Carole Rodrigue Fine Art

Little Treasures Additions

2011-11-06T13:46:00.001-05:00

Pear II

5 x 7 original oil

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

Sold

Pear III

5 x 7 original oil

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

Sold

Hello everyone, here are a couple of smaller pieces I recently completed, 2 pears in oils on masonite. These are already sold, but I will create more of these little treasures in the near future. For now, I've got a few commissions on the go which are keeping me busy, as well as a still life that I've been working on. The still life has copper and pearls, two of my favorite things to paint. I'm looking forward to completing all of these paintings and sharing them with you. I'm excited about each of them, so keep checking! Thanks for dropping in.

New Painting

2011-10-19T14:43:00.000-05:00

Evening Gold

11 x 14 Oil on Canvas

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

Hello everyone, I'm busy in the studio painting with oils lately. The time has come for me to make the switch back to oils. I had gone to acrylics a few years ago mainly because of the versatility, ease of use, and due to my impatience to wait for a painting to dry before continuing with it. During the last few years, one of my goals was to work on my patience, which I have done. When it comes to my art, I do have more patience now. Also, for the last year, oils were beckoning me, and the pull to work with them again was strong. So, right now, I'm having fun playing with oil paints.

This piece is called "Evening Gold", and was inspired by an evening drive to Toronto during our Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. The scenery was spectacular and I took photos during the ride. I hope you enjoy this piece as much as I've enjoyed painting it! Also, I'm now beginning to simply sign my name "Rodrigue" rather than my first initial and the last name. It's simpler this way and I like the sound. Rodrigue.

Have a wonderful day and thanks for dropping in!

TLA, New Oil Painting

2011-09-28T19:04:00.000-05:00

TLA

14 x 11 original oil

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

Hi everyone, it has been a very long time since I've posted. This year has been a year filled with challenges and loss for me. The biggest was losing my mother, who had been diagnosed with cancer in March and then passed away on June 4th. Needless to say, my attentions have been elsewhere this past year. I'm thankful I've had my art as an outlet and as a haven. Yes, I have still painted even though I haven't posted.

I've also started painting with oils again and wanted to share this piece which I called TLA. True Love Always. I remember childhood days with my friends, spending sunny afternoons outdoors and talking about the boy who would be our great love. We used to carve TLA, or write it down everywhere we could. Those are fond childhood memories -- the naivety and hopefulness of youth, fantasizing about wonderful futures, and great loves. What a girlie thing to do! That's what this painting is for me though, the thought of wonderful futures, filled with blessings and wonder. Even though life may throw major challenges our way, there is still always something to be amazed with, to hope for, and to smile about. I hold on to my childhood wonder and hope. It is what keeps people always going forward, not looking back with sorrow. Something exciting and wonderful is always just around the corner, and this also fuels my artistic soul.

There are a few commissions I'm also working on at the moment, some which won't be posted until much later due to them being gifts for people. I'm happily painting away in my studio and letting my inner child splash paint on canvases. I will be sure to share more really soon! Thank you so much for dropping by, and take care.

Little Treasures

2011-04-28T19:58:00.000-05:00

Green Apple

5 x 7 original acrylic

Self Portrait II

5 x 7 original acrylic

Self Portrait I

5 x 7 original acrylic

Egg

5 x 7 original acrylic

Dreamer III

5 x 7 original acrylic

Tomorrow night is the wine and cheese for the Sudbury Art Club's Spring Art Show. The show lasts all weekend, and these are just some of my paintings that will be exhibited. These Little Treasures are available for $40.00 this weekend ONLY! Be sure to drop by if you're in the area, and remember that there is no admittance fee. Even the wine and cheese is free! Hope to see some of you there.

Spring Art Show

2011-04-21T21:54:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! I'm stopping by quickly to announce and invite you all to next week's Sudbury Art Club Annual Spring Show. You can see all the info by clicking the above image; it'll pop up larger. For that weekend only, my smaller works from the Little Treasures collection will be sold for $40.00. That is an excellent price for anyone wanting to collect original works of art!

And for more news, I've recently been invited to join The International Guild of Realism! I'm so excited about having been juried into this wonderful group of artists. Please be sure to check out their site!

Also, there is now a website for the Backstreet Gallery where some of my art is exhibited. It's part of the French River Cultural Industries Council and there are several wonderful artists showing their art. I was very impressed with the art when I visited, and if you're ever in the French River area, make sure you stop by there! There is so much wonderful art in the North.

I've been working on some more art as well. One should be done for the show, and I'm working on getting some smaller 5 x 7's out as well. So, time's of the essence, and I need to get back to work! I will keep you all posted with more news and art soon! Thanks for dropping by.

Winter Horse Painting

2011-03-15T21:32:00.000-05:00

Cool Guy

16 x 20 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

Hello once again! I'm pretty much done painting this one, although I might add a few touch ups. I'm calling this one "Cool Guy" for obvious reasons, and also because he was cool! He's a gorgeous Percheron that I photographed at a local ranch on one of the coldest days this winter. It was so cold, I thought my fingers would fall off after being outside taking pictures for about five minutes. I'm told this guy's name is Bobby, and taking photos of him and his friend was worth those painful fingers. Bobby and his mate played the whole time I was there, acted coy at times, but both showed off and put on a great show for me. I could just tell it wasn't the first time they saw a camera.

The sunset was just amazing as well. I got so many wonderful shots that day and have so many painting ideas that I might be painting these two horses for a long time. There's someting about very crisp, cold air that makes the sky look extra beautiful, even more so than at any other time of year. Now if only it weren't so cold on such days so that more people could be outside to enjoy these skies!

I need to run along now, but as always, there's always something on my easel. Thanks for stopping by and keep checking for more art!

Red Vase Still Life

2011-03-13T22:26:00.000-05:00

Salvaged, Red Vase Still Life

30 x 40 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

I'm glad to be finally posting this one tonight! Why you ask? Because this one almost went to the fire. Yes, it does happen.

So, what happened? Oh nothing really, except that from the minute I started painting it, nothing went right. There are too many things I could write about on this, but let's just say that this piece fought me every inch of the way. It waged war with me, right up until the last varnish coat. It wanted me to chuck it, but I didn't. I was equally stubborn and kept at it and refused to let it go. Because of my war with this piece, I called it "Salvaged". It was salvaged in a way, since I almost destroyed it, but brought it back and let it live. Funny way to talk about a painting, but artists would completely understand what I mean. Even the red vase looks like something that was salvaged with the peeling paint and chips here and there. So, Salvaged seemed like a fitting piece.

There are a few more on the easel also. I'm almost done with a horse piece and it's turning out quite well so far. Let's just hope it stays that way! I'll be back soon, so until next time, take care and thanks for dropping in!

Yellow Lab Portrait

2011-02-21T22:07:00.000-05:00

Kayla

11 x 14 acrylic on canvas

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2011

Hi everyone, while I've been busy working on still lifes and planning future art projects, I've painted this Yellow Lab portrait as a gift for someone I know. His dog's name is Kayla and she's an old girl. Kayla just turned 10 so I thought a portrait would be a great gift. You might think Kayla looks young, and you're right, she does. I deliberately smoothed the colors and details to give a youthful glow. I had at first painted in all her wrinkles and thought, what lady wants her wrinkles painted? So, off they came.

I've added pictures of the work in progress below to show how I painted Kayla.

I started out here by transfering a rough image of Kayla on the canvas, then drawing over some of the details with charcoal.

The background is usually the first thing I paint as well as painting in a rough sketch with black paint, or any other left over paint I might have laying around. Left over paints would all be mixed together to create a dark mud, but in this case, it was black paint.

Next, I painted over the whole sketch with burnt umber mixed with raw sienna and burnt sienna, as well as with a touch of gesso. Adding a touch of gesso will help other layers of paint stick. I tend to work using opaque mixtures, and if the painting gets to a point where the paint is difficult to work, I add some gesso. Trust me, this helps adding other paint layers a lot more easy!

This shot shoes more layers of paint and the painting is starting to take shape. I added some of the backlighting to help my visual idea. I usually only add the backlighting at the end, but this time I started working with some of the lighting earlier than usual. The backlighting is a mixture of white and a touch of blue. This simulates the daylight coming in through a window and gives a cool glow.

And here's a close-up of the final portrait. I didn't show all of the layers that were painted between the last photo and this one since there was a lot of work and many more layers added. What is important to note here is that I didn't paint every single hair. I painted some, which gives the impression from up close of having painted in more hair than I actually did. Also, more blue was added in the fur since the backlighting is provided by daylight streaming in through a window. This blue also creates shadows and complements the golds and oranges in the painting. While the blues don't jump out at you, they are everywhere in the painting and provide a more realistic piece.

I hope you`ve enjoyed this one, and come back to see some still life soon! Thanks for dropping in!

David Doodle

2011-01-31T22:11:00.000-05:00

David Charcoal Sketch

Hi again everyone. Hope you've all been well! I've been doing some painting, doing some sketching, and doing some planning. I'm still working on a larger still life and hope to be done soon. It's in the completion stage where I'm playing with lighting, shadowing, and final touches. It should be done within a few days.

I've also been keeping busy with some sketching. I'm planning a David painting and am playing around with some ideas. So, as I sit there thinking, I'm doodling and sketching. This one I sketched out in charcoal in about an hour and a half. As I'd mentioned before, I'm really enjoying discovering charcoal again. It's a very tough medium to work with, and for now I'm just sticking with playing around. I am however, trying to use it a lot instead of pencil as I'm planning a piece. This way, I'm getting to learn the feel again and increase my skill with it. I'd really love to create truly remarkable charcoal pieces in the future. Charcoal, as well as pencil. I feel these two mediums are going back to the basics, and this is something we artists tend to neglect as we get caught up in a medium. Again, as I already mentioned in another post, I absolutely LOVE getting lost in drawing again! It truly makes me feel like I did as a child, sitting with my crayons and getting lost for hours. I find it so relaxing and therapeutic.

Also sitting on one of my work tables is another very large canvas, this one waiting for a horse piece from a shoot I had last week, on one of the coldest days of the year! Of course I had to pick this day for driving around and going in the frigid temps to go take pictures. This painting will be of a beautiful black Percheron on a cold day. Going out on this cold day was worth it. I took amazing photos with incredible lighting that could only have been achieved on such a day. It was so cold that after about a ten minute shoot on a farm, I thought I'd lose my fingers despite wearing gloves! The price to pay for art . . .

Again, thanks for dropping in and taking the time to look! Please feel free to post comments or ask questions any time you'd like!

At Last!

2011-01-20T16:27:00.000-05:00

Au repos

18 x 14 original acrylic

Yes, at last! I've finally been able to get this painting to where I felt it should be. Every artist knows that when working on a piece, we can always continue, always find something else we want to add. We then have to come to a point where we say, "It's done." So, this one is done!

I call this one "Au repos", which is French for "at rest". This is a portrait of my beloved Shih Tzu, Taja. I got Taja last spring when she was a year old. I had been wanting a small dog for a long time, but was worried about the commitment. For months, I'd search online and look at different breeds, pictures, and available dogs. One day, I came across an ad for her online and immediately knew I just had to get this dog! I have never regretted a moment since. From the night we brought her home, it was as though she'd always belonged. And it was obvious from watching her that she felt the same. She never showed one instance of new home anxiety. When she first came in the house, she stopped and looked, then she started running around like an excited dog who was ecstatic to be home at last! I love her to bits and, yes, she is a spoiled princess and that's okay.

Back to the title, about being at rest . . . Taja loves to play, like any typical Shih Tzu. She has this huge rope toy which I included in the painting, and it's so big, it's funny to watch her shake it about. After a round of play, she likes to rest and either nap, or gaze about. In this piece, she's gazing out the window, basking in the warm glow. I had taken several photos of her that day, and she was just so beautiful that she begged to be painted. She looks so content and so rested in this piece. This contentment and peacefulness is something that we all seek, author included. Au repos, I'll find it some day . . .

So, what now? I'll be working on still lifes for a while. I'm working on something huge with red in it. I'm just itching to paint another horse, but so many still lifes are beckoning at the same time. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks so much for dropping by, and take care!

Shih Tzu Work In Progress Photo

2011-01-10T19:01:00.005-05:00

Taja (work in progress)18 x 14 original acrylic
There you have it, my dog's work in progress. I was finally able to figure out some glitches and post the photo. It only took a couple of days, but there you go. That's technology for you! You download some stuff to "improve" your web experience, but then you discover a lot of bugs occuring because of this "improved" technology. Hmph! Very frustrating!
Here I've posted only a close up shot of the work in progress. It's taking me longer than anticipated. I'm still working on some detailing and tweaking, as well as getting the lighting effect I want. Hopefully things go as I can see them in my mind. I know what I want it to look like, so I don't want to prematurely call this one done only to be unsatisfied down the line and always regret the final work. So, I'll keep at it and you will see the finished work as soon as I see it finished! Thanks so much for dropping in!

No Photo!!!

2011-01-09T22:57:00.000-05:00

I can't upload photos!!! So much stuff has been adding to this computer this weekend that now I find myself unable to upload pictures. I'M SO FRUSTRATED!!! Instead of keeping on trying to tackle this thing, I'm going to go to bed and try to figure out a way to get everything back to normal on here. I'm not finished with the painting, but almost there! I was going to post a close up shot tonight but for some reason I can't upload. On the bright side, maybe I'll be done the painting by the time I've got this thing figured out! I wonder if this has anything to do with my having downloaded Internet Explorer 9 . . .

Facebook Networked Blog

2011-01-05T22:44:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone, it has been a while since I've posted some art, but I do promise to post a great piece by the end of this weekend! It's a piece featuring my Shih Tzu and I'm really loving it so far. But, with the holidays and all, finding time to get back to painting has been hard. No more excuses though, more art is on the way!

Also, for all of you Facebook users, you can directly follow by blog through Facebook. This can save you from saving and bookmarking all sorts of web addresses. Since many just primarily go to Facebook, this is a great way to still follow my blog and have a look at my newest art! Thanks for dropping in everyone!

Chihuahua Pencil & Charcoal Portrait

2010-11-14T23:31:00.000-05:00

Chica

8 x 10 pencil & charcoal on paper

Hello again! Here's Chica, a loveable Chihuahua which has been a pleasure to capture through art! I drew Chica using an HB pencil, #8, a mechanical pencil, and charcoal. I wanted to do a dark background so I could have light in the portrait. It's pretty much done, but I want to keep tweaking it and adding more to the background. Charcoal can be difficult to work with, so I have to go easy. We'll see how it goes!

