Small works

I enjoyed painting some little 6 x 6 inch still life panels on Ampersand cradled gessoboard recently. I started with a whole orange, and the next day painted it partially peeled:

and the next day just a slice:

I can imagine how fun these would look displayed together in a kitchen or dining room.

Peeled Triptych 6 x 18" oil on panel
© 2011 Kathleen Coy

I painted an avocado the next day:

Avocado 6 x 6" oil on panel
© 2011 Kathleen Coy

I really enjoyed getting back to the basics with these paintings and look forward to doing more. There's so much beauty to be found in everyday objects, it's fun to be reminded once in a while.

New Painting, Grand Canyon Mules

South Rim Express, 16 x 20 inch oil on panel
© 2011 Kathleen Coy

I wish there was a great story behind this painting. I really do. Something that involves adventure, excitement, and trusting my life to a surefooted mule on a winding, dizzying, death-defying canyon trail. Traveling to paint on location at a remote site only accessible by said trusty, surefooted mules. Wouldn't that be great?

The real story behind this painting is far less adventurous:

Friend: Hey Kat, I went to the Grand Canyon and you know those mules that you can ride down to the bottom?

Me: Yes.

Friend: We didn't get to ride them down. They're booked up a year in advance. But I took a good photo of some of the mules in the corrals. Do you want to paint it?

Me, after seen the photo: YES!!

Still Life with Antler and Red Pitcher

Still Life with Antler and Red Pitcher
18 x 14 inches, Oil on board. © 2011 Kathleen Coy

This is the first still life I've painted in a very, very long time. In all of my animal paintings, I work from photos out of necessity. Over the last year, I've become more interested in painting from life. I enjoyed painting this still life so much, that it will NOT be a very, very long time before I paint another one.

This painting is being displayed at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, during the month of March as part of the Nebraska Women's Caucus for Art's group show.

Here is a photo of the set up. My mother found the antler during a walk in the woods last year. I'm sure most of you know that male deer lose their antlers every winter and regrow them in the late spring and summer. The sagebrush in the vase is from Montana, and was given to me by a friend. The antler and the sage lend enough of a "nature" feeling, that even though this is far from my usual subject matter, this painting feels like me.

My favorite painting of Cloud yet!

Turning on the Charm
18 x 14 inch oil on board. © 2011 Kathleen Coy

I couldn't resist painting this pose of my Rat Terrier, Cloud. He has the most expressive face I've ever seen. This is the sixth painting I've done of him (he is my little muse), and it is my favorite one to date.

Here are a few work in progress photos. In this one, I've laid down some background color and started painting his face.


Now I'm blocking in the main colors, trying not to get too detailed, but paying attention to the way the light falls on his fur. Oh those ears, how I love them!


Most of his face is blocked in now. The next step is to go back and refine everything.


And the finished painting. Not much in the way of a background because I wanted all the focus to be on Cloud. His head and neck have a nice solid sense of form to them, more so than some of my older pieces I think.

I hope you've enjoyed the painting and this series of photos.

Much love,

Wordless Wednesday - Still Life

On Murray Hill

On Murray Hill
12 x 9 inches, oil on linen panel
© 2011 Kathleen Coy

This is a studio piece based on a plein air (on location) study I did last June. Murray Hill is part of the Loess Hills, which run along the western border of Iowa. The study helped me capture the mood of that summer day in my studio during January - the threatening storm clouds, the humidity, the wind. It never did end up raining that day, oddly enough.

There's only a few days left to vote for your favorite dog painting in the Canine Art Guilds "Helping Paws" online exhibit. The prize money for People's Choice awards go to the artists dog rescue of choice. I'm supporting Greyhounds Unlimited, and we would appreciate your vote!

http://www.canineartguild.com/gallery/


This painting is available, and half the proceeds go to support GU.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/64880948/original-greyhound-oil-painting-50

Have a wonderful week!

First Painting of 2011

Dignity of Years
14 x 18" oil on panel
© 2011 Kathleen Coy

This painting means a lot to me. A few of you may recognize this dog as my Brittany Benny who passed away in 2009 at the age of 14.

Senior dogs, and Benny in particular, have such a dignity and gentleness about them. They aren't burdened with our hang-ups and worries about aging. They don't notice or care about their graying faces.



I don't have many work-in-progress photos of this piece, but here is the beginning stage with the thin underpainting.


