Happy Spring

Spring in Connecticut has truly arrived! Dust off those saddles, and let's ride!

The horse I ride, Misty, lives two minutes down the street from me, and she is a lovely grey Trakehner with a heart of gold. She's smart, sensitive, willing, and very sweet. She's also a level headed trail horse. She kept her wits about her when that huge tree branch nearly fell on us, or when that four wheeled bicycle thingy with flags and tents noisily came up behind us on the trail...

I am very lucky to have a such a nice horse to ride so close to my home. Many thanks to my awesome friend Jan who said to me, "ya know, you can go ride Misty any time you want. Oh, and use my dressage saddle if you would like."

Okay, is Jan the greatest or what???

Pinch me...

Studio News: Work continues on UC Ringmaster's portrait. Also, I am working on some designs for Holiday cards. Yup, planning way ahead! The Arabian book also forges ahead.

Enjoy the sunshine, and remember: "A Canter Cures All Ills."


Also--big news from my incredibly talented friend Brandy Kitten Gale (excerpt from her blog at www.singlemaltcove.blogspot.com):

"Confirmed: The brand new Loft Gallery in Bath, Ontario Canada will present an exhibition of 30 of my Caribbean pieces in June. The body of work focuses on Bajan dialect and proverbs, and their relationship to the landscape, sea and flora. There will be a meet the artist event. Dates and more information forthcoming."

go to www.brandykittengale.com to see her fantastic work. Congrats Brandy! This honor is richly deserved.

Fia's final portrait

Here is Fia, the beautiful mare with the Mona Lisa smile, done in charcoal. Fia is owned and loved by Jackie.

I aimed to capture Fia's intelligence, awareness and friendliness in this "windswept in the field" pose.

Read Jackie's wonderful description of her to get the full effect:

She is absolutely amazing. We rescued her as a 3 month old PMU. She is very aware and perceptive, the dominant mare, quite fearless on the trail and also in your pocket friendly to all humans. She is extremely smart- learns quickly and is willing to please, although she has her share of "no I won't" moments and isn't afraid to show it. Most of all, she has a level of "presence" that a lot of horses (and even humans) don't have.

Many thanks to Jackie and her husband Thomas for the honor of drawing this incredible horse.

Go to Jackie's website to learn more about her and Fia: Jacqueline Lloyd, Author of The Thief of Sacred

Final Pose

This is the final pose/outline for Fia's portrait. She is a clydesdale mare who was a PMU rescue.