I have a small apple piece on my easel right now which I also plan on competing this week. Then, I'm not sure. I've got soooo many pieces going through my mind that I'd like to start! The trouble is deciding which I want to do! I'll be sure to keep you posted. Thanks for stopping by, but be sure to come back to see the apple!

Golden Retriever & Shepherd Mix Portrait Completed

2010-11-08T21:11:00.000-05:00

Hello again! I've completed Sadie and & Nalla's portrait and handed it over to their owner who is very pleased with the outcome. Seeing a client's reaction is always the most satisfying part of completing a commission!

On this first photo, I had Nalla's outline and began adding in the details, alternating between and HB, H4, and #8 pencils. The eyes and nose were filled in first since these indicate if you're on the right track and give the dog's final character. If the eyes are wrong, the rest of the portrait will be wrong too! I also added the ear outline. On the reference, Nalla had her ears right back, so after examining a couple of other photos, I drew in her ears as I thought they would be.

You can see the ears being filled in on this photo.

And here you have the final photo. Drawing these two was an immense pleasure! I'm thoroughly enjoying getting back to drawing again. When I draw, I feel like I did when I was a little girl, sitting for hours on end with my coloring books. I'm also playing with charcoal again and am looking forward to experimenting with still life on charcoal. I've also begun a Chihuahua portrait which should be done by week's end.

Thanks so much for dropping by and come check my art again soon!

Golden Retriever and Shepperd Mix Portrait

2010-10-30T16:54:00.000-05:00

As promised, I'm back with some art! These photos are of a commission of Sadie and Nalla. Sadie is a Golden Retriever and Nalla is a Shepperd Mix.

In this first photo, I've drawn out my sketch, making sure to add in the important details.

This second photo shows some of the drawing beginning to take shape. Going back and forth between an HB, a 2B, and a 6B pencil, I'm detailing those darker aspects of the drawing, making sure to go lightly and not get too eager with the darker areas. That could spell disaster!

This third photo shows Sadie beginning to look more like herself. With various size tortillons, I've softened lines drawn in for hairs and features. I've also begun using an 8B pencil to darken areas such as shadows, eyes, and nose. It's important to go slowly and carefully. With graphite, it's easy to make a mess of the page, so slow and easy is the way to go. I'm becoming satisfied with how Sadie is turning out. Now, I'm going to start working on smaller Nalla. This should be fun since she has so much black. By fun, I mean dangerous! Even though this dog has a lot of black, I will use a lighter pencil such as an HB and a 2B. I'll be back soon with Nalla's development, so stay tuned!

Prints Available!

2010-10-29T14:00:00.001-05:00

Yes! Prints are now available for purchase through Imagekind. Select paintings are set up and ready to purchase. More prints will follow soon. Greeting cards are also available, so please be sure to check out my profile page!

Colette Theriault's Pentagon Commission

2010-10-28T12:21:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone, I know it's been a while, and I will be posting some artwork today, later this week and next week. I wanted to take the time to introduce you to a wonderful artist. I'm honored to call Colette Theriault a friend, and I wanted to share a link with you about a Sudbury Star article focusing on Colette's obtaining a commission from the Pentagon last year.

Colette's wonderful rendering of three service dogs can be seen on her website. Please take the time to visit Colette's site. Her artwork is truly amazing! It's no wonder the Pentagon would commission her to work on such a project. Colette will also be on MCTV news discussing her acquisition. Way to go Colette!!!More of her work can also be seen in November during an exhibition she will be having with two other artists, Mary Ann Secord and Janet Kobelka. I will be dropping in to see their wonderful work and I hope you will to if you're in the area! The exhibit will take place November 20-21 at the Travelodge Hotel on the corner of Paris and Walford Rd. in Sudbury. Admission is free.

Now to my art. As an artist, we can often find ourselves with our well dry. This has been happening to me a lot this past year. I must admit that I have had health issues that have affected my productivity this past year, and this has also created a block. So what's an artist to do?

I've been taking the time to sit back, relax, and refocus. I'm reading the Complete Artist's Way by Julie Cameron, and it has really helped me to rethink and refocus. What do I want to do? The answer is simple. I want to make art. I want to make art that speaks to me and to others. I love painting still life, horses, and animals. I haven't painted as many other animals as I'd wished, however. Painting my two cats, which you can see on my website , was truly magical and enjoyable. I also find these two paintings, Wasn't Me and Petit Plaisirs, two of the paintings I love most and never want to part with . So, how can I keep feeling this pleasure and produce more work? Paint more animals. I also want to share this passion with you, the lover of art and animals by starting to do commissions again. I must admit that Colette has inspired me lately and got me thinking that yes, I can make a living creating art and doing what I love best. Stiffling our true selves is not good for anyone. Artists need to create, and so do I.

To start, I've been working on a graphite sketch of my dog Taja. She's an adorable Shih Tzu and there are so many pieces I want to create with her! I'm still not done with this drawing though. I'm adding more shading and highlighting. I will complete this in the next couple of days and share the final drawing. I will then post a work in progress of a commission I'm working on of two dogs. If you are intersted in having your pets captured in art, you can visit my website for more info and a list of prices. Feel free to contact me with any questions you might have!

Exhibitions

2010-09-26T15:59:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone, even though I have a blog on Google's site, I will begin posting through my website as well.

I wanted to give you a bit of information on this, my first blog post on my site. First, I've been selected to participate in the Northern Ontario Arts Association Annual Juried Exhibition! My painting, Heritage I, has been juried into the competition and will travel with the exhibition throughout selected Northern Ontario locations. The schedule is not yet posted on the NOAA site yet, but keep your eyes on it in case it should find its way in your area!

Also, the Sudbury Art Club will be having its annual fall show at the CNIB in Sudbury October 22, 23, and 24. The club has extended the show by one day this year. I will be participating and hope to see some of you! More information about the show can be found on the club's blog which you can find by clicking here.

Pear and Horse

2010-09-12T21:16:00.000-05:00

Dreamer II

5 x 7 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Here's the horse piece I was going to post a few days ago. I'll be doing several horse eye studies and they'll all be part of a series called Dreamer. Horses always seem to have this distant, dreamy quality to their eyes, so I thought this was a fitting title.

I noticed after I'd finished this that it looks a lot like another piece I did a few years back called Pensive. It's pure coincidence since they're not the same horse. But, take 2 similarly colored horses with the same pose, and there you have it!

Below is a study of a pear I completed minutes ago. Yes, just completed! I absolutely love the pale colors and lighting in this and I'm inspired to paint several still lifes using this pale light. A whiter shade of pale, as the song says . . . I think I'll go set up the next one, perhaps using these tones. Thanks for dropping in again!

Pear

5 x 7 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Silver Goblet

2010-09-07T21:17:00.000-05:00

Silver Goblet

5 x 7 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

As promised, here is the silver goblet I recently completed. It was a very quick study and much fun to paint! I love painting reflective surfaces. I have so many pieces I want to paint using silver, copper, gold, glass, anything reflective.

This little painting as well as all of the 5 x 7 pieces are available for purchase for $50.00. Please contact me through my website for any inquiries! Gotta rush, there are a couple of paintings I need to pack up for a show. Thanks for looking.

Tomato

2010-09-06T21:27:00.000-05:00

Tomato

5 x 7 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Sorry for the blurry photo, but I've been taking photos at night again and trying to keep the flash off. I'm really not much of a photographer!

Here's my latest miniature piece, simply titled, "Tomato". It was a race against time working on this tomato. It came from my aunt's garden and was oh so plump and ripe! I started the painting and then couldn't complete it for a couple of days, so I kept nervously checking the tomato to ensure that it was still in good shape. It lasted, but I really think it needs to be eaten by tomorrow. I'll enjoy it . . . :-D

I will have another piece to post tomorrow, a silver goblet I found in a thrift store. Actually, there were two and I think I paid a dollar a piece. Not a bad investment for art props! I've also worked on a horse today, which is done, except for a minor tweaking tomorrow. I'll post that one in a couple of days.

In the mean time, this Friday is the equine art auction at the Hits-On-The-Hudson Pzifer $Million Dollar Grand Prix! There are 85 lots to be auctioned, one of which is my painting, "Unconditional". I'm told there will be remote bids allowed. For more info, have a look at Hits' site: http://www.hitsshows.com/
or The Fletcher Gallery: http://www.fletchergallery.com/ I won't be attending the auction, unfortunately. I really wish I could be there though! If you'll be in the Woodstock, New York area, be sure to drop in!

Seashell

2010-08-26T20:07:00.000-05:00

Seashell

5 x 7 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Here's yesterday's completion. I've been wanting to paint this shell for a long time and will use it again in different works. A colleague of mine recently went out east to visit the Maritimes and hearing of this put me in the mood for a seashell. We're also considering a trip out to the east coast, some time next year, so I'm sure I'll collect a whole slew of shells and reference photos then! Until then, I'm left with this and my dreams. . . This piece is for sale for $50.00 CAD. Now, on to the next piece, a silver goblet. Thanks for looking!

Dreaming

2010-08-25T21:49:00.000-05:00

Dreaming

5 x 7 original acrylic on board

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Here is the first painting for my new study project. I call this one Dreaming. The horse wasn't actually dreaming since it was busy being part of a rodeo, but I thought it was a fitting name once the painting was done.

I was without a computer for a few days, so having this extra time to paint was great. It was so great that I'm imposing a computer fast on myself. I will still come online, but I'm committing myself to keep it brief, do what I must, and then paint. Not being online so much or doing computer work allowed me, or forced me, to stay busy in the studio, and that's a great thing! It also feels great to work on smaller pieces again. These are studies, quick paintings, meant to improve my skills as an artist. I haven't done these exercises in so long! It's all a learning curve with art, just as in life, and the learning must never end if one wants to be true to their art, and themselves.

One more painting got completed today, a seashell, and another is almost done. I will be posting the other tomorrow, so do come back! These small works are for sale, for $50.00 CDN, so it's an excellent way to collect original art!

Cat Painting

2010-08-20T19:10:00.000-05:00

Petit plaisir

11 x 14 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Voila! Here's my newest piece, a painting of my cat taking a rest in the warm glow from the window. This girl is 14 years old, and one very cranky cat! She's a Calico, so they're naturally cranky by nature, and this one has been this way since she was a baby. I've had her a loooonnggg time! But she does have her sweet side when she wants, and she is a beautiful cat. She epitomizes the saying, "Don't call me I'll call you!" attitude of cats that they're so well known for.

I called this piece "Petit plaisir", which is French for simple pleasure. I commented on Facebook the other day about my enjoying sharing watermelon with my Shihtzu and saying it was one of life's simple pleasures. This inspired the title for this piece, and perhaps more? A series maybe? Who knows where life and art will lead me.

Today also marks the start of my new painting endeavour. As previously mentioned, I'll be painting many smaller pieces, which will be quick studies and be available for a low price. It'll be a great opportunity for any person who wants to collect original art to be able to afford to start collecting, and for seasoned collectors to add to their collection. I hope to complete paintings either every day or two, but might start posting them when I have a few. So keep visiting! I do have Paypal available for those interested in purchasing a piece. I have to add it to my new website soon.

In the meantime, I need to get back in the studio. I'm having issues with my computer crashing, so hopefully this will be resolved by next week.

Thank you for dropping in and for taking time to look at my art! See you soon, and until next time, take care!

Sam's Girl

2010-08-08T12:51:00.000-05:00

Sam's Girl

24 x 18 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Hi everyone, meet Dancer, the Arabian horse I lease. She belongs to a wonderful young woman named Sam, so this explains the title. Dancer didn't always have it easy in her earlier years, but since she's with Sam, she's been cherished, as she deserves to be. She's a wonderful horse, one of the alpha mares on the ranch, and she's teaching me a lot about myself. At 23 yrs old, she's a wise horse. Sometimes that's not so good for me, but I absolutely love Dancer. I don't get to ride her as much as I'd like to to my terrible back and joint pain, but if I could, I'd ride her every day. Riding is very therapeutic; good for the body as well as the soul. My kuddos to Dancer and Sam for their patience with me! Sam needs to be rewarded for this.

I've got some more pieces on the cooker, so to speak, and I also plan to start a series of smaller works. I'm not returning to the daily painting project, but these will be quicker pieces, aimed at studying and strengthening my artistic skills. When I did participate in the daily paintings a few years back, I found I learned so much and developped beyond leaps and bounds as an artist. I'm hoping that by going back to these smaller studies that I attain a new level.

So, keep your eyes peeled and keep checking regularly. More work will keep coming, and in the mean time, thanks for dropping in and take care!

New Website Address!

2010-07-28T12:43:00.001-05:00

Hi everyone,

I've been busy, yes, painting and also with creating a new website! New paintings are coming soon, but in the meantime, be sure to check out the new website and bookmark it!

The new site will have great features, such as built in blog, newsletter subscription, and other stuff to come in the future. So, why did I switch? I decided to go with a Fine Art Studio Online (FASO) site because they are geared toward artists and have features which are very beneficial to artists! I've just completed working on the new site, but I do love it so much more, already!

Also, if you'll note, my website is no longer a .net , but a .com . Be sure to check it out!

www.carolerodrigue.com Yes, I've written it in bigger font. ;-)

Still Life

2010-07-14T21:29:00.000-05:00

Clay Vase

20 x 24 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

Well, it's not tomorrow, but rather, a few days later. I haven't had the time to do the tweaking I want to do on this piece so I decided to post this photo all the same.

This piece was inspired by a couple of matching vases I have, with each sitting in their own cabinet tower. One evening, the sun was coming in just right and creating this glow on the one vase. I was fascinated by the way the light hit, so voila, a new painting was born!

I'm also working on a new website. I'm doing it through FASO, and so far so good! Through this site, I'll even be able to work on this blog and have it posted there as well. I will also have an option for a quarterly newsletter that you'll be able to subscribe to, as well as Facebook "Like" buttons. I've got most of my photos uploaded and need to complete the rest when I have more time. I'd really like to get to Dancer's painting and get it done this weekend, if possible.

So, that's the scoop du jour and I will be back soon with more art! Until then, be safe and take care!

La Cloche Art Competition 2010

2010-07-11T10:40:00.001-05:00

Me at the La Cloche 33rd Annual Art Show

My oh my, but it's been a while! I've been super busy with all sorts of things from painting, art stuff, competitions, and a whole slew of things that needed done. But I'm oh so very proud to say that I won 1st place in the acrylic category at the annual La Cloche Art Show and Competition last week. The show runs until 5:00 pm today, and forgive me for being late in posting this.

