Horsefeathers

Horsefeathers:  long hair on lower legs (over hoof), common in heavier breeds.
               also:  slang for nonsense, balderdash
             
She's been some time cooking (even once in the oven), but she's finally arrived,  just in time for Art Trot!  She's bright, colourful, strong and fanciful and she can be yours if you attend and bid at the Silent Auction happening February 10 & 11, 2012 in the Sunshine Room, Rec Centre, Creston, BC, Canada (official opening is Friday,  February 10 from 5 to 7 pm).

You can see what changes have been made from the initial posts (here) and (here), and including the very first coat of paint below.

Horsefeathers     The REALLY ugly stage

This initial coat of quinacridone pink gave me such a fright I nearly went into cardiac arrest.  It actually stopped me in my tracks for a few days.  It's one thing to visualize a hot pink horse, and another thing to see it in the flesh!  I'm pretty sure that at this point, John was ready to send me off to a rest farm somewhere...

Horsefeathers        Paper Mache by John & Win Dinn

Another four or five coats of paint in three more quinacridones helped a great deal and the final result just makes me grin (I know, I'm a little bit nuts!).

As with most well-bred horses, she comes with a pedigree detailing her salient points:
Please join us at the Art Trot 2012 Silent Auction  - you'll find an amazing array of artwork and all funds are in support of the Therapeutic Riding Program here in Creston.  Horsefeathers is looking for a new home, and she'd be a perfect Valentine's gift for that special person in your life!

Art Trot

 I've mentioned the Art Trot fundraiser for the Therapeutic Riding Program here in Creston, BC before, and it's coming up soon.  I thought you'd like to see a piece that will be part of the silent auction -

The Huddle, Limited Edition Print by Owen Garrett

Isn't it evocative of the riding life?  This particular framed print is available online at $450+...

Art Trot Poster

I'll be posting additional pieces over the next couple of weeks, but in the meantime, please put it in your calendar!

Christmas Baking

It's down to the wire now, and we're just a couple of days away from the big day.

I've had a month of creating, baking, wrapping and preparation for Christmas, and getting studio time has been a challenge. 

As well as some paintings, we're still working on our horse for the Art Trot.  I added a couple of layers of paper mache strips to the armature to create a base.

First coats of paper mache strips

The next step in the process was to create some paper mache clay (recipe here) .  This may have had something to do with my mixer meltdown two days later....

Paper mache clay-making

From here, John and I both had a go at filling in the blanks, with John, of course, having much more success.  Although not complete, we did reach a point where we needed to dry the sculpture in the oven to ensure that no mold occurred, and I started this process yesterday early in the morning.

I had a private student as well, and invited her upstairs for tea after class.  As I was making it, I apologized for the smell in the dining room, explaining I was baking a horse. 

Baking a horse

The look on her face was hilarious, and it took several rounds of laughter before I could explain in detail!

Wishing you and yours all that is best over this holiday season - love, peace, friendship, laughter, beauty, plenty and pure joy. 

Just horsing around...

I feel somewhat like a split personality these days, with so many projects on the go.  I've got four pieces 'on the easel' and another one in the sink! 

There is definitely an explanation required for that last phrase, of course.  For some unknown, and completely idiotic reason, I got it into my brain that doing a paper mache horse for the Art Trot 2012 Therapeutic Riding Program Silent Auction which is coming up in February.   To the best of my recollection, I've not done paper mache since the children were small, and remember it being messy, messy, messy!

I am also extremely spacially challenged and mechanically declined, which means I needed to get down on bended knee and beg John to create an  armature for me.  John, naturally, has done an amazing job of this...

Horse armature  13" x 16" x 3.5"

I put the first layer of paper on yesterday, and did such a fabulous job of it that John has had to remove the legs, re-wrap the wire, and throw it back at me.  It's a good thing he (mostly) likes me!

I'll keep you posted on developments.  Incidently, do NOT expect the final product to be a standard palomino - that's definitely not my style!