not easy finding the time though!  i am already sooo behind!  but luckily it seems that may others are as well.  with working and teaching grumbacher painting classes - and doing one of the paintings that i'll be teaching during the week so i can get the process before teaching, leaves me little time for this class.  but she is leaving the class up for us for a year...which is so freeing.  anyways...here is a journal page that i created...it's me, although it doesn't look like me.  she looks younger and has better eyelids...but i absolutely loved this exercise!  it really freed me up to just put down color instead of trying to be exact. 

fun with apps...

well i just got an iphone...not a new 4g model, but a 3g.

and with it came my excitement to get some photography apps...

had to run around my house and shoot some things and then add

fun effects to them...here's my messy art area...at least this effect kinda softens

the mess :)

and i love this one.  it's a lighted house that i keep up all year.  at christmas i put some snow at the base as well as trees on the sides of it.  this effect put white spots all over it which looks like snow coming down!  love it!

and this was a mary statue i got at the goodwill.  i got really close and then did a scratched photo effect.  i absolutely love it!

and i enrolled in misty mawn's e-course.  fun, fun, fun!  our first assignments are sketching with charcoal and pencils.  this is something i came up with tonight.  it's been soooo many years since i have done a portrait with charcoal.  i think i was in college!  so this was like rediscovering it all over again.  her class will last for 5 weeks.  i'm going to be sooo busy!  but it's definitely a good thing.