The award was given for my painting, Kettle & Cherries, which you see in the above photo. I was in excellent company, and the range of artwork was incredible! I was surprised and humbled to have won 1st place after I saw the entries in the acrylic category. I kid you not, there were so many amazing works of art.

When I had walked in to deliver my paintings for the jurying, I took one look at the acrylic pieces which had already been entered and I broke into a sweat. I felft my heart sink to the pit of my stomach and thought, "Wow. There's no way I'm winning." I wasn't even sure if I'd make the show! So, imagine my delight when I received the call! Again, I'm truly honored to have won. I was determined to come home with a red ribbon. I wasn't sure I'd get it once I entered, but before that, I kept focusing on that red ribbon and I did come home with it! Yay!

So what am I up to now? Painting, painting, painting! I'm currently working on a horse piece of Dancer, the Arabian I lease. She's such a beauty and I will have several paintings of her in the long run, I'm sure. I've also completed a still life which I will try to post tomorrow. I've got some final touches to do and need to take good photos before I post it. Then, it's on to another horse piece. I received some wonderful reference photos from a friend of her two horses at dusk. I'm itching to get to those! I also attended the rodeo in Azilda last night and got so many great reference shots there. Heck, I even printed out a black & white and framed it in my studio late last night. I'm not getting into photography as an art, but I loved the cropped shot of a horse's neck and mane, complete with great bling. I had to frame it and pronto! I might post it later.

Before I close, I wanted to post a link to this amazing equine artist I discovered through Facebook yesterday. Her name is Lesley Thiel and her renderings are so realistic and breathtakingly beautiful! She paints the most wonderful action shots. I am in complete awe of her work and know you will be too! Have a look and enjoy!

Mining Pieces

2010-06-09T11:06:00.000-05:00

Untitled

20 x 24 original acrylic

Copyright Carole Rodrigue

Hi everyone, here are my latest 2 pieces. They were inspired by old mining helmets my friend found in her house. I said I would do a series with these, but for now I'll leave it at 2 pieces. I do have a couple of ideas for more paintings, but there are so many other pieces I want to get to first!

I've also started working on another still life, chiaroscuro, clay vase. . . I hope it will turn out as I envision it. There are also a few horse pieces I want to do, as well as a still life using a cow skull I purchased a few months back. It'll be something very Southwest.

Before I go, I'm reminding everyone that you are invited next Tuesday, June 15th, between 5-9 pm at Northern Flavours, 106 Beech St. in Sudbury for my vernissage. These 2 pieces are already hung there, and a portion of the sales will be donated to the Sudbury YMCA Strong Kids Campaign. Hope to see you there!

Expo

2010-06-04T21:47:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone, I'm writing a quick note to let you know that an artist has cancelled at Northern Flavours, therefore, I've already begun to exhibit some work there. The vernissage will still take place on June 15th, from 6-9 pm. All artwork is for sale, with a portion donated to the Sudbury YMCA's Strong Kids Campaign. Hope to see you all there!

Another Project

2010-05-20T20:24:00.000-05:00

This chair is a project I'm participating in for the Sudbury Manitoulin Children's Foundation Charity Chair Auction. Since I paint a lot of equines, I wanted my contribution to be horsey, something warm, and dreamy. I'm calling this one, "Running With The Spirit". Painting this was something completely different for me and quite a pleasure! It's also a great cause since the funds raised will help send kids to camp.

Please mark June 15th on your calendar also since that's the night of the wine and cheese for my solo art show. If you've checked out my website this week, you'll notice that I've partenered up with the YMCA in Sudbury and part of the sales from the solo show will go to the YMCA Strong Kids Campaign, which is another excellent cause! The paintings will be exhibited until July 31st at Northern Flavours, but opening night with the vernissage is June the 15th.

If you feel I've not been posting much on my blog lately, you're right and I apologize. But! The reason I'm not posting is because I'm working on some mining related still life paintings. A friend of mine bought an older home recently and found some really old mining helmets and an old lunch pail. When she told me about these, my head started planning immediately, even before I'd seen what she had. My friend was kind enough to lend me these treasures which I'm now using as still life subjects. This only makes sense since Sudbury is a mining town and was founded as such. These pieces will only be unveiled at the solo show and not before!!!

Some of you might also like to know that I've been asked to give a 2 day painting workshop in Barrie, Ontario. The 2 day workshop will consist of studying a live horse model and painting a close up shot with a reflective eye. For more information or to reserve your spot, contact Laura at Three Girls And A Camera or contact me.

And last but not least, for those of you in the state of New York, or those who are planning on visiting the Hudson Valley, make sure to check out HITS-On-The-Hudson's calendar of events for the equine art exhibition (click the "Releases" tab or the Equine Art Exhibit button). All of the art pieces, including mine, will be exhibited throughout the Hudson Valley during the summer, then move on to the Fletcher Gallery in August, then head to Saugerties for the Pfizer Million Dollar Grand Prix in September. If you'll be anywhere around there, you won't want to miss all of the spectacular art! This artshow is also raising money for Family of Woodstock, Inc .

Okay, that's it for now. I think I've posted quite a few links on here! Enjoy reading up, and take care until next time!

Spring Show

2010-04-28T20:14:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! Here's some information for an art show I'll be participating in May 7 & 8 at the CNIB Hall, 303 York Street (Corner of Regent and York Street), in Sudbury, Ontario. On Friday, May 7th, from 7-9 pm, there will be a wine and cheese, and the show will continue Saturday, May 8th, from 10 am to 4 pm.

I will be hanging several pieces there, and will attend for the duration. It would be great to meet some of you, so please come by, enjoy some great art from many talented artists, and make sure to come and say hi!

More news and art soon!

Trésors II

2010-04-26T21:34:00.000-05:00

Trésors II

16 x 20 original acrylic

Here's my latest piece, Trésors II. I finally managed to finish this one last night. And yes, it is a night shot with the flash creating a glare. I wonder if there is any way to photograph anything with so much black perfectly! I love painting these still lives though, as well as adding the equine touch. Painting pearls is something I'm really growing to love as well, so this is giving me many ideas for future paintings. Hope you're enjoying this one. It will be displayed at my solo show in June at Northern Flavours on Beech St. in Sudbury. I'm planning on a grand opening/vernissage June 15th, but will confirm that date later.

I also got myself a wonderful little Shih Tzu dog today. Her name is Taja and she is such a precious dog! You'd expect a dog to have separation anxiety on her first night in a strange place, but she is just loving it here. My cats, well, that's another story. We'll keep them separated for a while, but I'm really falling in love with this little dog already. As I'm typing this out, she's still sniffing every corner, but keeps coming back to me to lay at my feet or to say hello. What a sweet thing!

That's it for now. I'm starting on a new piece, a mining piece for the show as well as waiting for a Muskoka chair to be delivered later this week. This will be painted with an equine theme and auctionned off for charity to send kids to camp. I'll show the chair once completed, as well as the latest piece. Talk to you soon!

P.S. I just found out why she was sniffing out every corner . . .

Some News

2010-04-20T16:38:00.000-05:00

Unconditional

18 x 24 original acrylic

Hello everyone, I wanted to give you this little tid-bit. Unconditional has been selected to participate in the Hits-on-the-Hudson Equestrian Art Exhibition and Charity Auction in collaboration with the Fletcher Gallery in Woodstock, New York. This show is to begin in May on Memorial Day Weekend and will run in various locations throughout the Hudson Valley. Then, in August, the art pieces will be on display at the Fletcher Gallery in Woostock for one month. In September, the art show will be moved to the Hits-on-the-Hudson fair grounds. The auction will take place on September 10th, the same weekend as the Pfizer $1 Million Dollar Grand Prix.

I'm very excited to be participating in this show! The moneys raised from the charity auction will benefit Family of Woodstock,Inc. It's an honor to have been selected and I'm also proud to be able to contribute to this great cause.

Stay tuned, another still life will soon be completed, and I will have some more news as well! Ta-ta for now!

No Bull Revisited

2010-04-11T21:04:00.000-05:00

No Bull

11 x 14 original acrylic on canvas

Copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

So here's "No Bull" with the background changed. It used to be orange and I just didn't like it. It's not much of a change, I merely painted the background black, but I like it much better. It's so much more dramatic.

I'm still working on another still life, more pearls, jewelry box, and horse statue . . . I've lost 2 weekends in a row being away, so I'm really eager to get on with the painting. Losing 2 weekends is a lot of time in artistland! Hopefully I can make up this time quickly. I've got so many ideas I'd like to get on canvas before the show in June. That doesn't leave much time. I do have enough pieces already, but I'd still like to get some fresher pieces in, especially a couple of the future mining series.

I'm also announcing ahead of time that I have been asked to give a 2 day workshop this summer. I will provide more details and give the specifics on my site once the date has been finalized. It should be an amazing, informative, and fun-filled 2 days!

Have a great week everyone, and I'm hoping to be done something else soon. Thanks again for dropping in!

Golden Glow

2010-04-08T21:25:00.000-05:00

Golden Glow

16 x 20 original acrylic

Hello! I was finally able to finish this piece. Of course, it's night shot, so there's a glare and some parts don't show, such as the darker blues in the painting. I suppose I should always wait until I can photograph outdoors under better lighting, but hey, we've had a storm all day! If I waited around for the weather, I'd never get anything posted. So, bad shot, but I posted it anyway.

I'm still working on several pieces, and am starting to see progress. It's great when you can get to that point! I have so many ideas I need to get going on, including the mining hat series. I've also re-worked another painting I'd done a while back. It was a bull and I decided to change the color of the background. I will post that one another day. This girl's gotta work in the morning, and I've got to get to bed!

So, come back in a few days and I'll re-post a whole new "No Bull!". I will also have some anouncements to make in the coming month, so hold on to your britches! Is that how it's said? :-s

Take care everyone, and thank you for dropping in!

Winter Dance

2010-03-31T21:42:00.000-05:00

Winter Dance

16 x 20 original acrylic

copyright Carole Rodrigue 2010

As promised, here's a completed painting. I call this one "Winter Dance" because photographing this beautiful Percheron was almost like a dance between the two of us. The horse was far out in the pasture when I spotted it. It would approach ever so slowly, and as soon as I would look, the horse would stop.

After waiting around freezing, -this was in February-, I'd had enough and decided to "dance". So, I would turn myself sideways and wait. The horse would take several steps. I'd look, and it stopped. I would turn sideways again, shuffling my feet, shivering and waiting, and the horse would approach some more. We went on like this for a good fifteen minutes, with my boyfriend patiently waiting in the truck. God bless him for all his patience with me! I had patience for the horse . . .

Anyway, after our "dance", the horse was finally close enough for me to get a decent shot. From then on, it just seemed to pose for me. I could tell it was still nervous but curious, so I took as many shots as I could, and returned to the comfort of the warm truck. My poor buddy seemed disapointed! After that whole dance, I just abandonned it, just as it had enough nerve to want to know more. But it was just too cold and I really wasn't dressed for shooting in the winter. I was even wearing high heeled boots! Now that's dedication to my art! Anything for a shot . . . Well, not quite. But I'm glad I had a chance to dance with this beauty, and I might drive back another day when it's warmer.

The shot of the painting is on the dark side.It's actually much brighter and lighter. Now, back to some still life! I have a few I'm working on and need to finish, as well as a series on mining. This is Sudbury, after all. Then, I've been asked to participate in painting a Muskoka chair for charity, to send kids to camp. I'm looking forward to getting my chair. I have an equine theme in mind, and pretty much know what I want to do. And I'll be helping to send a kid to camp!!! Yay! I'm excited about this project and can't wait to get started. I'll keep everyone posted on everything, of course.

Hope you all have a great holiday weekend, and a safe one too!

Instructional DVD's

2010-03-29T20:47:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone, and no, these DVD's are not mine. They are created by Derek Wicks I highly recommend them! I bought "Touch of Gold" and "Creating Snow Textures". I have to admit that I learned more about painting snow and blurring backgrounds effectively in those 2 DVD's than I have in all my years of painting! You can check out all of his instructional DVD's http://www.powertopaint.com/ . Derek also has reference material DVD's.

While you're there, you might want to have a look at Derek's art also at http://www.derekwicks.com/ . Derek is a wonderfully talented wildlife painter and I know you won't be disappointed! He is supposed to come to the Sudbury area this summer to offer workshop and I certainly am looking forward to it. I'll keep you posted on this.

Drop in again really soon. I'll have 2 paintings ready to post soon, one within the next couple of days. Until then, take care and thanks for dropping in!

Solo Show

2010-03-07T20:38:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! No completed work to post yet. I'm still working on a few pieces and struggling to find extra time to get things done. But they will get done!

I though I would drop in for a quick announcement, and that is in regards to my first solo show. Yes! I will be having my first solo show this summer from June 15th to July 31st, at Northern Flavours on Beech St. in Sudbury. Northern Flavors is a small local eatery and food store promoting northern products, and excellent ones might I add, as well as promoting local artists. Various artists have had shows there and I can't wait to have mine! Painting will include a selection of still life and equine art. I don't have the evening for the grand opening selected yet, but I will keep you all posted as things get finalized and the time for the show comes nearer.

It would be great to meet some followers of my art and meet any art lover at the show! So, stay tuned for the final details. And thanks for dropping by!

Cherries and Pitcher

2010-02-22T21:52:00.000-05:00

Cherries & Pitcher

16 x 20 original acrylic

I'm glad to say that I've finally found the time to finish this piece. There wasn't much left to do, but I've been working on several pieces, and finally got around to getting white napkins! You'd think everyone had those laying around the house, but not me. Other colors yes, but not white. So here you have it.

There are a lot of reflections in this piece, from the water pitcher, to the napkin, pitcher, and cherries reflected on the table as well. I loved painting the cherries. I also loved eating them . . . always a danger when painting food. Lucky for me I haven't painted cake or pie yet!

As I already mentioned, I'm working on a few pieces at the moment. I used to work on one piece at a time until completed, but lately, I'm finding myself inspired by more and more things, and when the inspiration wears off with one piece, I put it aside and work on something else. A lot of artists work this way, so it certainly does not make me unique.

So what's on my easel now? I've put aside a large still life and a horse piece to work on another still life. Something with gold . . . Stay tuned! So many ideas, so little time.

