"Three Wide," 8" x 16", the newest Thoroughbred racehorse painting from the "Saratoga Series," done in Golden Open Acrylics on panel, $649 to the first one saying "pretty please." Inquiries may always come to me. This painting is nearly finished, after today's approximately 8 hours of alla prima (meaning wet paint into wet paint) work. There's nothing like a looming deadline to get my butt away from the computer and in front of the easel. There's a deadline of tomorrow to submit a painting with the theme of "History" for publication consideration. I've known about said deadline for a year. But inspiration grows strongest in the final hours...... Not sure why I chose as complex a design as this to complete in one day (anyone else voting for insanity?).... Regardless, I thoroughly got into it - and stuck to it, despite a good 3 hours of being mired deep in "The Uglies." ("The Uglies" is the developmental stage paintings go through where nothing melds and every brush mark seems wrong - sort of like a painting's version of teen angst. The artist must persevere, hold tight to their vision, and power through.) Tomorrow I'll spend a little time making a few final adjustments (fresh eyes will help tremendously) before sending my submission off. Then I'll light a candle, cross my fingers, and hold my breath. And start a new painting. Meanwhile, who do you think won the race? Thanks for looking at, and sharing, my artwork with your friends and family - Kim PSST - I'm still accepting holiday commissions. Email meto get on my calendar!
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The cover of "A Dog Named Blue," now available from Blurb publishers. When I first painted Amelia I never imagined that she would be re-christened "Blue" and inspire a book. In her defense, Amelia had a number of other partners in crime - animals who's portraits seemed to fall into a specific color category and prompt color-centric names. In typical ADD fashion, my brain started spinning 100mph. What if I turned those muses' paintings into a picture book for animal loving kids? I shared my idea with three friends in the industry, and they eagerly offered their expertise. I am truly indebted to them. Illustrator and author Matt Faulkner and children's book author and literacy expert Kristen Remenar edited an early version of the draft. They suggested key plot/conceptual changes that made it oodles better. Designer Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson worked her magic, pairing the images with perfectly color...
It's looking great, Kim! I've been challenged by compositions to fit into those 8 x 16 panels...this works perfectly! :-)
ReplyDeletethanks, Linda! I originally had the horses smaller (wanted the outside one's entire body included) but I was missing out on all the juicy detail, so cropped them tighter. I'll do a similar painting on a larger scale, and include their bodies and more of the track/rail. It'll be a good comparison for me. :)
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