"Cowboy Trappings"

While at the St. Paul Rodeo this year I snapped a lot of photos and this is one of them that I used as reference.

I was inspired by the cowboy and his mustang. Living up to traditions in this modern age; revolver, gauntlets, shotgun chaos with fringe, and wild rag. Sometimes the focus is on the actual person, but with this one I focused on the spirit of the cowboy and his horse.

"Cowboy Trappings"

15" x 22" Watercolor

Meet: Drum Horses

I've made some new friends. They have fuzzy whiskers and beards, feathers on their feet, bold spots, and kind eyes. They are Drum Horses.

You may have seen these horses on the television during one of the Queen of England's parades. They carry two large brass kettle drums, one on either side. The riders drum and steer with the reins attached to their feet. And there is a breeder of these wonderful horses just 30 minutes of driving through the country from me! These horses are a mixture of Clydesdale, Shire, and Gypsy Vanner.

I've made friends with the horses and the owners. I first visited just a couple days after Epic was born. She was born on the anniversary of Mount St. Helens eruption and is the only offspring from her sire.

I've taken hundreds of photos of these horses and have already completed a couple paintings.

The painting I did of Apollo, a 11 year old stallion, was purchased by the owners and they have commissioned me to do another painting of their other stallion, Gideon. I've done a couple paintings of April, a two year old mare, in a field of daisies. And I will be doing many more of my four hoover friends.

"Apollo"

5" x 7" Watercolor

SOLD

"Daisy Field I"

5" x 7" Watercolor

Available for Purchase

"April Showers"

15" x 22" Watercolor

Available for Purchase

Plein Air: St. Paul Rodeo

While at the St. Paul Rodeo this year, I had the mornings pretty open, so I took photos and did a couple plein air paintings. I walked around the bucking bull pens and numerous pens with horses and looked at horses tied up. Here are the paintings I did and I sold one of them to the owner after I painted it and displayed it in my art booth.

"St. Paul Bull"

5" x 7" Watercolor

Available for Purchase

"Ol' Roy"

5" x 7" Watercolor

SOLD

"St. Paul Trio"

5" x 7" Watercolor 

Available for Purchase

2014 St. Paul Rodeo Wild West Art Show

This year I participated in the St. Paul Rodeo Wild West Art Show.

I made new friends and had a lot of fun exposing new people to my art. I was there the entire week in my booth. The show was open primarily only in the afternoon and evening, so I spent most of my mornings packing my easel and paints around and painting some horses and a dozing bucking bull.

I entered "Time to Play with the Big Boys" and "Sunbasking Broncs" in the best of show contest and "Sunbasking Broncs" won Best of Show in Watercolor. And that's not the end of it …. Tom Swearingen, cowboy poet, noticed that painting after it won the award on Monday and that week he wrote a poem inspired by it "Still Some Sun to Catch." He even asked me to bring the painting over to the tent where he recited the poem so that the audience could see his inspiration.

I also did some pencil sketches from photos I took during slack and around the rodeo grounds. I sketched while sitting in my booth and it seemed to draw in more people and open them up to chat.

Overall, it was a great experience and I will be back next year with a couple new paintings. Maybe I'll see you there?

Elizabeth and Tom Swearingen with his inspiration.