Still Life With Cherries WIP

2010-02-07T20:12:00.000-05:00

This first photo is the beginning of a painting that is almost completed. I painted my background with black gesso and will add the color in layers as I go. I've also just drawn out a very rough outline of a water jug using white chalk. Things get straightened out and adjusted as I paint. Most of my paintings happen this way, directly on canvas.

At this stage, I'm adding color and starting reflective work on the jug. To paint reflections, it's important that I paint what I see and not what I think should go there.

Again, I'm adding more of what I see in the jug. Lines are a little messy, but will get cleaned up.

At this point, I've begun to paint in the cherries and a chair outline. I've also added the reflections from the camera's flash. I decided to leave this in since it added dramatic contrast.

Here's a closeup of the cherries. They look much better than this in real life. There's always a glare when shooting darker colors at night. Now, the only thing that's keeping me from finishing is to find a white cloth napkin. Sounds silly, I know, but I do not own any white cloth napkins! I've got other colors, but I need white. So, shopping I go! Then I'll be able to finish. It should be done this week.

I've also started a horse piece which should also be done next week. After that, I think I'll work on another equine themed painting. I drove around the local countryside yesterday since it was such a gorgeous sunny winter day. I've got tons of great shots, several as the sun was going down, with beautifully backlit horses. Just perfect! So, I'm really inspired by snow, sunsets, and horses right now. I'm looking forward to starting on this. Until I post the next piece, take care and thanks for dropping by!

Quick Hello

2010-01-24T23:00:00.000-05:00

Me and OJ

Hi all, I visited a wonderful horse ranch today with my niece and sis in law and we spent a great afternoon. We're contemplating buying a horse, but met with as really nice lady who owns this horse, OJ. So, we'll wait before buying and might share-lease OJ. I think it's a great thing to do for many reasons, but leasing like this will also afford us all the lessons we want to take. So folks, this is me with OJ. You might see many more photos of us in the future. I also took plenty of reference shots since there are over 60 horses there, each amazing beauties! I'm looking forward to get painting. Enjoy!

New Layout

2010-01-18T22:47:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone. I started that still life painting, but am unsure yet about my background colour. So, instead of posting any pictures, I got bored with my blog layout and decided to change things around a little. I've changed the background colour and added a slideshow. Hopefully it ads interest! Anyway, that's it. I was just bored. I'm more excited with the layout now. What is it with background colours???

Another interesting thing I wanted to mention was that I found out my blog was shared on someone's Twitter! The link to Charlie's Buddy was shared on someone's Twitter and I thank that person. It's great when people begin to share your art because something about it touched them enough to want to share. That's what artists strive for. Not necessarily the flattery, but that you've managed to create a piece of art which evoked something in someone. That's what art should do, in my opinion. Some people try to be political or scream their opinion of something in their art. I like to paint the beauty this world has to offer, and there is so much beauty in this world! Life's to short to focus on the negatives. So, this is why I like to evoke feelings in viewers. If I've managed to create a mood and stir up feelings, then I've succeeded. Depicting beauty, and creating mood and feelings. That's what my art is. Probably why I've changed the background colour also. White was so lifeless. Mood, I think the blog has it now.

That's it for tonight folks. See you soon with some art!

Finished Piece

2010-01-14T21:37:00.000-05:00

Charlie's Buddy

24 x 30 original acrylic

So here you have it, the completed painting. I called it Charlie's Buddy because this is a rodeo horse that was in the same rodeo as Charlie, a painting I'd done a while back which can be seen on my site . This horse was a bronc horse and he was a beauty! Well, aren't all horses beauties? Like Churchill said, "There's something about the outside of a horse that's good for the inside of a man." That was an understatement.

I'm now going to start on that pitcher I previously mentioned. I'll probably post a work in progress also. Usually, I don't like showing uncompleted work, but I'm game for it and I'll post them from time to time.

Also, in a previous post, I mentioned plans for the year and goals. I won't post goals this year because all they do is remind you of your failures. Instead, I'm going to focus on accomplishments and successes, as well as remaining positive. We all have things we don't accomplish, so why waste time focusing on them? That's unproductive energy, so I'm not going there. All I will say is that I plan to do a lot of painting this year and making this year even better than the last! Hope you all have a better year as well.

I want to also mention that the people of Haiti and anyone around the world who knows someone there, or has lost a loved one, are in my prayers. No words can express how many people, including myself, feel about this. It's just such a tragedy and my heart goes out to Haiti.

Work In Progress

2010-01-13T13:15:00.000-05:00

As promised, I'm posting a work in progress. The painting is still not complete. These photos are only posted in order that you may see how I work. Not all artists work the same, and artists all have their favorite techniques or methods when working, depending on the medium used. I work with acrylic and don't start in little sections. Rather, I work by covering the whole canvas with an underpainting, and work in many layers until I get the finished product. Comments and explanations will be posted below each photo.

This first photo is my rough sketch. For this painting, I sketched directly onto the canvas and skipped a detailed drawing on paper first. Since this is a large 24 x 30 canvas, I divided the canvas in 4 equal parts, just as I did with the photo. My vision isn't that good anymore! Ahem. From there, it was a simple matter of adding the shapes in each square. Simplistic, but I avoid detailed drawing if I can and work straight from the canvas. I'm usually eager to jump into the paint!

Once the sketch is done, I cover the whole canvas with paint, using black, burnt umber, and for the white, a mixture of white, cobalt blue, and burnt umber to gray it down. I also started on the eyes so that they can guide me throughout the process.

From here, I begin to add layers of paint, or glazing, and adding light. I'll go back and forth at this point from dark to light until I know where and how I want everything.

Again, more and more layers are added. I've also began to mix in a mixture of cobalt blue, purple, and burnt umber mixed with a retardant So that I can blend and smooth out as I need to.I usually dry brush, but for these colors I like using a blending medium so that the underpainting shows through. This mixture is painted in the rear part of the horse as well as some areas of the neck and face.

At this point, I'm still constantly adding, playing with mixtures of burnt umber, burnt sienna, orange, naples yellow, and white. I've also begun to work on the mane by just roughing it in using black. I'm now ready to add light and color to the mane and to texturize with with color. I'm still adding more glazes of color to the rest of the horse also until I'm satisfied with the the results.

This piece should be done by tomorrow, so be sure to check again tomorrow to see the completed piece! Thanks for dropping in.

Teakie

2010-01-12T13:12:00.000-05:00

Teakie

16 x 20 original acrylic

Here's a portrait I've just completed for someone of their 14 year old mare, Teakie. Painting Teakie was a great pleasure. She has such a gentle eye and seems so sweet that I wanted to bathe her in light rather than just doing a plain portrait. But, that's my style, isn't it? I just love to add that light which makes a piece a little more special.

I've got a few days off work also and am enjoy this holiday. I've been finally able to begin to catch up on things and, of course, relax! So, what am I doing other than relaxing? I'm painting and thank heavens for that!

Now that Teakie's done, I'd started another horse piece, a larger cropped portrait and I can't wait to have it done! It should be done soon, and this time I did take photos so that I could post a "work in progress" series. I wil try to post these tonight or tomorrow, and will keep adding them until the final piece is completed, which of course, won't be long. It's funny how I came to paint this piece also. I was cleaning out old, unecessary photos from my computer a couple weeks back and came across this photo I've had for a few years. I've seen this hundreds of times, but this time, a painting just jumped out at me and I had to start it! Funny thing this inspiration. You can never tell where it'll come from next. So, note to self, don't discard too many older photos. Some gem may be in there and you just don't know it yet.

Once this is done, I've got a great shiny chrome water pitcher that's sitting in my cupboard and I've been itching to paint it. Each time I open this cupboard door, there's the pitcher saying, "Hey, what about me?" So, I will start with that as soon as I'm done the next equine piece. I am putting aside another larger still life, but will get to that as soon as I'm done the pitcher. Inspiration. When it hits, you just gotta follow . . .

Best Wishes for the Season

2009-12-29T22:01:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone, shame on me for neglecting my blog as of late! I am working on a couple of pieces, and will have a horse portrait done within the next week. After that, it's on to completing a rather large still life I'd started in November.

I also wanted to give this link for anyone reading who is an artist. I read Clint Watson's blog daily and thought this post was too amazing not to share! I tried posting the whole article, but wasn't able to post it in its original condition with all links appearing, so I'll just provide the shortcut. Let me know what you think!
http://clintwatson.net/blog/15768/The-Hunger-The-Void-The-Logos-and-The-Ultimate-Gifts

I also wanted to wish everyone a belated Merry Christmas and hope everyone has a wonderful, safe, and prosperous New Year! I'll be back soon with a painting and my goal list for the upcoming year. Well, maybe . . . I'm not too good at those . . . :-)

Dog Painting

2009-11-23T21:57:00.003-05:00

Morning Glory, Portrait of Tippy

11 x 14 original acrylic

Here is my latest painting, a portrait of Tippy. Sorry for the blurry photo! Although Tippy passed away a long time ago, she was so loved by her family that they wanted a portrait.

Apparently, Tippy used to love to walk about in the family's rock garden. I didn't have a reference for the rock garden, but I'm told that the garden I painted is just like the one they had and that it was as though I'd been there before. The person who commissioned the piece was also struck by Tippy's resemblance and said I'd captured the dog and her eyes perfectly. It's a really great feeling to know you've painted something that touches someone that way and can add joy to someone's life. Isn't that what art should do?

Tippy's not the last dog I'll be painting. I do have to paint a gorgeous chihuaha for my brother and his family. This dog is so spoiled, well, let's just say that this is the princess of the family. The whole family! I'll post that piece after I'm done. But right now, I'm working on a very large still life again and am so excited by this piece! I'm hoping it turns out as I plan. It should.

So, enjoy Tippy for now and we'll see you back soon!

Copper and Squash

2009-11-09T21:32:00.004-05:00

Copper & Squash
16 x 20 original acrylic

Word of advise to artists, don't try and take photos of paintings with a lot of black in them at night! It doesn't matter what you do, you'll get a glare. But I really wanted to post this one, so I went ahead even with the glare. I'll have to take a better photo outside when the weather permits.

So, that's the latest piece, a pumpkin, potato squash, and a little copper kettle I'd found at a bargain shop. It was pretty banged up, but still exquisite! I'll be using it again since it's once of those things that has so much charm.

I'm also glad to report that the 30 x 40 piece I donated to the Sudbury YMCA Art Auction sold! Yup! That makes me pretty happy since the money's going to an excellent community cause.

Right now I'm working on a dog commission, and then I need to do another one, so I will share those as well. But I've got a couple of great still lifes cooking up in my head and in fact, once I'm done on the computer I'm going to start setting up.

Hope you enjoy this piece, even though it's a dark photo with a lot of glare!

Auction Piece

2009-10-25T21:51:00.006-05:00

Trésors

30 x 40 original acrylic on canvas

It sure has been soooo long since I've posted. I have been working hard on producing new works, and well, my time was just better served in the studio. Sorry!

I call this painting Trésors, the French for Treasures. On the outside, the treasures may seem to be the objects themselves. Well they could be, but I've assigned deeper meaning. I guess I'm getting a little philosophical in my art.

The horse statue depicts my love of horses, their power, beauty, strength, grace, vulnerability, and how they so reflect our own nature. The gold cup and pearls depict my love of light, which compels me to paint and capture it in all of its unique manifectations. The book represents my love of reading and knowledge. I've always strongly believed in life-long learning and treasure my ability to learn new things each day. The clock represents time, which as we age, we certainly learn to treasure more and more with each new day. And then the trunk. The trunk signifies life itself, and the hidden mysteries which lay, waiting to be discovered. So, these are the real treasures of this painting.

This painting is being donated to the Subury YMCA's annual Art Auction, being held next Friday, October 30th. Their website is http://www.sudbury.ymca.ca/ A wine and cheese begins at 6:00, and the auction at 7:00. I hope whoever bids on my painting treasures it as much as I enjoyed painting it! Hope to see you there!

Beeeeautiful Horse!

2009-09-17T18:02:00.003-05:00

Dante's Apache Dragon

24 x 18 original acrylic

Voila the latest piece! This horse is 3/4 Arabian and 1/4 Paint. He's a stallion from Arizona and belongs to Julie who was wonderful enough to let me paint this amazing horse. Of course, as with all my pieces, I might adjust and tweak, and the photo could've been better. The colors are slightly different in this photo, a little brighter than the painting. But, it was a rushed photo session since I was eager to share this painting. I can only hope I did him justice! As you can see from looking closely at his cheek on the running scene, Apache has a strike running across. He's got amazing coloring and I enjoyed painting this horse so much that I'm really getting a burning for painting more Paints or Pintos. Gotta love how nature throws some of that color around!

I'm already planning the next piece. This one is a still life, but with an equine theme, of course. Love those horses! So, please feel free to leave a comment or email me. Until next time, take care everyone!

Standardbred

2009-08-30T13:32:00.004-05:00

Standardbred Mare

16 x 20 original acrylic

Took a while to get here, but here's my latest painting. This was inspired from reference shots I took last year from a local Standardbred farm. This farm breeds pretty well known harness racing stock and I'd just love to visit the facilities themselves, especially in the spring time when these mares have their offspring. it's a beautiful property, full of beautiful horses, and I do so love the bays and blacks on the farm. I've got soooo many photos of these horses, but I've been wanting to paint this one for a long time now and I'm so happy it's finally out of my system and done! I've still got a little tweaking to do once I can get my studio back, which I hope is soon. This was painted from my kitchen, and I'm so happy to have reclaimed my kitchen !

I've already started working on another horse piece also, thanks to a very generous person in Arizona who's letting me paint her horse. He's part Arab, part Paint, and his coloring is so amazing. He's black and white, and even has lightning bolts! Yep, not kidding! What a beauty this stallion is! It's an honor to be painting this horse and I sure hope this piece turns out like what I'm picturing. I'll probably be painting a few pieces of this horse. So, a big thanks to Julie!

I must be off now. I've moved this horse to my family room since it's already a disaster area in there. Everything from my studio's been moved there while the studio's being built. Aren't renovations a joy? Ahem . . . sure. See you all soon with the next piece. Take care until then!

Glass Apple II

2009-08-13T21:01:00.005-05:00

Glass Apple II

12 x 12 original acrylic on canvas

I've been a little late in posting this one. I decided to try out Windows 7 and this caused me issues while working with photos. So, I hate having to waste precious time learning tech stuff, so I'll switch back to Vista. At least I had that one all figured out . . .

