Pastel Landscapes, Water (2 of 2)

This is my favorite of the paintings done in Marla Baggetta's workshop. It's very similar to an oil I painted several years ago. I considered painting a series way back then but never got around to it. Maybe I will do it in pastel. The task will be finding the reference photo...I only have a bazillion to go through! I thought about taking another photo but it looks very different now. 

My Favorite, 8"x 6", pastel on paper

Pastel Landscapes, Water (1 of 2)

Day Three of Marla Baggetta's workshop was dedicated to Water. I painted two that day and will save what I consider to be the best for last. This one is approximately 5"x 5" and was painted from a very dark thumbnail photo. That means I had to invent the light and the colors. It doesn't have a title yet but every time I look at it "Lyrical" comes to mind....but lyrical what? Maybe "Lyrical" is good enough. 

"Lyrical", 5"x 5", pastel on paper

Pastel Skies

Day Two of Marla Baggetta's workshop was dedicated to Skies. I felt the reference photo had too much going on for one painting so I painted each half separately. By the way, one of Marla tips for painting more loosely is to print out small thumbnails of your photos. Doing so eliminates a lot of the superfluous details. It's a great tip! Both of the following are approximately 7"x 5". 

Itty Bitty Pastels

I recently took a pastel workshop with one of my favorite pastel artists, Marla Baggetta. I have been following Marla and her work for quite a while and was finally able to meet her. She is a wonderful teacher, very passionate, dedicated and fun! Check out her website, click on every link, and be prepared to be inspired!

Day One was dedicated to Trees. The following are the first two pastels I did in the workshop.  They are itty bitty...about 3" wide,  and a great way to try different pastels, pastel papers and have a plain ole good time!

Full to Overflowing!

My heart is full to overflowing at the wonderful turnout to the unveiling of 

50 COWBOYS~50 PAINTINGS. 

This has been quite an emotional undertaking from the very beginning. There were no plans for what would happen when these portraits were completed. I didn't allow myself to think any further than the painting being worked on at the time... it was simply a labor of love. Having it accepted by the City of Pleasanton to be installed in the Longhorn Museum, a One-Woman Exhibit at the Pleasanton Civic Center, the interest, the attendance, especially by the cowboys themselves, well....for the first time in my life, I am at a loss for words. 

For more "behind the scene" information, please see the following article in the  Pleasanton Express 

Unveiling of 50 COWBOYS ~ 50 PAINTINGS

It is time for the Big Reveal

In my last newsletter, I spoke of upcoming news I could hardly wait to share. Almost a year in the making, the time is finally here! It is with great honor that I present to the City of Pleasanton, my tribute to Atascosa County's first fifty Cowboys of the Year. Please indulge me as I name each of the recipients. Robert Kuykendall, 1966, George Henry, 1967, Jim McDaniel, 1968, Robert McAda, 1969, Alfred Stanush, 1970, Travis Mansfield, 1971, Bob Hindes, 1972, Manuel Zuniga, 1973, Jimmy Mansfield, 1974, Wilfred Stanush, 1975, Guy Smith, Jr., 1976, Pete Garcia, 1977, Ford Rutherford, 1978, Ike Barnes, 1979, Jack Rutherford, 1980, Bob Thompson, 1981, Guadalupe Gonzales, 1982, Lino Navarro, 1983, Robert Bryan, 1984, Steve Richter, 1985, Tommy Henry, 1986, Charles Maddox, 1987, Bill Seago, 1988, Carey Bryan, 1989, Joel McDaniel, 1990, Benny Zuniga, 1991, Gilbert Gonzales, 1992, Danny Zuniga, 1993, Darryl Ashley, 1994, Nixon Dillard, 1995, Robert Rutherford, 1996, David McDaniel, 1997, Rusty Maddox, 1998, John Chaney, 1999, Leroy Krueger, 2000, Clint Hindes, 2001, Dan Osterman, 2002, Mickie Clark, 2003, Roy Hindes III, 2004, Johnny Schrutka, 2005, Rudy Zuniga, 2006, Billy Wayne Kaiser, 2007, Ricky Roberts, 2008, David Kaiser, 2009, Gene Hirsch, 2010, Cuatro Hindes, 2011, Mike Shearrer, 2012, Roy Alonzo, 2013, Randy Mangum, 2014, Colby Mangum, 2015. They will be on display at the Civic Center through Thursday, March 9, and will then be installed in the Longhorn Museum, 1959 E State Highway 97, Pleasanton, TX.