The Grass Is Always Greener...

Patience the Cow

The grass is always greener... when you water it!

She looks patient, doesn't she.
I always think of cows as patient.  I supposed that's because of one of my favorite descriptive paragraphs in the world... When E.B. White describes the barn in Charlotte's Web.

 "The barn was very large. It was very old. It smelled of hay and it smelled of manure. It smelled of the perspiration of tired horses and the wonderful sweet breath of patient cows. It often had a sort of peaceful smell - as though nothing bad could happen ever again in the world. It smelled of grain and of harness dressing and of axle grease... But mostly it smelled of hay."

 ...Sigh...
He just makes you want to be there.

Cows have a way of staring right into your eyes. 
Do not have a staring contest with a cow... She'll win. 
She's patient. 
Look at that expression. 
She's saying, "You are standing at my fence. Please just take your picture and moooove along. Go on now. I'll wait. I'm patient."

Original Oil Painting on 18"x 24" Wrapped Canvas.
I've been talking to her since I painted her eyes.  I'll probably keep talking to her on my wall until someone decides she belongs on their wall.  
Click "The Grass Is Always Greener..." if you 'd like to purchase this big patient cow.

MMMooooo!! Hooray for Cows!

The white cow is saying, "Hey, y'all!"

The brown one is saying, "We look good, eh?"

(Please insert appropriate Southern and Canadian accents.)

This is the tale of two good friends
But not the kind with tails on their ends.

They're kindred spirits of a nature divine
That all began with a picture bovine.

With a note to Ontario from way down in Arkansas,
A bond started forming, much to their shock and awe.

It was a little green cow face made for a quilt
On a PInterest pin that this friendship was built

So as you watch these gals chew their cud this fine day.
Know that they're thinking, "Those girls could find a way." 

One day they'll meet, whether north, south, or between.
And to think it all started with a little cow of green.

Here's that Pinterest picture that started it all.

Which led to me clicking it and going to the blog behind it...

Which led to me loving the blog and deciding to read it from the beginning...

Which led to me realizing it was time for me to retire...  (Yeah... y'all can tell that there's more to that story, eh?)

So... back to the little green cow face...

Which led to more cow faces and even some poems and limericks as each was named...

Which led to this amazing quilt...

... and a lot of blog comments and e-mails in between...

Which led to... a Little Green Cow quilt block of my VERY OWN!!!

She's gorgeous!
And, she hangs on the wall of my Atelier, my painting space, where she watches every thing that goes on!

So...
Full circle it comes with moos and wows!
Today I say, "Hooray for cows!"

H











Original Oil Painting on 20"x 20" Canvas
[SOLD]

Cinnamon Sky Longhorn

Does she look familiar?
This little longhorn loves to have her picture taken, is such a pretty little cow, and is really fun to paint.
She's Cookie Dough, and she's always interested in whoever is spending the weekend crafting and relaxing at Welcome Home Retreat in Weatherford, Texas.


THREE MONTHS AGO:
CHERI: I think I'm going to call our June painting weekend "The Longhorn Workshop." What if we all paint a longhorn?
ME:: I love it! I'm in!
CHERI:We'll do a couple of small projects, kind of warm ups.  Then we'll each do different longhorns.
ME: You know I love that! I can't wait.
CHERI: I've got an idea for this project.
ME: Great.  Should we come with one already drawn up.
CHERI: No, I want the canvases to be blank.  I'm going to teach you to draw them.  You'll love it.
ME: Ummm... no... I don't think so.
CHERI: You'll have to trust me.  You can do this.  It will be so freeing.  I've got some strategies that will make it easy.
ME: Yeahhhhhh... nooo... I can't draw.  
CHERI: Wait 'til you see this technique.  You'll love it.  It's kind of mathematical. 
ME: Ugh... This my pretend happy voice... 

THE MORNING OF THE PROJECT:
CHERI: Gather 'round, you'll see how quickly this can come together.
ME: I trust you, but... ugh...

It's all about thirds... horn tip to head, across the head, head to horn tip... then same distance from eyes to nose... then that distance plus half from top knot to nose tip...

Just block in some lines and rectangles... Measure from the center cross... Half way from top to bottom put in the eyes, lower than you think... Look for darks and lights...

 Go try it on your canvas... Thirds... Use a ruler if you need to... just get it on the canvas... 

She doesn't like it when she gets attention or bragged on... but my goodness... what a master... master painter... master teacher... 

... believes in her students when they certainly don't believe in themselves... until they do... believe in themselves...