And so there you have it, the second installment in the glass apple series. This one is darker than the first, but the apples are all being painted on the same size frames: 12 x 12 gallery wrap canvas which needs no framing. Both apple paintings are for sale for $400.00 CDN each. Contact me at info@carolerodrigue.net to inquire about this piece, or any painting. Paypal is available!

I've already started working on a horse piece and plan on doing a couple in the next little while. This one is of a Standardbred mare in winter and I'm planning on taking late evening drives this weekend in search of the perfect pasture/sunset shots of several horses. Wish me luck on my hunt! I know what I have in mind, and it's just to find the right place with the right amount of horses, and lighting.

I've also got some tarnished silver goblets I've been polishing up. These were found for $2.50 for the pair, and they're silver! They're starting to look like new again with some heavy cleaning. These were black when I picked them up, and I mean black!

Well, it's late, and I must get going and do some more stuff before bed. Hope you all have a great weekend!

Life's a Bowl of . . .

2009-08-01T10:33:00.004-05:00

Kettle & Cherries

16 x 20 original acrylic

Here's my latest piece, painted from a layout in my kitchen. I've finally been able to complete it now that I've had a few days off from work. Well, almost complete. There's a little tweaking I want to do, but it's pretty much done. Thank God for vacation time! Seems there's just never enough time to paint when you work full time, but I make sure to try and squeeze in at least one hour per day, and more on days off.

This has become a habit now, and by 8:00 pm, that's my painting time. If I don't make it to the studio by then, things don't feel right with me. I've been doing this for about 6 months now, and while I'm still not painting as much as I'd like to, my brain subconsciously knows it needs to be painting at a certain time, and if I'm not, it lets me feel it. Strange, but it's the same feeling you get if you're late for work. So, if you're an artist who can't find time, maybe try this. I sure didn't invent the wheel, but it's something I've heard and read about from many artists throughout the years, and it works. It's also amazing how much you can accomplish in an hour!

Now, back to the painting. The kettle reflections show several details such as the cupboards, hanging chandelier, windows, door, trees, and the obvious, cherries. Some cherries reflected aren't in the foreground either because they were further away from the kettle and not captured in the painting. I just painted their reflection because I found this more interesting, showing hidden perspective.
So, hope you enjoy this painting! Now I'm trying to decide between a cork screw or another glass apple. We'll soon see . . .

First Art Related Interview

2009-07-08T20:05:00.004-05:00

Yes, I've had my first radio interview today! Bright'n early this morning! (7:55 am!)

Imagine my surprise yesterday when I came home from work to find out I was going to have an interview about my art and the La Cloche Art Show. And my guy Gilles said yes and planned it all out for me. I get home and he says, "Bébé, you're doing a radio interview tomorrow." Too funny! But I'm glad he did accept on my behalf and make the plans.

The interview was conducted by Stéphane Levoguer from CBC Radio Canada. Unfortunately, I had to rush off to work right after so I didn't get to hear it. Gilles listened to it and said it was well done and it also had an interview with one of the creators of the La Cloche show blended. Wish I could've heard! I checked their site to get a clip, but there isn't one so far. I'll keep checking.

So, that was my excitement for the day. I want to end this off also by thanking Stéphane. Un très gros merci Stéphane!!! C'était un plaisir d'avoir participé.

A New Little One to Share

2009-07-07T19:52:00.004-05:00

Untitled
11 x 14 original acrylic on canvas

Here's a piece I did Saturday night. I'd started just the underpainting on a previous night, and then completed it in a few hours Saturday night. This piece was intended to be something quick, light, and just for pure enjoyment, intentionally limiting the time allowed to complete it. Sort of an exercise. The horse is the same I'd painted in Miracle Man, the piece depicting Josh Lyons and a horse he broke last year. Like I said before, I fell in love with this horse and might paint him again in the future. He had the craziest, wildest mane, and I just absolutely fell in love with him! When his mane hung wildly in front, he was so beautiful.

We also attended the rodeo in Azilda this past Sunday afternoon. The weather was quite freakish with the wind blowing directly toward us. Little Miss Allergy here got extremely sick within no time and we ended up having to leave a little early, although I don't think we missed much because a storm arrived minutes after we left. So we did get to enjoy most of the show!

So what's on the easel now? Well, I'm going to paint that glass apple again, but under different lighting. I've got something for that apple . . .

P.S. I've added the "followers" gadget and would love to have followers apply! Please spare me embarrassment and become a follower. Please? :-p

La Cloche Art Show

2009-07-04T09:58:00.005-05:00

The show's billboard

Last night was the La Cloche Show's award presentation and wine and cheese held for the participating artists. Although I didn't win any prizes this year, I'm still quite delighted that 2 of my pieces were juried into the show. Just being juried into a show is a big deal! The pieces I have in the show are The Rodeo Crew I and Bottle and Vases, which can be seen on my website.

The show has a wonderful display of artworks and it's well worth the drive to Whitefish Falls to see it! There are also works on display from the amazing Ivan Wheale. If you've never seen Ivan's work, that alone would be worth the visit to the show! Ivan Wheale is somewhat of an icon in the art scene around here. You can see him pictured on the photo below, sitting down in the front row, looking at the woman beside him. It's great to be in a show where he exhibits!

As I've mentioned in last year's post about La Cloche, it has also had artworks shown in the past from very accomplished artists such as Sir Frederick Banting, Robert Bateman, and Bruno Cavallo, just to name a few. The La Cloche area is one that some members of the Group of Seven painted and visited as well.

And on that note, I'll close off my saying that tomorrow's also going to be an exciting day because the rodeo's in town again!!! Yep, I look forward to this time of year and will be attending tomorrow, camera in hand. Visit Rawhide's site for show details at http://www.rawhiderodeo.com/city_azilda.html

Me and some of the artists from the show. The picture doesn't contain everyone who was present, but I'm the one with the red arrow pointing over her head! (for some reason some pics aren't opening when you click on them!)

A Couple of New Pieces

2009-07-01T19:06:00.008-05:00

Tea For One

20 x 16 original acrylic

Glass Apple

12 x 12 original acrylic

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I've posted, but I've been busy, busy, busy painting away and preparing for a few competitions.

But first, I'd like to start off by wishing everyone a very happy Canada Day!!! Gotta love Canada day. We did partake in some activities earlier today, after I'd finished all my prep work and final details for competitions.

And speaking of competitions, I have been juried into the La Cloche Art Show for the second year in a row. I don't know if I won anything, or which of my paintings were accepted, but I am part of the show and am very proud and excited to have been juried in! If you're in the area, please make sure you drop by the show which is in Whitefish Falls, just before you get to Manitoulin Island. It'll be an amazing show with a great assembly of art from various artists. I believe that about 200 works from 104 artists will be displayed. Check out the show's website at http://www.geocities.com/laclocheartshow/

And now for these 2 new works. Both were just completed and entered into another competition today, this one for a magazine. Many artists might know which one I'm speaking of . . . Hope I do well!

I completed Tea for One yesterday and battled for a while if was going to make it a lighter, brighter piece with a light background, but I opted for the black. I had started with the lighter background and it just didn't speak to me. Once I changed it to black, the piece became alive with drama, full of shadows and light. Bingo! That's what I wanted.

The other piece, Glass Apple was painted yesterday, as a last minute entry for the competition. I was going to enter another piece, but my gut screamed, NO!!! I knew I wanted to paint this piece over a week ago. Gilles received this as part of his 25th celebration at work and as soon as he opened the gift box, I sat mesmerized by the apple. Picture this, a classy affair at a fancy, shmancy place, and here I am holding this thing in my hand, moving it around, looking at how the different light played on it. People must've been wondering what I was doing. Artists, eh! You can dress 'em up but ya can't take the creativity outta them. We see stuff everywhere we go and always notice things such as the way light bounces off something, the way shadows and light play, colours, sunsets and hazy skylines, misty mornings . . . Everything we see we look at in a unique way, always painting when not painting. But I digress . . .

Back to the apple.For this piece, I sat the apple on a glass table on a dreary day and loved how the reflection almost appeared like a double exposure photo, with the trees showing. Anyway, I absolutely loved painting this apple and plan on using it in more pieces. I have several ideas for it, and the next one will be with more dramatic lighting in the same size as this one. Both are for sale and will be posted on my site soon with prices listed. In the meantime, please inquire through my site if interested.

So my friends, after a very busy few weeks, I'm taking the night off. But there's never really any such thing as a night of with artists is there; we're always thinking of and planning the next one, or two, or three. Oh, and there's blogging and posting new work! Right now, I'm feeling the need to paint a horse. I have two ideas in mind, so I guess I'll see which I'm really inspired to paint once I start. Many of my paintings are last minute decisions, and these always seem to be the best.

I'll write back this weekend after my visit to the show and let you know what's what. Until then, take care and again, hope you have a wonderful Canada Day!!!

P.S. The mural is being shown at the Calgary Stampede! From July 2-12 you can see the Cadeau du Cheval mural at the Western Oasis in Hall E at the BMO Centre. Let me know if you have the opportunity to visit it. I'd love to hear comments! Wish I could be there . . . For info visit http://www.muralmosaic.com/Cadeau.html

Middle Age

2009-06-15T19:30:00.004-05:00

Middle Age

16 x 20 original acrylic

Hello to all! It's been a month, but a busy one. I had to put another much larger piece on the backburner while I painted this one. Pardon the glare, especially on the book.

In this piece, I used the same clock I used in Night Light. I wanted the book to be the center piece, hence the smaller clock. The painting is also called "Middle Age" as sort of a tribute to anyone who's reached middle age. The book is a French history book my dad used while in a private Catholic/Jesuit school in his early years. I was lucky enough to have snagged it years ago and held on to it. Now that I'm painting still life a lot, these old objects are becoming fun to come across. By the way, the title of the book is French for middle age.

Anyway, back to middle age. While we all wish we could regain our youth, there's something to be appreciated about middle age. Aside from the bits of wisdom most of us acquire by this time, there's also a special beauty that can only be attributed to middle age. Like the book, a little aged, a little frayed around the edges, with pleats and folds across the pages, there's still a beauty that remains. I chose to paint this piece in bright sunlight. While most of us (ahem, the artist especially), hate to be seen in the bright light that threatens to reveal our age, I found this same bright light emphasized the book's beauty, along with beauty of the light reflecting off the clock, sheet, and glass.

So, perhaps next time we want to shy away from revealing light, we might want to stop and remember that there's beauty in our lines, changed faces, and bodies. It's a graceful beauty, full of wisdom, unique to each of us.

Oh boy, I'm getting too philosophical. 'Nuff of that.

Okay, so the next piece is also a still life. I'm on a roll with this stuff baby! Now my dilemna is, do I paint the next one in bright light, or muted tones? Decisions, decisions . . .

New Horse Piece

2009-05-12T22:13:00.004-05:00

Unconditional

18 x 24 original acrylic

Here's the latest horse piece. I just love spring and the arival of new foals. This one was born locally and I was lucky enough to get permission to paint them. The painting to me represents the first tender greeting between mother and baby, that silent promise to love unconditionally, and to always be there to protect and nuture. Must be a woman thing . . .

And for more news, we finally have the Cadeau du Cheval books. I am officially a published artist! YAY!! Yup, me! Of course family members are going to get a complimentary copy from me, but I also have an idea for a fundraiser and have already got the wheels in motion on this one and am awaiting for final word.

The book is a small one, containing a page of each artist's individual painted panel for the gigantic mural, with the artist's information behind their painting. Each painting is numbered, just like the grid at the Mural Mosaic site. By following the numbers, one can easily recreate the mural which becomes the size of a horse. It can also be a fun activity for families and schools, as well as for fundraisers. If anyone is interested in purchasing one from me, they retail for $25.00 CND, and now that's a pretty good deal! I might post pictures of the book soon when I can find a little more time. Got more paintings to start yanno . . .

In closing, I'd like to post this link for a YouTube video my best friend Louise sent me tonight. It's just too hilarious and had me in tears. It's a great way to end the day, especially if you need to put a smile on your face. So, here's the link, and enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gHvATmUsSg

Featured Artist

2009-05-02T12:13:00.002-05:00

Hey everyone, just a quick note to let you all know that Zo Magazine has made me one of their featured artists for May on their MySpace page.

Zo Magazine is a unique venue featuring the arts and plans to launch their paper publication soon. Artists selected to be featured in their online slide show will be featured more in depth once their magazine launches.

I'm really excited about this and thank Zo Magazine! There are some pretty amazing artists featured on there, so please drop by and view the slide show at www.myspace.com/zamarzo

Timeless

2009-04-30T20:19:00.004-05:00

Timeless

16 x 20 original acrylic

Well, here is my latest piece. I called it Timeless because of the subject matter. There's the obvious, a clock, which depicts time. Then there's the Venus de Milo statue, Aphrodite, and a reproduction of an ancient classic Greek vase. The original is said to be dated over 500 B.C. . So, when I started painting this, the title just practically yelled from the canvas.

Painting this piece was a pleasure and a challenge. I used a thick cotton sheet for the background which I've now claimed as an art prop and plan on using it a lot. The statue we have at home and was purchased in Greece by my boyfriend, as well as the vase. Our copy of Aphrodite had a greenish gown and I wanted to try to keep the painting mostly true to the original, so I decided to paint her the same colour throughout. The vase was the easiest part and the clock the most challenging. I really wanted to get a realistic feel even though looking at it closely, it's very painterly, which is my style. Painterly realism. I still don't know who coined that term, but it suits my style. Thanks, whomever you are . . . And of course, I can't leave out the background. It's the second time I paint such a theme, using white cloth. The first time was in Café Regular, which won 2nd place at the La Cloche show in the acrylic category. I absolutely love painting fabric, with all it's curves, ripples, folds, shadows, and lighted areas. Like I said before, I plan on painting more white pieces and experimenting with various shades and tones, and subject matter.

I have more exciting news to share but I'll hold off for a bit. I do want to let you all know, however, that my next piece is a horsey one. It's been a long time coming! I've been recently given permission to paint a wonderful scene of a mare with her newborn filly. When I first saw it, I immediately knew I just had to paint it. It was sent to my mate by one of his colleagues, and if I'm correct, her sister or brother's mare recently gave birth to a foal and they managed to capture such a perfect, beautiful moment that begs to be painted. Capturing that perfect moment with horses is such a rare treat, so if I have to beg for permission to paint something, I will! I can't wait to have it completed so I can share with all of you. I'll be starting it this weekend.

