Yipes, Stripes!

Currently listed on eBay are these 2 scratchboard drawings of Grevy's Zebras. For these drawings, I used reference photos that I took at the Sacramento Zoo. I visit the Sacramento Zoo a couple of times a year (used to work there many, many years ago) and I always take my camera. I have lots of photos of zebras and they are one of my favorite zoo critters - I'm sure it has to do with their striking striped pattern. Those of you familiar with my art know of my fondness for black and white.

The Zoo has Grevy's Zebras, an endangered species that's much less common than the Plains Zebra seen on many nature shows. The zebras in my drawings are 2 different individuals - the stripes on a zebra are unique and if you study these drawings, you'll see the differences. Click here for the Zoo's fact sheet on Grevy's Zebras.

Of course, someday I'd like to visit Africa to see zebras and the many other wonderful animals in their native habitat.

Click on either image to view the eBay auction.

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New Scratchboard Drawing - Draft Horse Eye

This is "Belgian Gaze" a 4"x6" ink on scratchboard drawing of a Belgian horse's eye. I took the reference photo at the Draft Horse Classic (DHC) an annual event held at the fairgrounds in Grass Valley, CA. The drawing will debut April 12 at an equine art show in Auburn CA (at the ARTS Building Gallery, 808 Lincoln Way). This invitational show will feature horse art by a number of local and regional artists. The show opens with an artists' reception during the Auburn Art Walk, and runs through June 6th.

If the drawing doesn't sell at the Auburn equine art show, I'll submit it to the Draft Horse Classic "Art at the Classic" art show for consideration. The DHC is a fantastic event - it's all about those giant, wonderful working horses and the "Art at the Classic" show features great equine art from all over the country. Seeing those huge, beautiful horses come into the arena pulling carts, carriages, wagons, etc. gives me chills every time.

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Frog & Flamingo - 2 More ACEOs

Not much time to write right now, I'm going in a number of directions and feeling a bit overwhelmed! Busy working on a steady stream of pet portraits and getting a number of "Paintings with Petzazz" pieces ready for an art show in May. My brother and I are showing together with a cats & dogs theme - he'll be creating sculptural ceramic pieces. I'll write more about that when I have some new work to share.

Spending more time than I should be on ACEOs, but they're just so darn fun and I've made a few sales as well. I just listed these 2 new ones: "Amphibious" a Pacific Chorus Frog in tinted graphite pencil and "Pink 8" a flamingo in color pencil. I titled the flamingo piece "Pink 8" because the curves and shape of the neck look like a figure 8.

Click here for my current ACEO listings

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Dragonflies

This dragonfly is a 12-Spotted Skimmer - a common sight swooping around our pond in the spring and summer. The dragonfly "invasion" hasn't happened yet this season, but I'm always glad when they come back. Dragonflies are fascinating to watch and this particular species is very predictable. They make it pretty easy to take photos since an individual tends to return to the same cattail or rush leaf time and time again. Once they get warmed up in the morning and start cruising around, I get out my trusty camera and watch for a bit to find the favored landing places. Then I just hang out near one of those spots and wait for the dragonfly to return to have his picture taken. They're flighty, so I have to stay still, but I have a zoom lens, so I don't have to be right next the landing zone.

The handsome male 12-Spotted Skimmers sport black and white spots on their wings and a soft, bluish shade on their body. The females aren't as spectacular, with brownish bodies and a less striking wing pattern.

I created the drawing (which I call "California Dragon") for one of the eBay groups' theme weeks: "Wings". The first week of every month (starting on the 1st) is a theme week for the Small Format Art (SFA) group. Artists can create any small format art that interprets the theme. SFA is any art that measures 14" or less on a side. If you're looking for small format art on eBay, search for "SFA". This drawing is on black scratchboard and it's another one in the ACEO format (3.5" x 2.5"). See my current eBay listings

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Recently Finished Pet Portraits

Abby is a sweet spaniel mix who resides at FieldHaven Feline Rescue with lots of cats and some horses. She gets along well with everyone - human and critter alike. This portrait was created in ink on scratchboard. It may seem that black or dark animals are challenging to render, but to me they're not and I actually enjoy working in the darker tones. There's really not that much black on Abby's portrait, the reference photo was taken outdoors, where there was plenty of light shining on her coat, so the majority of the tones are dark and medium grays.


The other portrait is of Sydney, a golden retriever and Sammy, a yorkie (Yorkshire terrier). I painted this portrait in watercolor on Yupo. Sydney & Sammy's parents wanted something bright and colorful, and that's certainly what they got! Notice that I smoothed out Sydney's "crazy ear" where her fur was sticking out a bit too much.

Unlike most portraits, I didn't need to take my own photos as both Abby's and Sydney & Sammy's parents were able to provide me with excellent photos of their own. This is not usually the case; I prefer to take my own photos as most owner-provided photos lack the detail that I need. Taking my own photos also provides me with the opportunity to meet my subjects and get an idea of their personalities - I never turn down a chance to meet new pets!

If you'd like to know more about taking photos of your pets, whether it's for a portrait or just for fun, please read my pet photo guidelines sheet and/or my article about pet photography.

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