Felic and Jimmy

Felic and Jimmy, 11"x14", commissioned portrait, 2009. Watercolor pencils (Caran D'ache) and watercolor paints (Winsor and Newton) and ink on Arches hot-press paper.

This double portrait features two longtime horse buddies who passed away within a week of each other in October of 2009. Felic, (right), left first, and then his old friend Jimmy shortly followed him to the big green pastures in the sky...

When I paint equine and pet portraits, I ask for detailed personality descriptions. I do this so that I may completely immerse myself in the essence of the animal I am painting or drawing. It's an emotional process for me: I read the words the owner writes, and I sometimes feel tears well up. It's inevitable--love just pours off the pages.
Felic and Jimmy were no exception. These equine souls were so loved by their owner. She really knew them and her many years of care and devotion to these boys are a true testament of the bond between horse and rider. Personality descriptions help me feel a little of that bond; it gives me access to their world. For me, creating a portrait is much more than just capturing an image. It is being able to touch, smell, and hear the horse I am painting.
This is why I do not copy photos; I study them.
Images and words help me form an orginal artistic interpretation of a beloved equine soul.

Thank you, Betsy, for letting me know your special boys.