My website has also been a little neglected these past several months, I'm afraid, so I'll also be doing some work to bring it up to date. Not to make excuses, but since the move, we still haven't connected the Internet to my computer so I've been using Gilles'. So, I can't postpone it anymore and have to do the USB thing and update my site.

So, on that note, stay tuned and come back to see the horse piece soon! Take care everyone!

Night Light

2009-04-04T11:43:00.003-05:00

Night Light

30 x 40 original acrylic

Well, it's done, varnished, and framed! Too bad it's so hard to take a decent photo of anything black though. I do want to have prints made of this one later on so I think I'll have to get someone else to do it.

So, what was the inspiration for this piece? Drama and wanting to play with contrasting lights. As previously said, I absolutely love tenebrism and it's one of my favourite things to do. Also, since we moved to the new house, I needed something for my living room. Selfish I know, but I needed something, and something huge and dramatic!

The most challenging parts of this piece were the gold cup and the clock. Painting various circular shapes can often cause many an artist to groan. The horse statue is one of the few horsie pieces I have around our house, and the old, bent, and rusty horse shoe is one I brought with me from our lake house when we sold it. See, my cousin and her husband had built that place when I was a kid and the adults used to play horseshoes. Over the years, the house had been sold several times and when we'd bought it, I found the horse shoe hanging from a hidden tree. I immediately was certain it must've been a shoe back from the day when we used to visit. Whether or not the shoe is from those days, who knows, but I kept it and will always keep it. Neat eh! Well, I think so . . .

What's next? I'm thinking something with white. I've had a yankering to play around with various whites for over a year and I think it's high time I do something about it. So, stay tuned!

Applause Needed

2009-03-31T22:27:00.001-05:00

Just kidding, but I had to drop a note to officially congratulate myself for being smoke-free for ONE WHOLE YEAR!!!! Yiiiippppeeeee!!!!!

So folks, no need to send congratulations, cash will do.

I must say though that it wasn't as hard as anticipated. I'd tried oh so many times before and kept giving in to my cravings when insanity would take over. But after the third try on Zyban, success! And it was so easy that time that I was afraid I'd start again, but nope. Don't even wanna. Maybe when I'm 80 because by then, who cares eh! Gotta have something to do at that age.

Anyhoo, yay to me. I'm giving myself a big slap on the back. I'm also almost done the large still life. If all goes well, I might even be done tomorrow! I'm off for the next couple of days, so I'm planning on gettin her done. Yeah, git her done!

I'll post the finished piece as soon as I'm done. Till then, aurevoir!

Boat Finished

2009-03-30T19:07:00.005-05:00

Relic

16 x 20 original acrylic

Here's a piece I finished last week but had camera problems, so I couldn't post before. But, voila!

If anyone's ever been to Killarney in Ontario, then you've definitely seen this old boat. I've had this picture for over a year and wanted to paint this boat for such a long time. Well, I finally painted it.

And wait until you see what I'm currently working on. It's a huge still life, 30 x 40, and it's such a dramatic piece! It's tenebrism, which is something I always enjoy painting. I love bringing things into the light from blackness. Though it's a still life, there's something horsey in there too. I'm almost done this painting too, even though it's such a huge one. It's been such a treat to paint that I've barely been able to put my brushes down. So, I'm hoping to be done by this weekend. I've only got a couple of objects left to paint, so I'm hoping it shouldn't take long. Except that one of those objects is a clock, and boy oh boy, it does require a lot of precise detail work.

So, check back this weekend, or better yet, subscribe to my blog. That way you're sure to get the updates as soon as they're posted! Trust me, you'll definitely want to see the still life!

Facebook Page

2009-03-11T11:28:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone, just a quick note to let you know I'm on Facebook and have created a public page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Carole-Rodrigue/55975271917?ref=nf

So, please join me there and add yourself as a fan! Thanks!

Decided To Show It

2009-03-10T17:07:00.004-05:00

"Wasn't Me!"

16 x 20 original acrylic

Okay, okay, I know I said I wouldn't show it, but here it is. I just couldn't hold back.

I was originally going to call this one Mirror, Mirror and not have the lunaria spread around, but I decided that the piece needed a little something extra. So, I added the lunaria, evidently having been plucked out of the pot by the brat who's trying to look ever so innocent. Right . . .
But she is such a sweet thing, so she does get away with a lot! Too much maybe . . .

Anyway, here it is. As always, it might get some tweaking here and there before varnishing, but I think it might be pretty much done.

Gotta run but I am working on some other pieces, and should hopefully have another one to show real soon!

Work in Progress

2009-02-25T11:19:00.004-05:00

Work in Progress

Boy, it's been a while again . . . but this is part of a larger piece that I'm currently working on. This is my cat, Mitsou. Mitsou wears her name well. She's a real little princess, and just such a sweet and delicate cat. I've been working on this piece for a few weeks now and there's still quite a bit to go. I'm not sure either if I'll post the full piece until later this year. I've my reasons, so I'll think about it. Well, my reason is that this piece is going so well I'd like to get into competitions, so I don't want to jinx myself by posting the whole piece. Silly superstition . . .

Speaking of Jinx, that's my other cat, and she wears her name well too, so I'm not sure if I'll paint her just yet. Lol. I actually do have pieces in mind for her too.

Things have been busy for me here too and I was hoping things would slow down, but they haven't yet. I'm waiting for that early spring and really looking forward to warmer weather again and getting outside. We're still settling in the new house and still have work to do in here like painting walls and such. Seems to take so long to find yourself in a new place. I find myself still turning in circles looking for stuff, and my studio is still a confusing place. Just when my other studio had been finished at the lake house, we just had to up and sell the place. Now we're planning on building a studio here. For now I'm just using up part of the basement and I am lost!!! So, hopefully I'll find myself in that space after it's built. Building should start in March, so here we go with busy again.

Well, that's it for now. Hopefully it doesn't take me a month to post again. It does get hard though when there isn't much that I'm ready to show. I look at so many blogs that just post about, well, nothing. I'm not so sure I want to post every day just to tell people about what kind of sandwich I ate that day. Do people really care about this stuff anyway? Or do people want to read relevant content. I opt for relevancy.

So folks, I'll be back soon, and with relevant stuff! ;-D You all take care in the mean time!

My Panel, Oops!

2009-01-25T23:30:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note to say hi before my cereal gets soggy and before I rush off to bed.

Nancy wrote:

I'm wondering if you know the number of your panel, so we can find it on the mural site. I looked untill my eyes are crossed, and I still can't find it!As per usual, you're doing great work!! Keep it up. The Josh Lyons' one is beautiful! Nancy

Thank you Nancy! I left a comment at the post "I think It's Done" dated June 18th but thought I'd post the panel number here too. My apologies to Nancy and anyone else who'd tried to find it! The panel number is #116.
http://www.muralmosaic.com/Cadeau.html

Gotta run, before my cereal does . . . ;-)

Boy It's Cold!

2009-01-11T19:38:00.002-05:00

Yeah, it sure is, and it'll get real cold in a few days! The mercury's supposed to drop down to about 37 below in a couple of days and I'm really not looking forward to it. That kind of cold weather is just insane! And warm up your car all you want, the darned tires are still square when you start driving, the seats are rock hard, and you feel like you're driving something out of the Flintstones the way the car hobbles down the road! I'm not exaggerating folks. For those who've never lived in colder climates, tires really do get square. The part that's been sitting on the ground all night kinda stays that way for a bit until they warm up. So, square tires.

No pictures to post tonight, but I have been working on few things. If things keep up, I'll be no closer to finishing 50 pieces this year either. Twice in the last week I've painted over paintings I'd started. You start off with a vision, thinking you know where you're going, then you get about half way and you think, no way, that's not what I wanted. So, me being me, out comes the gesso and the large brush, and slip-slop, I'm covering up what I'd painted. I've painted over completed pieces many times in the past also. It's just something I do when I'm not satisfied. Some have wanted to scream at me for doing this, thinking the works were just fine, but when you know what you want and it's just not cutting it, there's just no point in keeping it. It'll just make me cringe each time I have to see it, and Lord knows, there's already enough of that out there. Yanno, stuff that makes me cringe. So, I paint over stuff.

It's funny too how people think that everything artists do is magic. The truth is, there's a lot of hard work that goes into the creative process, and the results aren't always satisfying. Sometimes stuff will just flow and come easily, and other times, well . . . It was a HUGE relief for me when more than once, I'd read magazine interviews with major, well-known artists, that not everything they painted was good. They also had a lot of garbage they didn't want to put out there. So, all's normal in the art world and in my world, I s'pose . . .

And now I also suppose that I really should head back to the studio. Gotta work again all week and that really cuts into my painting time. Nothing cuts off the flow of creative energies like a mentally draining job. Yup. So, I really need to try and get in as much as I can, when I can, when it comes to painting. So bye for now, and I hope all's well in your world!

Happy New Year

2009-01-03T19:53:00.003-05:00

Cas

16 x 20 original acrylic

Cas was completed in time for delivery to his owner for Christmas, but being in such a rush to get things done, I forgot to take a decent final pic! He was almost done at this point, but not completely. But he's gone to his owner's house now so it's too late for a better pic.

I've also put aside the duck piece in order to complete a little something for myself. Still decorating the new house, so gotta have art! I've got several pieces in the design stage also, but I might not post those until much later in the year. Sorry, but they're being saved for personal reasons until a later date.

This new year is also bringing about a fresh list of goals. 2008 was a great year for me. This was the year I entered my first local show and won second place for Café Regular and had Lonesome Charlie juried in. Le Cadeau du Cheval was also an amazing accomplishment and I was so proud of participating in the project with some of the world's best equine and western artists. The mural was featured in magazines and t.v., was displayed in amazing venues, and is now being made into a book featuring all of us artists! Yay! ~Look Ma, no hands! ~

I fell somewhat short of my goals, but that's okay. I tend to overshoot and therefore am guaranteed to win some and gain some. I do plan to overshoot for 2009 also by entering more competitions, planning, marketing, and you can be sure, CREATING!!! I'm planning on 50 paintings. Doesn't mean I'll show all 50 here, but I plan on painting them. Guess that means I'd better get off the computer and get to work eh!

So my friends, it is my most sincere wish for everyone that you may all have a wonderful and prosperous year, filled with joy, blessings, and good health! Thanks to everyone who reads my stuff too and enjoys looking at my art.

Digging Out!

2008-12-09T20:22:00.012-05:00

Winter has really been hitting these northern parts hard this year! Seems like we've been getting dumped on every 2nd day or so. Both of us are already sick and tired of shovelling snow. It seems lately as though we're living for work and shovelling, shovelling and work . . . ENOUGH ALREADY!!!

But in all honesty, this is probably more like the real northern winters we used to get. We've gotten spoiled the last 15 yrs or so with global warming and Christmases with just a light dusting. Our snow banks are already needing removing, and it's not even Christmas yet. But I'll bet, I'll just bet that by the end of December, some warm spell will take all of this white stuff away. We'll see . . .

Anyhoo, I'm posting some photos of some of the work I've been managing to do lately. The mallard has been put on hold for a bit while I work on Casper, an Appaloosa from my old town of St. Charles. I'd like to hurry up and get Casper done by this weekend so I can deliver him.

Both of these painting are merely works in progress and far, far from being done, so hold it on the criticism okay! Most of what I do takes place directly on canvas as I go along. I always start of with just a rough sketch, just to have things in place, then I block in with darks, and add light and color as I go along, always tweaking and changing things. For example, the left ear on the Appy will not stay like that. That's just a very crude blocking in just placed as an indicator. The ear will almost completely change. The mane will be added after also. Casper just has the main spots painted in and the rest will be added as I go along, eyeballing everything. In fact, almost everything just gets added as I go along.

The same goes for the mallard. I've got the rough shapes in, just to give me an idea as to where I'm going and most of the detail gets added as I go along, feathers, water ripples, reeds and weeds . . . My underpainting is really just that, underpainting. Everything gets added in layers, building upon colors, adding light and shadows. I've never been able to paint like some painters who completely paint tiny sections at a time, completing one section before moving on to the next. I paint the whole, and add to the whole, therefore my paintings go through a lot of ugly before the pretty!

So, I've got to head on to my studio to keep working on Casper. I'll post more pictures later this week, so until then, stay warm!

Latest Paintings

2008-11-17T20:09:00.005-05:00

Untitled

5 x 7 original acrylic

Untitled

11 x 14 original acrylic

Hey everyone! Here are some pics of the latest pieces I've worked on. They're both untitled as of yet, although I'm thinking of calling the bull "A Whole Lotta Bull!".

The first piece, the pony, was pretty much just a quick, getting back in the mode piece. Just a little warmer to get back into the swing of things. I could actually do a lot more on it, but am choosing not to and will leave it at that.

As for the bull, isn't he just the prettiest bull? I mean, if bulls can be pretty, that is. I do find him to be a beauty though. I photographed him at a rodeo this past summer and fell in love with his eyes. His eyes looked both scary and beautiful at the same time. I'm sure the guys who ride him probably find him to be a scary brute! Anyhow, I loved this bull and have been itching to paint him for months now. I'm glad I've finally gotten around to it. I might change the background somewhat though. I think I might like it more brown and earthy than the bright orange. I'll see just how much time I have since I'm currently working on a mallard and will soon be starting a horse portrait. All in good time, eh!

Gotta go now, but I'll post the next 2 pieces as soon as they're done. Also, be sure to drop in at my MySpace page and add me as a friend! ( www.myspace.com/carole_rodrigue )

My Space Page

2008-11-07T21:07:00.003-05:00

I've just set up a My Space page at www.myspace.com/carole_rodrigue soooo, please drop in and add me to your friends' list! I'm still working on the page, and have tried to set up a slide show, but I'm having a little of a hard time. Bear with me! For some reason, I can't get images to automatically play in the slide show. Anyone know how to fix that?

Mural News

2008-11-04T19:45:00.003-05:00

Well, I'll be! After a short time away from the Internet, I've learned so much has happened regarding the Cadeau du Cheval mural. As you all know, our first unveiling was at the Masters at Spruce Meadows in Alberta, and from there, the mural travelled south to Ohio for the All American Quarter Horse Congress where it was admired by beaucoup de people. Now, the mural is headed even further south down in Las Vegas for the National Finals Rodeo! Amazing!!!

What's even more amazing is that, apparently, Horse Illustrated is doing an article on the mural, and so is Cowboys and Indians magazine. I've also learned that Cowboy Country T.V. has done a feature on a current episode (see http://www.cowboycountrytv.com/ about episode #710).

