The Pond again

Hello everyone. I just got back from Phoenix. WOW, was it HOT down there! Please note that this is my last blog on this site. I have moved my blog to wordpress where I now have a working subscribe button, where you may receive updates on my blog posts at your email address. You may access that blog through my website - www.lauriestevensart.com or go to it directly at - www.lauriestevensart.com/blog/

As a parting shot, I am remembering that I never showed you our ponds, only the skull we found when developing the first one. So - here is one of our ponds in the west field. Hope to hear that you've viewed the new blogsite. Thanks. Laurie

Highwood Creek in Autumn

I thought I would show you a little "start to finish". I often like to begin with a used canvas that I have painted over. (Quite a few of them just don't make it the first time around.) With that, you can get some interesting textures and patterns that serve as a lay in. I usually choose something that compliments the final painting tone. That seems to add a little interest for me and keeps me from getting as tight - hopefully. You can see that I changed the foreground in the final painting. The earlier direction seemed too busy. Give me some more time and I'll change it again! This painting is 11x14.

Harvest Season

I've been working on some small paintings for the upcoming Russell Museum Miniature Show and the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center Show, all of which were due today. BUT - we've been snowed in for the last four days (at the end of April no less!!) so the paintings won't be delivered until next week. Anyhooo, this is a piece done from pictures I took on a paint out near Great Falls. I was attracted to the graphic design of this scene and loved the way the line of the brush moved your eye around the image. This painting is 12" x 12".

Debi's Cat

I've been intending to get pictures of the paintings I'm working on this week, but am not "there yet". I'm fighting the crummy boards I've been painting on. (The lesson is "Use Good Materials!") So, I thought I would post a cat painting a friend of mine did, as my last post was a painting I did of my cat Possum. It's always fun for me to see how different people approach a similar subject.

This painting was done by my friend Debi Schmit. We have a long history. She's one of my horse friends, my camping friend and my artist friend. We've raised kids together and shared many adventures! I love this painting of Debi's and thought you would too.

You can see more of Debi's work at www.debschmitart.com

My Possum

In March when we lost Tara, and then Joe, I also had to put my 13 year old cat to sleep - during the first day of the Russell Show no less. What a month. I decided to paint a tribute to my special Possum, as a final farewell. It's been good for me to do so. I really miss him. I don't think the painting is finished yet. There's something wrong about the eyes and I may want to push the contrasts. I'm waiting for the paint to dry though, so I'll post it anyway. This painting is 12 x 16 and will not be for sale.

A Treasure from the Pond

I should say I've been painting this week, but I haven't. It is spring on the ranch and the spring projects are in full swing. We've developed some ponds in the west field that were just seeps - enough muddy water to sort of satisfy at least 65 pair, but in just damming up that area, we now have 3 beautiful ponds! The third one was put in last fall, and I've been seeding it the last few days. There are 2 pair of Canadian geese thinking about nesting there, and a lot of ducks using the ponds as stop overs. Lot's of birds. It's really wonderful! I wanted to put up something that shows you this area, so I reworked a photo (just a little!) of an old bison skull we found buried about 8' down when we were excavating the first pond. There's much evidence that the bison used to roam here years ago. A painting of this? Maybe.

Saturday Night at the Russell Show

This was Saturday night at the Russell Show. A little fraternizing. I won't go into details about what we were doing here, but it had something to do with commiserating, enumerating, extrapolating...

From left to right, Sara Walsh of Latigo and Lace, and artists Todd Conner, Frank Hagel, Sheila Rieman and Laurie Stevens. ( I know that Sheila and Sara are currently working on their new websites. Keep checking.)

In All Her Finery

If you've never been to a Native American Fair or ceremony, you've missed something. Everyone is usually dressed in their finest ceremonial dress, and many of their other ceremonial or traditional items are draped out over their horses or pickups for all to see. The sound is wonderful - ceremonial drumming and song, the jingling of jingle dresses; lots of horses, dogs, kids. The color and style are spectacular and hard to resist as an artist! This is one of a series of paintings I've done of this subject. Here, I was playing with value (dark to light) and color to see how close I could come with both in the girls clothing and the background and still make the painting work. This painting is an oil, 18" x 14".

After the fact...

I have to say that I learned a valuable lesson during this year's Russell Auction: - always paint "sofa paintings"! I had received so many positive comments on my painting, "Just One Last Touch" prior to the big event. But - the bottom line, I guess, is that it wasn't a painting people wanted to hang in their living room. I had hoped the museum or collectors might be interested in "the story" and want it for that reason, but still the market for that was pretty narrow. It did sell (I'm not sure to whom) but I came away humbled. I'm sure the economy has played a roll in this year's event as well. Many artists are REALLY feeling the pinch.

Well, we artists are a tough lot. We have to be or we'd be doing something else - like selling shoes at Walmart.

It's time for some reflection now, I guess...

Autumn Equinox

Tomorrow begins the Russell Show. I thought I would post a painting that I'm taking there tomorrow. I had intended to include a lot of very colorful pieces in my show room, but several of those burned up in the explosion, and with all the stress and heartache of the last few weeks I didn't finish the big one. My problems pale in comparison.

This is my favorite little landscape though. I did push the color. This is a Montana scene and is an oil, 16" x 18".