Eventually, we had to leave watching her and move to our own blank... very... very blank... canvases...

Unbelievable... It actually looked like... well... a cow... but...

Deep breath... what was next... darks and lights??

Then frustration...
Every one was working hard...
I got quiet...
No one was looking... 

I don't know if...
... if I needed inspiration...
... if I wanted to relieve tension...
...if I was feeling rebellious...
...if I lost my mind...

But, when Cheri walked around and got to my canvas, she said, "My, that's bold!"

I knew when I started it would be worthy of either a spanking or a gold star... 

Once the background made its way from ridiculous to fabulous (in my humble opinion), I was still so frustrated with the cow, and I've painted many cows!

Cheri said, "Close your computer, and free yourself from the reference photo. Just change the angle of that cow and make her look at you straight on.  Don't panic.  It will be simple. She must have been standing on a hill. Just lower the back by bringing down that background an inch or two. Let's un-twist her by bringing her stomach out on the other side. Just wipe off some background and add some cow."
... so... so... simple... 

Thank you, my dear teacher, mentor, friend!

Original Oil Painting on 14" x 18" Wrapped Canvas.
[SOLD]

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.

Welcome Home Retreat Neighbors

We wanted some photos of Welcome Home Retreat with the evening sky behind it, but the longhorns who live in the field across fence were stealing the show for me. I may have taken a few... dozen... photos of them. 
But if you can take your eyes off these five gorgeous lady longhorns for a minute, look in the background.  There it is!  There's Welcome Home Retreat! It officially opens October 1st, but my sisters and I got to spend a weekend there working (and playing) to get it ready.

 ~~~A women's retreat to inspire creativity in an environment of beauty.~~~

It was absolutely breathtaking... I kept asking my sister, "What if I want to book a weekend, but not craft or paint or scrapbook or quilt... Could I just come and "be" here?"   Ha ha ha.  I guess the answer is yes, but I'd miss out on the opportunity for creativity.

Click and have a look for yourself.

Or look see what's happening there on their Facebook.

If you're wondering about the painting... It's a big one!  The hard part about painting on such a big canvas is that is stays in that "ugly" stage for a really really long time.  Also, it was so far from one end to the other, I worried that one end wouldn't match the other end.  
But... LOVE it!  I loved working on it.
And... I may have secretly named those five cows after myself and my 4 sisters... matching each personality with a certain cow attitude... Hmmm... :)

Original Oil Painting - 24"x 48"
Giclees or Prints can be purchased from my Etsy Shop.
Giclees, prints, phone cases, pillows, shower curtains, etc... can be purchased through my Fine Art America Site.

Longhorns in Bluebonnets

Moooo!!!

These lady longhorns are going to hang in a very special place.

Welcome Home Retreat is a unique place in Weatherford, Texas for women to come together for weekends of creativity and fellowship. Its mission is to provide an environment of beauty that inspires creativity.

But if that's not special enough... The owner of this fabulous place is my very own sister!!!   Her specialty is scrapbooking where families' memories are captured for future generations. Sheila's dream to have a venue to encourage and observe guests as projects are begun, continued, and completed is becoming a reality.

She wants Welcome Home Retreat to have a "Texas feel with a feminine twist."  So... how about a painting of longhorns walking through bluebonnets!!!  

Click to visit the site of Welcome Home Retreat!  Book a weekend!!  Maybe I'll see you there!

Original Oil Painting - 16" x 20" 
[GIFT]

The Dancing Cow (Mary Poppins)

After I finish a complex painting, I usually paint a cow next.  I guess it's just a comfortable subject for me.  As I was working on this pretty red mama cow, she reminded me of something... or someone... a flicker of a memory that I couldn't put my finger on until she was almost finished.

When I was a kid I loved getting to order books from the Weekly Reader forms each month.  I still have a few of those that I loved the most.  I think I ordered and read Mary Poppins when I was in fourth grade... (the first time when I was 10... although I've been in fourth grade - on the other side of the teacher's desk -  about 30 times since :)

Mary Poppins... the book, not the movie... is filled with chapter after chapter of completely wonderful, crazy, irrational, zany, clever stories that somehow tie together perfectly.

Chapter Five - "The Dancing Cow" 
Jane is sick in bed, and John is watching out the window when he sees a red cow walking down Cherry Tree Lane.  Mary Poppins explains that The Red Cow was a friend of her mother.  She tells the story: The Red Cow was raising The Red Calf in her perfectly normal field. One evening she began dancing and couldn't stop.   Eventually she went to see the king who noticed a star had fallen and become caught on her horn.  He advised her to jump over the moon. It worked, but then she wished she had it back.  The Red Cow now spends the her days looking for another star.