Now, I'm just super tickled about all of this, especially about us being on Cowboy Country. I've been a big fan of that show for quite a while now and would never miss an episode on Saturdays, and then I'd even often watch a few re-runs in a row on Sundays. I am saddened however that just when I move, I find out I don't have Cowboy Country on cable where I am. Bummer. Real bummer. Not only do I miss Ash Cooper, and Dave and Barb Poulsen, but watching western artists on there was a real highlight for me. And that little violin ditty during the historical segment, boy, I miss that too . . . I wonder if I could order a copy of the show from their website?

Anyway, all of this news I got from reading Phil Alain's blog at http://philalain.blogspot.com/ Phil's got great stuff on there about the mural's travels and about other murals. He's also got great pictures from the mural events and I'm glad I can check out his blog since I can't see it right now myself. Thanks for filling my imagination with the updates and pictures, Phil!

And on the painting beat, I'd started a small 5 x 7 horsie piece and plan on finishing either tonight or tomorrow. It's kinda hard to get into it tonight with all of the U.S. election excitement, so it might be put off until tomorrow. But I do think painting small for now is a great idea.

I'll post back real soon, and until then, you take care of yourselves and make tomorrow a great day!

Settling In

2008-10-30T16:31:00.002-05:00

Woowee! Finally all moved in and working hard at trying to get organized. The new house is still full of unpacked boxes, but things are coming along and we're really enjoying the new house. Seems my girls (cats) are enjoying it too!

The first couple of days were just awful for those poor babies. They just didn't seem to understand being plucked away from their little paradise and moved to this strange place, full of strange people coming and going. But by Monday, they seemed to be adapting and in fact, even starting to love the place. Strange. My one cat, Mitsou, is such a shy cat with a delicate disposition as well, easily prone to being scared and upset. She seemed to take the move the hardest, and now seems to be enjoying the new place the most. It would appear my little chicken cat is loving the new hiding places, new places to run around in, and new hiding places to watch people from. Jinx, on the other hand, is completely non-challant (sp? Sorry, dictionnary packed and I don't trust spellcheckers.) about it all. Once the dust settled, so to speak, she didn't seem to be fazed by anything at all.

I'm still trying to get used to establishing a new routine, especially in the mornings while trying to get ready for work. It's hard for a girl to be efficient when trying to find her makeup and stuff, yanno! All in good time, eh . . .

Being in town though is turning out to be as great as I'd expected. I'm saving myself so much time not travelling, and it's also great to be able to go to the mall and be back home in less than 10 minutes. Oh yeah, baby!!! Hmm, might be costly too . . .

The paints are still packed up, but I fully expect to do something this weekend in between unpacking and settling in. I was also thinking about going back to small format, miniature paintings for a while again. There are so many large unfinished pieces that I can't seem to get back to, that I've decided painting small might be the solution for a while. Boy, it's been so long since I've done those and I now realize that I've missed painting small. The satisfaction of completing a piece in a day or two is fulfilling and I like to feel productive.

So, anyway, gotta go, but I hope everyone has a safe and awesome Halloween! I'll be busy with the Halloweenies this year, for the first time in 15 yrs. We didn't get any out in the country, so it should be fun. So have a great one everybody, and I'll be back real soon with a miniature!

Popping in Quickly . . .

2008-10-13T20:19:00.002-05:00

Untitled

16 x 20 original acrylic

I'm popping in for a quick update. This painting is one I've been working on recently and it's not completely finished. She's a little Arabian filly from a reference sent to me by my good friend Kristen Queen. Thanks Kristen! There's some tweaking and adjusting to be made, and I'm not satisfied with it yet, but I thought I'd post anyway after receiving a reprimand yesterday.

Yup, sitting at the dinner table having our Thanksgiving feast at my parents, my brother casually looks over at me and says, "You oughta be ashamed of yourself."
"Uh?", I wondered.
He then says, "You haven't posted anything on your blog in ages. You oughta be ashamed of yourself." Thanks big bro. :-s

So, folks, yes, I am deeply ashamed, and sorry. Please accept my humble appologies. Not to be making excuses, but I've been extremely busy with a new job, one where I'm up at 5:30 each morning, then had to study nightly because we were tested once a week. This job required us to reach an average of 80% each test, and boy oh boy, I'm pooped. After doing this for weeks (testing's done), I just want to sit back and do absolutely nothing! I mean, shut the brain down and do squat!

But, I can't. See, we sold our lovely house by the lake and we're moving to the city. As much as living the dream's been great, the extra time required to do the simplest things has finally taken its toll. After being here 5 yrs, we decided it was time to go. I've been in these parts since '93, and I will greatly miss the lake, the nature, sights, smells, sounds, the call of the loon, seeing horses every day . . . I'll miss it all deeply, but the time came.

The final straw that made me decide I couldn't stay here anymore was this past June when golfing with my significant other and some friends for a fund raising tournament. It had been a wet spring and after standing on a wet golf course all day, my allergies had gotten the best of me. No problem, there was a drug store on our way home so I could get some Benadryl. Right? WRONG!!! See, around here, a pharmacist has to be on site to be able to get Benadryl. So, little ole sick me couldn't buy Benadryl and it was over an hour's drive to town to get some. I was sick for 2 days before I could get any, and that was the straw that broke the camel's back. That very same day, I looked at my mate and firmly stated that we were moving, period. We called the realtor, and after several close calls for selling the place, and nearly changing our minds many times, we sold it. And it's funny too because on the day we sold, we'd decided to take the signs down the next day. Guess there's a reason for everything . . .

I know I'll deeply miss this place, but then again, I am looking forward to new experiences. Just to be able to take walks is going to be such a blessing. I miss taking walks, and so many other things. Will this affect my art? It might. Artists tend to paint what they experience. Will I stop painting horses? HELL NO!!! Never! That's something that's completely innate and is has such a strong pull that I doubt there's anything that'll ever make me give up painting horses. In fact, I plan on buying one soon, so I'll be even more inspired. Been thinking of a nice dark bay or black QH gelding, broke, good natured, calm . . . Ahh, can't wait . . . I'm off my target time-wise for buying my horse, but all in good time. And I will have my horse . . .

On that note, I also wanted to let you all know that I'll be busy packing for the next couple of weeks, and then settling in to the new place, painting, walls that is, and all that stuff. So, please be patient with me and give me about a month. I promise you'll see more of my presence then. I know many of you keep checking regularly and have probably been let down lately. Just hang in there with me and I'll be back soon, and I'll be able to do so much more online also. I'll finally be able to have high speed, so there's so much more that I'll be able to do, and so many more things I'll be able to offer. I'm also thinking of a My Space page, more products, tons of good stuff! Until then, you all take good care of yourselves, and wish me luck!

And Here It Is!!!!

2008-09-03T19:47:00.005-05:00

Yes folks, the mural for Le Cadeau du Cheval is finally completed and was unveiled today at Srpuce Meadows in Alberta. It's a bittersweet event for me; I'm so thrilled about the unveiling and finally seeing the mural myself, but also a touch sad at not being able to have gone there. I am hoping to one day see the mural in person, so I'll keep looking forward to that.

So, please make your way on over to www.muralmosaic.com and follow the links for the horse mural, or Le Cadeau du Cheval, then, you can click on panel #116 to see mine, Incitatus. There are sooo many beautiful panels on this mural, it must be such a site to behold in person. One day . . .

Okay, gotta go, but please contact me if you have any comments at info@carolerodrigue.net , or post them here. I sure would love to hear from you.

Thanks for reading this and we'll see you soon!

The Miracle Man

2008-08-24T19:06:00.004-05:00

Miracle Man

16 x 20 original acrylic on masonite

Here's the completed painting from the image I'd posted last week. This is a painting of Josh Lyons and the 2 yr old colt he'd trained back in June up in Quebec. I was inspired to paint this after watching this scene unfold. Josh was signing autographs and talking with people after the long day's session. The horse was broke and just following Josh everywhere, staying by his side, keeping his full attention on him at all times. Then the colt began to nuzzle Josh, resting his head on his shoulders, and just being a real baby. Josh turned and began nuzzling right back, and even giving a kiss or two. Needless to say, to me, this scene summed up the days work. A horse was trained, and trust was gained, on both ends (~sniff~). After witnessing Josh's amazing abilities with horses that weekend, I was convinced, he was indeed a miracle man with horses, and that's where the title came from.

By the way, I just fell in love with that horse. Boy, to have a horse like that some day . . .

And just another reminder, the countdown's on for the unveiling of the Cadeau du Cheval mural at Spruce Meadows, Sept. 3-7!!! Coincidence of coincidences, Lewis Lavoie painted a panel of John Lyons in the mural. It's pretty amazing, and there's also a pretty amazing painting of Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner! Being a Star Trek fan, I find it pretty darned bang on! Check it out folks, http://www.muralmosaic.com/Cadeau.html Live long and prosper, eh! Now that was spoken like a true Cannuck . . . ;-)

Popping In

2008-08-11T21:01:00.003-05:00

Window Light

11 x 14 original acrylic

Work in Progress

Yes, my bad. I haven't been here in over a month, so slap me silly. But it wasn't all my fault, I swear! The Internet has really been awful in these parts lately and uploading pages was nearly impossible, never mind taking care of my email or trying to blog. So, spending time online was nothing but frustrating, so one tends to give up after a while. Better that than throwing the darned puter out the window, eh!

I must also confess that painting has been a rare occurence this summer. And I can't blame summer weather because we're still waiting for summer to get here. I did however complete the above piece recently (Window Light), and have a few on the go. The photo showing the work in progress is but a small part of a larger piece which I'm still working on and hoping to complete this week. If all goes well that is. So, I won't show the rest because I do so hate to show a work in progress. I'll share a pic once competed.

I've also been working on the sketches for a new piece I've been itching to do for a few weeks of a little girl and her father, which I'd photographed at a rodeo. The painting is such a beautiful father/daughter scene, and I'm hoping to eventually have limited edition signed prints made with a portion of profits going to a popular charity which benefits children. I'll have more details once everything's finalized, so let's all hope this piece turns out like what I'm envisioning! In the mean time, I'll be working on not only the painting, but making contacts and working on details for the fund raiser. Stay tuned for this one.

Also, have you been staying up to date on the development of the Cadeau du Cheval mural? If not, be sure to check out http://www.muralmosaic.com/Cadeau.html to see just how beautifully this mural's coming along. There are so many wonderful panels which have been added and yours truly's is on there also. The final unveiling will be at the Masters at Spruce Meadows (AB) in just a few short weeks! Now that's really, really exciting since we artists don't even know what the final mural will look like and have to wait along with the rest of you to see the final masterpiece! Neat eh! So I'm really looking forward to seeing it completed. Keep watching its progress!

Gotta go, but I WILL be back soon! Have a great week everyone!

Yippee!!!

2008-07-05T20:23:00.006-05:00

Hi everyone, here's news from last night's La Cloche art competition.

Drum roll . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cafe Regular won 2nd place in the acrylic category!!! Yay! My first competition win and words can't describe how happy I am about this. I'm also happy to report that Lonesome Charlie got juried into the show. He didn't win an award, but being juried in is great in my eyes. Especially since this is an equine piece and it's known in the equine art circles that horsey pieces don't usually do well in non-equine competitions. So, Charlie being juried in is a real honor!

I also saw some extremely beautiful acrylic paintings that didn't win awards and I felt a couple could've come in first. Guess you just never know what it is that judges will look for, so to any artists out there, always go with the pieces you feel good about because there's a good chance that others will feel good about these too. And there were so many beautiful pieces in the show also, so if you do find yourself in the area, it's a show well worth seeing.

I also came back home with the Soap, Candle, and Glass painting, but that's okay. Can't win'em all eh! Again, I'm just sooooo happy to have been juried in, and then to have Café Regular win, well, that just takes the cake now doesn't it. Gotta go, but here are a couple of pics from last night, me with Café Regular and m'blue ribbon, and Charlie at the show. Take care everyone!

Me, Café Regular, and the blue ribbon, YAY!

Here's Lonesome Charlie at the show. Way ta go Charlie!

It's Canada Day, Eh!

2008-07-01T19:56:00.006-05:00

Untitled

18 x 24 original acrylic

Happy Canada Day everyone! Hope it's a good and safe one for all. I've been busy taking advantage of the day off and getting things done around the house. That included finishing this piece here which is still untitled. I gathered some clay vases I had and a bottle, and this is what I came up with. I must admit my intentions when painting this were purely selfish. We might be putting the house up for sale so I thought I'd change some of the artwork in the house. We've been looking at houses and I must admit that when the decor and art look good in a house, the house looks better. Bad art and decor, and the nicest house won't be appealing. So, yup, selfish motive. And this one will look sooo good in my hand-carved, darkly stained Spanish frame. Gonna be a beauty in there! I love this one!

Oh, and pssst, look at this link here (after you're done here) http://www.geocities.com/laclocheartshow/ for the La Cloche art show, look in the "r's", and you'll see my name there as one of the artists juried into the show. Yippee!!! My first time being juried into an art show, and I am so very excited. And La Cloche is such a great art show! Check out the history: http://www.willisville.ca/La%20Cloche%20Art%20Show.htm (wow, Robert Bateman and Sir Frederick Banting! Yup, same guy who discovered insulin) So, you all need to check in next weekend and I'll tell you about the winners.

So, gotta go now, I've got something horsey cooking up in my mind and I need to find the perfect reference. Anyone have a great shot of a chestnut or bay, full body, head down, looking forward?

And since I'll be at the La Cloche show on the 4th, to all my American friends, have a wonderful, safe, and happy 4rth of July!!! Make it a good one!

Again, Happy Canada Day mes amis!

I Think It's Done . . .

2008-06-18T20:32:00.006-05:00

Cadeau du Cheval panel, untitled painting of Incitatus

Hello! Here's what I think is my completed panel for the Cadeau du Cheval mural. I'll take a couple of days to look at it to see if anything needs fixing.

There's a glare in the photo and you can't see his necklace well either, but I'm planning on getting this scanned professionally this weekend for future prints. I've also decided to not add too much to the piece, just the necklace and purple blanket, along with the black marble stable entrance. Sometimes less is more, and I think the blanket alone should arouse enough curiosity for people to want to know more. Please do email me or leave a comment to let me know what you think!

