Horse - Postcard - Watercolor entitled "Everyone Should Be So Lucky"

I call this one "Everyone Should Be So Lucky"... and, isn't it true. Its another postcard for my friend stationed overseas. This study captures a serene and trusting relationship. Its simplicity reveals so much. It shows that neither horse nor owner is in a hurry which seems to permeate all aspects of the friendship and seems to run deeply. I hope this card's calm emotion accompanies it in its travels.

Cell Phone Fiasco

I could tell that when I was telling this tale to my friends they were like "yea, right". So, I decided to lay the phone by the hole and photo the situation. Of course, Wylie could not resist the temptation to complete his mischievousness and pawed the phone into the hole. Then Tiger Lily got involved and tried to fish the phone out. Wylie was just watching with his head tilted (like me) wondering what the cat was doing. When Tiger Lily finally gave up, Wylie merely inspected to ensure that the phone was still in the hole and stood by as I retrieved it (never to leave it alone again). I have noticed that Wylie has an odd collection of interesting items in a scattered pile in the yard: a baby bottle, a dolls head (with pig-tails), and several unmatched socks. I have come to realize that my fairly new and pricey wire-rim glasses probably lie somewhere just below the surface of my 40 acre yard and found the fate intended for the cell phone.

Photos of a Lazy Fall Day

Wylie was a bad doggie today! First, he tore up his bed with no concern about the cool night ahead. He then lounged under the banana trees and watched Tiger Lily as she snoozed. Once he was sure that I was not looking, he decided to steal my cell phone and attempted to bury it. Apparently, he was distracted after he had expertly dug a deep narrow hole (about two paws wide) and had left the phone at its edge. It was so packed in mud that I could barely hear it ring. It took me the better part of an hour to find it. It seems he snatched it while I was focused on riding my horse. He probably left his deviousness incomplete to catch up with me as I rode. He loves to frolic along side and make sure that everyone is aggravated. Anyway, it would have been near impossible (although he came close) for him to spoil this perfect fall day.

I will be posting more paintings soon. I have recently been appointed Interim Director of the County Libraries and find that my time is absorbed by the new position. I did take a day to enjoy my farm and wonderful animals. They keep things interesting!

Photography - Horses

These guys have a lot to do!

Landscape - Watercolor - Yocona Cotton Gin

This is an operating cotton gin sitting off Mississippi Hwy 35 North about six miles from my house. I took the photograph early one foggy morning.

Landscape - Watercolor - Delta Autumn

Cutting Horse Watercolor

Elephant - Watercolor Postcard

This is my second postcard to go to my friend stationed in Iraq.

Cutting Horse Watercolor

Landscape - Watercolor

A friend of mine is in the Navy and presently serving in Iraq. I will be doing a series of postcards to send to her. These are 4 x 6 watercolor cards that I hope don't become too tattered and torn as they find their way overseas. I am applying several coats of varnish to help protect them.

The Curious Tiger Lily - Watercolor

Closer to finished, finally! I have learned that cat fur is indeed harder to paint than dog hair. I will let this sit for a few days and take one last look before varnishing.

A Day Off - Dirt Bike Racing

Took a day and watched my son motocross race (that's him catching the most air). He has been a Hare Scrambler for many years and is now racing at a motocross track that is about an hour away. He insists that he needs a motocross bike as his "woods" bike is not suitable for the track. In spite of this "fact" he came in a respectable 2d.

Mirage Two

Mirage Two

Detail

Okay, this is not a dog, horse or cat. These are a break from the detail work of the animal portraits. They are many, many layers of paint, gold leaf, and dry pigment heavily varnished. The result is an appearance of three sparkling dimensions under crystal clear water. I call them Mirage (which has two definitions... 1) an optical illusion of a sheet of water caused by light being distorted and 2) something illusory, something that appears to be real but is merely imagined). It just seemed to fit. They were extremely hard to photograph due to all the reflections. The photos are not nearly as attractive as the originals.

Mirage One

Mirage One

Detail

The Curious Tiger Lily - Watercolor

Getting closer to finished! Hopefully, I will be finished tomorrow!

The Curious Tiger Lily - Watercolor

Here is my very brave cat. Obviously, this is in progress. I am not quite finished with the snake and am anxious to finish but wanted to post for anyone interested in the process. It is watercolor on board. I will post the finished piece next week. I hope to concentrate on a series of animals and their relationships with others.