Like every other chapter, it's filled with all sorts of details... the lessons she teaches The Red Calf... the types of dances the cow does... the king who has an appointment with the barber...

I came across a blog post from Random Thoughts who asked whether The Red Cow's story was optimistic or pessimistic? She never gave up hope of finding another star, but she roamed the streets never feeling satisfied without it.

Any thoughts?

Original Oil Painting - 16"x 16" 
[SOLD]

Scruffy Calf

Hooray!!!  
I am so happy to see this little face looking back at me.  I was beginning to wonder if I'd simply forgotten how to paint.

I wonder... Does that happen to anyone else?

Earlier this year we went for a drive, looking for opportunities for me to practice taking pictures with my new camera.  Cows are funny.  We came to a field with a bunch of the cutest calves... all of whom had absolutely no interest in looking at me.  But this scruffy little girl was so curious.  No matter how long I waited for the cute ones to look at me, she never stopped posing.  So, eventually, I began to see how cute she was too... scruffy hair-do and all.




Original Oil Painting - 12"x 12"
[SOLD]

Mitten the Cow

She wanted to have her picture taken!

My husband and I went on a cow-hunting drive on New Year's Day. That means we picked a direction and drove until we found some cows willing to be still and look at me while I took their pictures.  Half the time they run away, but the other half the time they are curious enough to stare for a while.

This little gal was determined.  I have to be honest... I tried to avoid her.  She had this big mitten splotch right in the middle of her face... so...
So... I aimed my camera at other cows. However, this sweet little gal was focused on me and curious no matter what I did.  She grew on me.

As I was looking through all the downloaded photos, she was the star again and again and again.  
And... I was wrong... She is lovely... Her face is perfect for the canvas.  
I love her big mitten splotch.

Original Oil Painting - 16"x 16"
[SOLD]

Butterscotch the Cow

Do cows these days get names?

In books cows always have sweet appropriate cow names names... Flossy, Bessie, Elsie...

But, my dad called them #34 or #22 or #51... or whatever number was hanging from the yellow tags in their ears.  I think they only got a name if they were a problem, and then they got a Biblical name, not necessarily a compliment... I remember him referring to one cow as Jezebel because she was mean and hateful.  I remember another that had pink-eye so bad that Dad called him Blind Bartimaeus... I'm pretty sure that any cow that ended up with a name ended up at the sale barn pretty quickly.

There was one gentle "name" that I do remember.  As he'd walk through the cows to feed them or count them, he'd softly call, "Suk.. Suk.. Sukie... Suk.. Suk.. Sukie..."  I think it was meant to calm  and comfort them.

That kind of makes me want to change this little guy's name to Sukie. :)

(I'm trying to remember, but I think the cow in Little House in the Big Woods was named Sukie.  If it's a name good enough for Pa Ingalls, it must be a good cow name. Does anyone remember if that's was it?  The cow that Ma thought she was slapping on the winter night when it was actually a bear in the cow pen?)

Thanks to Vaughn Skinner for capturing this 

photograph and letting me put it on canvas.

Original Oil Painting on 12"x 12" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]

Big Papa

Why do cows all face in the same direction when they're grazing?

It's so weird, but they do.  We always comment on it, so I Googled it... Oh, my goodness... there are all sorts of theories about it... and all kinds of scientific research going on around it....  Really?  It's that important to know?

Anyway, this guy looks like he might be wondering why he has to face the same direction as all the others... maybe he's about to buck the system face a different way!

[SOLD]

Happy Calf

What do cows think about?

They don't seem to think about anything... But this little guy looks like he's grinning about something.

Original Oil Painting on 10"x 10" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]

Mama Cow

What just happened?

Surprise!  
A baby!  
She has a brand new baby!
So sweet!
She hadn't even had time to lick the little thing all over yet.

I wish I could say she was happy to show off her little calf, smile her little bovine smile to show her pride in the little thing.

But the truth is, I think she was down right annoyed that I was staring, coming too close, clicking pictures.

I just couldn't help it.  You don't get to see a newborn too often.

[SOLD]

We'll Just Have Salad III

Is this deja vu?

No, I didn't accidentally post these gals again.  The ladies are back for yet another encore!  There must be something about those patient eyes that make people want to look again and again.  (You can read what I wrote the other times by clicking We'll Just Have Salad and then We'll Just Have Salad II.)