Happy 2011!!! It's going to be a great year!

Greyhound painting is finished!

Retired Racer
11 x 14" oil on canvas
© 2010 Kathleen Coy

I thoroughly enjoyed this painting from start to finish. Not only are brindle dogs very beautiful, the brindle coat pattern is a lot of fun to paint! Here are a few photos of the process:

The toned canvas and underpainting:

A shot of the reference photo in the background. The background is started, along with the top half of his head:

Coming along nicely:

And once again, the finished painting. I love the colors, his expression, the gold metal on his collar, and the silver tag.


I hope you enjoyed seeing the process of this piece.

Much love,

New studio furniture, new art, and a Greyhound painting in progress

It's been a very busy November! I hope everyone had a safe and happy Thanksgiving. I'm very thankful for my husband and the new studio furniture he built for me. I have much more workspace now, as well as file cabinets and drawers, vertical storage for paintings, and shelves. It spans two whole walls of the studio, and the tops are covered in glass so I don't have to worry about getting paint on them!



I love this time of year, and enjoyed several days of hiking in the Loess Hills.



The fall colors of the prairie grasses never fail to take my breath away. I took two separate Plein Air outings (painting on location) to paint at 300 acres of restored native prairie and oak savanna that belongs to the neighbor of a friend. Like most of Iowa, the surrounding land is agricultural fields, but when you're standing alone on this restored landscape with prairie surrounding you as far as you can see, they might as well be a million miles away. It's very surreal, like stepping back in time. I'm very thankful for the hard work and care the landowner put into restoring this land, (and for allowing me to paint there!)

These photos are from the first day I painted there. I was actually waiting for an overcast day:

And the finished painting:

November
12 x 9" oil on linen
© 2010 Kathleen Coy

The next day I painted there, I walked a little further for a different view:

Since this is the first year I've painted landscapes, I'm still experimenting. This one took an abstract turn... I wanted to try to capture how it felt to stand there surrounded by these beautiful tall grasses and oaks, with no sound except for the wind, and the thoughts of how agriculture has changed the land of the Midwest. It was haunting, and I tried to capture that.

Natives
20 x 10" oil on canvas
© 2010 Kathleen Coy

And finally, here's the Greyhound painting I'm working on. It's not finished, still a ways to go, but I'm having a lot of fun with this one! His name is Petro. It's 11 x 14" oil on canvas.

He should be finished in a day or two. I'll post an update with more photos.

Until then, much love,

Cat Portraits - Sen-Chan and Yuu-Chan

The portrait commission of two Abyssinian cats are finished and I love how they turned out. This is Sen-Chan's portrait, and the background may be my favorite I've painted yet:

Sen-Chan, 12 x 12 inches, oil on canvas
© 2010 Kathleen Coy

And this is Yuu-Chan's portrait. I love the back lighting:

Yuu-Chan, 12 x 12 inch oil on canvas
© 2010 Kathleen Coy

Both of these cats have left us, but they will remain forever young in their portraits. I hope the paintings bring happy memories to their human every time she sees them. I know she misses them terribly.

I got to deliver the portraits in person, which was great fun for me, as many buyers are not local, and their paintings are usually sent by mail. She lives very far away, but was visiting a town near me last week for a horse show, so it worked out perfectly!

Here's a photo of the two of us with the portraits. "#1", as she is known on her blog, is a brilliant, charming, and fascinating woman, and I'm so glad we got to meet in person.


Much love,

Bittersweet works in progress

I was contacted by a fellow blogger about portraits of two of her Abyssinian cats who had passed away - Sen-Chan in 2009, and very recently, her beloved Yuu-Chan.

The portraits are both 12 x 12 inches, oil on canvas. I've started with a monochromatic underpainting. This is Sen-Chan:

And this is Yuu-Chan:

I'm blocking in the color on Yuu-Chan in this photo. Once that's finished, I'll go back and refine and add detail. Still lots of work to do. I love the colors, and the backlit ears:



I'm honored to be chosen to paint these two gorgeous, and very loved companions. I love being able to create art that has such meaning for someone, art that brings a smile and helps to ease the pain of loss. I know that the portrait I painted of my dog Benny has been a great comfort to me since he passed last year.

Her blog is called The Poupounette and it's one of the most charming blogs I've ever read. When I have time, I plan to go back and read it through to the very beginning.

Stay tuned for more progress on the portraits...
Until then,

Much love,