Road Trip - Wildrose Kennels - Oxford MS

I had the pleasure to again visit Wildrose Kennels, home of the Ducks Unlimited mascot, Drake. The kennel is about an hour away so I had to leave early Friday morning. This scene is along Mississippi Highway 35 just a few miles from my home. I stood in the center of a bridge to get this shot. Our days have been hot and nights cool which creates an early morning mist and on this day it was reflecting a pink glare from the rising sun. I will never grow tired of the surroundings near my home.

This is the north bank of the above river with its ever-creeping kudzu cover.

Meet Drake the Ducks Unlimited mascot. He is at home at Wildrose Kennels. Wildrose was the cover story in the April, 2009 issue of Forbes magazine.

This is Drake showing the other dogs how to do it right.

Wildrose Kennels - Oxford MS

The three dogs below are owned by friends and were bred and trained by Wildrose Kennels. Their names are Gumbo, Gator, and Heather, but I am not able to tell them apart in the water.

I found the reflections, colors, and patterns of the ripples in the following shots striking and noticed that they share a powerful mood created by the light.

I learned that the only thing harder than getting the exposure right to photo one black dog is getting it right for three. Not an easy shot but I do like how these three just seem to float in spite of their dark color.

At the end of the day, everyone is tired.

German Short-haired Pointer Watercolor

This is my cousin's dog. He lives just up the road and was very gracious in getting some of his gang out for me to see them work. This particular dog was extremely intense and serious about her job.

Little Izzy - Pound Puppy

Last week I went over to the Oxford Shelter to take some photos of possible candidates for my annual donation painting for next year's auction. This little girl was scheduled to be put down that day as she had been there a month. Of course, I could not let that happen so she now has a permanent home with my group of mutts. She fits right in!

CrackerJack & Friend - Watercolor on Aquabord

Crackerjack & Friend

This was one of those quiet summer afternoons. It was fairly late and I decided to walk to the far corner of my place to check on my horses. As I walked down a path lined with tall pine trees and entered the lush open pasture, I came upon what must be one of the most peaceful scenes on this earth.

My small herd of five was lazily grazing in the warm sun with their backs to a slight southern breeze. In the corner, by the creek, stood Crackerjack, my oldest and wisest by far, being about 25. The rest of the herd was only a few feet away and I noticed that they were followed by a small flock of what I guessed to be starlings. When I looked back at Crackerjack, I saw that he had only one feathered friend and it seemed to be fearlessly hoping along beside what must have seemed to be a mammoth size nose.

Undisturbed by my presence, I quietly watched as these two moved slowly along, side by side. I could only guess that as Crackerjack pulled at the grass, cropping it close to the ground, sometimes pulling it up by the roots, that his little pasture buddy would pick at the bugs and grubs that had been unearthed by the pulls.

Everyone seemed very content so I turned to make my way back to the house. As I walked away I was left with the feeling that I had been viewing a long-term relationship which probably occurred every day. And that for Crackerjack to be so tolerant, I guessed that he too was benefiting. His small friend must have been keeping the pesky bugs from lighting on his nose and face as he grazed.

Abstract - Study in Ink

Dex in Jeep

I have been in court the past few weeks so decided to do something fun for a minute. This is Dex, a dog pounder. He belongs to my son, Mike, and has grown to have many of the same personality traits so I usually call him Mini-Mike. He goes everywhere with Mike and is often seen in his jeep while attending duties around the duck hunting lodge. My kitty-cam came in the mail today so I let Dex wear it on his rounds. Below are a few of the photos he took.

Dex Photo of Car Tire

This is his first stop when he goes outside.

Dex Photo of Mike

Here, Mini-Mike is taking a photo of his favorite person, Mike. You can see Dex's chin and whiskers at the top left as he views Mike working on a CD player in a car.

Dex Photo of Maggie the Horse

Dex Photo of Mose the Horse

Dex Photo of Sam the Horse

Dex Abstract - Splashes of Light

I actually couldn't figure this one out. My son was looking over my shoulder and said thats' the light coming through the tree leaves, of course. Anyway, he is right. The photo that was taken immediately before this one was taken at the base of a very large gum-ball tree looking up into the limbs and leaves for squirrels... one of his favorite spots. This one was taken a second later so I guess no squirrels were spotted and he was turning his attention elsewhere.

A Delta Evening - Watercolor - Landscape

Mississippi Pines - Watercolor - Landscape