You would think I'd have this down by the third time, but nope... still had challenges to work through, especially with the black cow.  I miss having a teacher who can just say, "Use cerulean blue instead of white," or "Try moving her eye sparkle to the other side," or "Look at the sides of her nose again," or "Maybe a white eyelash with an upward twist."  Sometimes I miss painting with you each week so much, Cheri!

So, anyway...
Look at the difference a few tiny changes makes!
Isn't she friendlier now!

[SOLD]

We'll Just Have Salad II

How do you tell one cow from another?

This is what my husband (a city boy) asked as we passed a field full of cattle today.  I'd mentioned something about them being Hereford.  "How do you even know that?" he asked. I don't think a farm girl actually has to learn the difference between a Hereford, a Holstein, an Angus, a Charolais, or a Brahman; we just know.  How can you tell a Dachshund from a Chihuahua from a Beagle?

That made me think of how you can tell the difference between individual cows.  Well, a farmer just knows certain cows by their personalities, but generally they put ear tags in their ears.  I hated watching this process.  It was like watching my dad pierce their ears only it seemed awfully painful.   You can see that these ladies actually did have their ears pierced, but I decided that a big yellow tag with a number on it didn't get to be a part of the painting. (Ahhh... the power of the almighty artistic license!)

What I really, really wanted to do in this version (I painted it once before and wrote about that earlier this year. - Go have a look at the first "We'll Just Have Salad") was to give these ladies real earrings... yep, silver dangly ones!  (Go back and read ":) Sisters" and see about those silver dangly earrings!)

My friend Shelley asked me to paint these gals for her.  She is one of those kindred spirits or forever friends.  We're of different generations, from different places, lead different lives, and I see her less than once a year... but when we do see each other, there's so much to catch up on, so much mirrored in our ways of thinking.  So somehow during this process, I began to think of the two of these cows as the two of us.  (She would be the tall, elegant, lovely reddish one... hmmm... I wonder if that's why she ended up much more blonde than the real cow was... And, I'd be the short, stocky... and is she graying in the painting?... one out front.)  We... I mean THEY do look as if they are completely annoyed to be bothered and just want to get back to visiting with each other about whatever it is that cows talk about.

You see, I bought a pair of those dangly silver earrings for Shelley.  She told me that she wears them when she needs inspiration, feels feisty, or wants to feel brave.  I feel the same way about my pair.  So... don't you see how it was very hard not to put earrings on these cows!

We'll Just Have Salad

How important is the title?

I've gotten good advice from people who sell a lot of paintings about naming pieces.  I understand that the goal is to get your art seen.  I understand that when people go to Google they type in Cow Painting or whatever subject they're looking for.  I understand that my pieces would probably be seen more and sell more quickly if I'd give them titles to sell. 
Oh, but how I love to choose the just-right title!  Sometimes I know the title before I begin.  Sometimes I try out several throughout the process of painting.  Sometimes I get it about the time I sign my name in the bottom corner.  This time... nothing stuck... Two Cows... Black and Brown Cows... Flossy and Bossy... After I'd finished and was cleaning my brushes, my husband got his first look and said, "Wow!  I love it.  I love the grass hanging out of their mouths.  It's like they're out to lunch and you've bothered them. 'We'll just have the salad, thanks.'" And just like that "Two Cows" had a title that I loved!

[SOLD]

Black Angus

What are you thinking as you look into my eyes?

One of my earliest memories is being told to "stand in the fence opening and don't let any cows get through" as my parents and brothers were trying to run the cows through the chute beside the barn. I suppose they were giving them medicine, putting in ear tags, or checking them for pink eye.  I have a vivid memory of a cow standing right in front of me and staring me right in the eyes.  She was easily ten times bigger than me so I cried, "It's looking at me!" and Momma came running.  "Well, of course she's staring at you.  She can't help it because you're so pretty.  Now here's a big stick; whack her if she comes back over here." That seems so funny and farmer-like to me now - sweet then practical all in one breath.  I do believe that was when I learned to enjoy looking into a cow's eyes.  Hmmm... she thinks I'm pretty...
And, isn't this a pretty little Angus heifer!  She's got her hair all spiked on top and swirled in the front...long fluttery eyelashes and wispy long ear hairs...

She lives on the farm land where I grew up.  I took a picture of her when I went back for a class reunion.  

[SOLD]