Saturday, October 22, 2016

Steer's Lookin' at You, Kid

I know! Another longhorn painting! But, I had to! They just posed so well for me the day I was taking pictures!

These guys along with their siblings and cousins live in the field beside Welcome Home Retreat in Weatherford, Texas.

There's something very comforting about a cow... and painting a cow.  
After I've painted something stressful (like a person) or something not of my choosing (like a commission), I find that my next painting is a cow.  
If I'm stuck and don't know what else to paint, my go-to subject is a cow. I think I like the flow of their structure - although that sounds ridiculous now that I read it.  
Maybe I like how they stare out of the canvas at me and say, "What!?"
Maybe it's my upbringing.  We always had cows on our farm... Hmmm... but I didn't like them then.  They were super annoying to me as a kid and teenager.  The pooped in the field where we liked to have cookouts. They got out of the fence and had to be rounded up and put back at the most inopportune times, like Sunday morning or Christmas Day or the afternoon of Homecoming or Prom. 
I remember how my dad would "talk" to them with a soothing kind of monotone voice "Sooo.... Suk... Suk... Suk... Sooo... Suk... Suk... and they would be interested, come closer.  They weren't particularly friendly like pets. But... they were always there... a part of my life.

I'm pretty sure that these guys came to me because they were used to their farmer who I'm guessing stops by each afternoon to count them, talk in a soothing voice to them, and probably (most importantly to their demeanor) toss out some grain or hay.
Cows know their farmers; farmers know their cows. I hope he gets to see his longhorns on the canvas one day.  I wonder if he'd recognize them! :)


The best way for you to meet these cows is to book a weekend with their neighbors.  Welcome Home Retreat is an amazing haven for relaxation, comfort, and creativity.   

I wonder if these little longhorns will get to be on a canvas one of these days... We'll see... But, I'm committed to do a sunflower next. :)
In case you aren't a bovine fan... there's also a pool... and there are crafting rooms... and really great food... 
And there's Sheila, who might want to scrapbook or quilt right along side you. :)














Original Oil Painting - 24" x 36"
Contact me if you'd like to purchase this painting.

5 comments:

  1. Farm life is so different than city life. We were city through and through, but the lady who took care of us when my folks traveled had a farm with cows, but no long horns on them. She did however had a horse that I was fascinated with but always bit, so it quickly become not one of my favorites. Not sure how intelligent they are in comparison with other animals but they look interested in seeing you. Do the girls have horns too?? I know dumb city girl question. Oh well.

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    1. That's not a dumb question at all! There are a few exceptions, but with horns like cows or goats, both sexes have them. It's the animals with antlers like deer that it's usually only the males who have them.

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  2. You've captured their curious but bovine expression so well! My husband loves longhorns. My farm folks relatives (my dad was born and raised on the farm and has family who still do live and work said farm, as well as their own) anyhow they always had dairy and beef cows, no longhorns. I think I see why you particularly like my (neglected) cow quilt blocks!

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    1. Ah ha!! Yes! I have been watching those cow blocks for... well... years!
      :)

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