This weekend will again be a busy one also. I've been prepping Lonesome Charlie and had Cafe Regular, and the painting of the soap and glass blocks from my bathroom framed. I'll be bringing these to the La Cloche art competition on Saturday. This is the first time I'm entering a competition where I'll be showing actual paintings and I'm just sooo excited! I'd joined a couple of competitions in the past where only pictures were sent, so I'm looking forward to having my paintings seen. Now, I'm hoping they get juried in and that they'll do well. Wish me luck! I'm attaching pics of the glass blocks and Cafe Regular. Charlie can be seen on my website at www.carolerodrigue.net

Café Regular,original acrylic

Soap, Candle, & Glass, original acrylic

More From The Lyons Symposium

2008-06-12T19:39:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone, just a quick note, yes, it really is quick this time :-D if you'd like to see more from the Josh Lyons symposium in Quebec this past weekend, along with tons of pics and stuff from this week's riding clinic, check out Equine North's blog at http://www.equinenorth.net/Josh-Lyons-Intro.html

Anna, who runs the site, has put in a lot of time posting great shots and info, so head on over there!

So, This is What I've Been Up To . . .

2008-06-09T20:13:00.006-05:00

I'm popping in here real quick to give a brief update and post a few pics. It's been hard finding the time to post regularly, but hopefully things will slow down in about a month and get back to normal.

This past weekend, my friend Tammy and I headed up north in Quebec to attend a Josh Lyons clinic. Wow, wow, wow!!! What a weekend it was! Josh broke a 2 yr old, completely untrained horse and rode it within hours. The Lyons' methods are amazing and I highly recommend that anyone with horses should buy the books, c.d.'s, and attend a clinic.

I had never seen a horse being trained from scratch like this and have to admit I had pre-conceived notions of a horse being, well, "broken" through physical methods which would make me cringe. But this wasn't the case with the Lyons' method. Not one hair on that horse was hurt, and in fact, I was completely amazed to see how Josh had that horse stuck to him like glue after, following his ever step, nuzzling his back as he spoke, and just seeming so happy to be around Josh. Even upon entering the arena that morning, that colt looked like a 2 yr old brat and within hours seemed to have acquired a certain "maturity" and level of respect that wasn't there earlier. The next morning, Josh came in, the horse immediately turned toward him, waited for a cue, then went to Josh. Josh quickly repeated what he'd done the previous day, and rode the horse again, without a problem.

So, many were thinking that the horse was being this way because of Josh, but the host, Laurier, came in and got on that horse, no problem. Morceaux de gateau, as Josh joked. (Sorry, no accents on my "gateau" and I'm too lazy to look up my alt codes.)Later that afternoon, Josh helped a woman whose horse had an intense trailer fear and had even fell over that morning as they tried to load it up. This horse was an old Thoroughbred with what the woman said was an unpleasant past. Watching that horse, it was obvious there was a high level of neuroticism and who knows what that poor creature had endured in her life. But again, Josh walked into the round pen and the horse just seemed to immediately calm. In about an hour of working with her, that horse walked into the trailer by herself and kept doing it thereon after. Josh even had his little boy come in and walk the horse into the trailer, and then the horse's owner, who seemed pleasantly relieved.

The Thoroughbred entering the trailer as Josh Lyons watches.

Anyway, it was an amazing event and I highly recommend anyone who has horses to attend a Lyons clinic if ever you get a chance. This definitely ranks as one of the top things I've witnessed in my life.

Oh, and my panel. Not done. Almost though. I'm giving you a sneak peak but keep in mind I still have work to do and it will look very different, and the horse isn't done either. The background has been changed also since I took this photo. I'm also entertaining adding a purple blanket around Incitatus' legs, blowing in the wind, a necklace (see all in white chalk marks), and maybe even a crown since he was allegedly made a Roman senator. I want to add personal Incitatus and Caligula touches, otherwise, what's the point of making this horse Incitatus, right? So, there will be some touches of Caligula's eccentricity and madness. So, in the meantime, enjoy the photos, visit http://www.muralmosaic.com/ to see some completed panels, and be sure to visit http://www.lyonslegacy.com/ or http://www.lyonslegacy.ca/ . I'll be back soon! Good thing this was a quick post eh! ;-)

Le Cadeau du Cheval panel, work in progress

Oh My!

2008-05-27T20:01:00.004-05:00

Oh me-oh-my!!! Where has the time gone? I have to apologize for not giving an update sooner, but this girl's started a new job and has been working overtime, This has left me with very little time to myself lately. But I did manage to do some work on my Cadeau du Cheval panel.

Here's what I decided to paint for my panel: My panel will feature Caligula's horse Incitatus. For those who don't know about Incitatus, he was Caligula's prized horse and so loved by the Emperor that he was treated like a king. Incitatus had a black marble stable, was adorned with purple blankets, drank and ate from jewelled cups, received dignitaries to dine with him ~yes, the horse!~ and had a wife, Penelope.

It was also rumored that Incitatus was made senator by Caligula who'd apparently had lost his marbles. I wonder if some of it ended up in the stables . . . Anyway, this was a rumor and history holds no proofs of this, but it was also rumored that Caligula had Incitatus declared a god, one who embodied all other gods. Interesting and strange man eh . . .

So, after staring at my panel for hours, days even, I thought Incitatus would be perfect for the shapes in the panel, which must be kept. I have put several hours of painting in and will soon post a pic of the progress. A little more work and I'm almost ready to add Incitatus. It should be a really interesting piece, so be sure to come back soon and have a peek! Until then, take care!

New Interest

2008-05-05T21:39:00.005-05:00

Man From Egypt

10 x 8 acrylic on canvas

This painting was done after seeing a reference from Patrick Hedges on Wet Canvas. Thanks Patrick!

I painted this on impulse, I must say. In the last several months, I've been poring through the internet looking at photorealism. Many people aren't fans of photorealism, but I am. I'm in awe of artists who can create a piece of art that cannot be distinguished from a photo, or real life. Painting people has never been an interest of mine either, but fascinating people, strange or interesting situations, different and unique faces all inspire me lately. So, I might start taking interesting and different photos of people and see what I can do. This painting was practice at honing skills and going for photorealism. It's not perfect, and I know there's more work I could've done, but for an 8 hour painting, I must say it ain't too shaby. Painting this one was fun and I can't wait to encounter people in different situations and do more of these. But don't call me a people portrait artist!

A Painting and a Heartache

2008-05-03T22:35:00.003-05:00

Untitled

11 x 14 original acrylic

Here's an unplanned painting that I'd started a couple of days ago and finished tonight. It's the same Egyptian colt I'd painted in Age of Innocence. Isn't he such a beauty? There are a couple of finishing touches that I need to add tomorrow, then that's it.

Now for the heartache. I'm sure most of you have either heard, seen, or read about Eight Belles. What a tragedy, and hours later, my eyes still get teary just thinking about it. My heart goes out to Belles' owners, trainer, and everyone who was close to her. One always hates it when a horse gets injured and has to be put down, but with two broken ankles, there was just no hope for this amazing filly who'd shown so much heart. I also can't help wondering if perhaps she would've won the Derby. Speculation is useless at this point, but I keep wondering if perhaps she was already experiencing pain and just kept pushing on and pushing on, giving all her heart and still coming in second. I just wonder . . .

Big Brown sure didn't disapoint and gave the crowd what they expected. Seemed he just came out of nowhere and plunged ahead to first in the blink of an eye. Congratulations Big Brown!

Okay, I need to get off and stop thinking about Eight Belles. And of course, getting on the net tonight, I came across pictures I didn't want to see, and shouldn't have seen. I hate when they show that stuff, and I commend NBC and other news reports that didn't show it. They didn't show it during the Derby programming. Nobody needs to see that; we get the unwanted mental picture already. So, my heart and prayers go to all of Belles' people. You had one fine horse there, and she'll always be remembered fondly.

Mural Panel

2008-04-29T18:27:00.005-05:00

I'm back from the land of the dead after another terrible bout with the flu. Since last Thursday, my time was spent either sleeping in bed, or sleeping on the couch, but almost always sleeping. Sure glad that's pretty much over with!

'Nuf of that. The picture you see above is of my panel for Le Cadeau du Cheval (The Gift Horse) mural. We were fortunate enough to get to pick our panels and I'm really happy I got my first choice. I have a few ideas for this panel and can definitely see several things. What I do end up painting will be posted here. Although this isn't due until July 1st, knowing me, I'll be starting this immediately. At least sketching out a few of my ideas to see which one I'll decide on. I'll post the work in progress also, once I start. So be sure to keep checking to see updates on this. I know I haven't been posting much lately, but hopefully this starts changing now that my health is coming back. 'Til next time . . .

Good Stuff

2008-04-20T20:05:00.003-05:00

View from my dock this evening

Well, well, well, seems we've gone from winter and jumped right into summer in Northern Ontario. Last weekend, we were fighting a snow storm and freezing rain. The last few days here have been absolutely splendid! The ice is pretty much all melted from the lake, and the temperature hit 23 celcius for the last few days here. Can't ask for anything better.

Another sure sign of winter finally being over is the arrival of loons last Thursday. The last few years, they didn't arrive until mid-May, so they're a full month early this year. A good friend of ours says that the Ojibwe say that once you hear the first cry of a loon, there will only be another 3 days of frost. I'll be counting!

The last week has also brought the arrival of many other birds. The lake is full of geese and ducks, but the most amazing is the appearance of 4 golden eagles. They've been circling our house and the lake all week, all day long, just gliding around in circles. It's an amazing thing to watch them glide by. I swear they don't use their wings; all they do is glide. One flew really low above the tree line today and cast a huge black shadow moving by as I was in the kitchen preparing supper. My girls (2 cats) were outside so I immediately ran out to do the head count. I've read that eagles don't take domestic animals, but then I've read from people who'll argue they've found animal collars, and cat and dog skulls in eagles' nests. I think I'll keep an eye out on the girls just to be safe. Our friend also says that eagle sightings from your home is a sign of being blessed, or good tidings, or something like that (big grin). In any case, I keep the binoculars and camera handy at all times now, but they're so huge and go by so fast, it's hard to keep a close-up view for long.

Friday night was the Blue Rodeo concert also. So what do I have to say about it?

Aaaahhh, man . . . twas amazing . . . I'd see them again right away. I've been to many concerts in my life, and I have to honestly say that this one ranked right up there. Jim Cuddy doesn't know how to sign a bad note. His voice is perfection, and when he sang "Try", his voice could've brought an angel to tears. He hit those high notes and shivers just went through your body. It was just heavenly. Jim is by far the best vocalist I've ever seen in person, and the rest of the band is just as amazing. If they're ever in your neck of the woods, go see them.

That's it for tonight folks. Hope you enjoy the pic from my dock. Now I'm in the mood for painting loons or some other bird. Gotta go . . .

A Horse!

2008-04-17T21:01:00.004-05:00

Untitled

11 x 14 acrylic on canvas

Yup. Got irritated painting roses so I snuck a horse in there. Now that was much more relaxing . . . Pardon the picture however, it is distorted. The pic makes the horse look kinda on the stubby side, with the face squished down and not looking as long as it really is. Seems taking a picture with the camera on the flip side for longer shots distorts the photos. Hhhhmmmm . . . I'm not sure what I'll do for a decent pic. I also have one minor touch up for the sky and then it's really done. But this one's for me and is going to hang in my home. I have a frame waiting for him.

So, you now know that I've put aside the other painting for the horse. But I will return to the other piece soon! I might replace the roses with grapes. I like grapes. Much easier to paint than roses too. Sure, I can paint impressionistic roses, but that's not what I was going for, and hating to paint flowers, well, you tend to not be as good as when you love your subject. So, grapes it is.

I'm also really looking forward to tomorrow. We're going to see Blue Rodeo!!! Heee hawwww!!!!
I'll tell you guys all about it Sunday. Sorry, but I won't have time to post until then. Saturday's a busy day also. Until then, toodaloo!

Springtime in the North

2008-04-07T18:08:00.004-05:00

Springtime has finally arrived here in the Great White North! A sure sign was the return of the Canada geese last week, followed by mourning doves, and robins!!! Once these birds arrive up here, you know that winter's on it's way out.

The picture above was taken this afternoon by yours truly (click on it for larger view). Each year, a local farm gets invaded by geese and ducks as they arrive by the hundreds. A small creek overflows on the property, and the whole field becomes a temporary lake, where the new arrivals congregate. This picture is of only a tiny part of the field. There are sooo many more birds than what you see here. I tried getting closer shots but the darn creatures kept going out further. Still, what a sight, and quite something to hear also. I just love this time of year.

I don't have a painting to show this week, and I don't feel guilty! Nope. I'm taking my time on several pieces, one of which includes chickadees, and yikes, flowers! Though I used to paint flowers years back, they're not my favourite subject and I always swore I'd never paint them again. But here I am, inspired by Terry Isaac, painting a garden scene with roses. My painting is an original, thought up and designed by me, but I was very much inspired by Mr. Isaac. I just love his bird pieces, and birds are my second favourite subject after horses. His paintings always glow with such beautiful light.

Since I'm on the subject of other artists, another artist that has inspired me and whose work I admire so much is Canadian artist, Ken Danby. Although recently deceased, Danby's work, to me, is way up there with Robert Bateman. If I could ever paint water and landscapes half as well as he did, I'd be one very happy woman. Words cannot do his work justice. One must just see for themselves, so here's a link to his website and works http://www.kendanbyart.com/

Until next time, at least go and enjoy Danby's art. . .

Day 8 smoke free!

Still Life From my Bathroom

2008-04-02T22:33:00.004-05:00

Candle and Soap

20 x 16 original acrylic

Yup, this scene is from my bathroom. Well, I don't keep a candle there, or everything arranged like in the painting, but it is a scene I set up in my bathroom. I'd been wanting to paint glass blocks and various shades of white for the longest time. The candle and facecloth are pretty yellow, but they're still so pale that they might be considered fancy whites.

Painting the glass blocks was a challenge. Each block is really abstract, filled with lines, shapes, and colors, none making sense, but the whole creating the blocks. I might experiment again later with glass blocks. They're so different to paint from other glass subjects. I also plan on doing more studies in various shades of white. There's just something about the differences in white that compells me to paint them. I might also make some adjustments to this painting, minor details.

Also regarding art, please check out the Gift Horse mural project at www.muralmosaic.com/Cadeau.html . This project is sure to be a truly great collaborative work of art, and I'm so proud to be participating in this project. There are some truly amazing artists participating, several whom I've admired for a long time. I'll give more details as things develop.

On a personal note, I've quit smoking!!! Please congratulate me. This has been such a challenge. I've been on Zyban for the last couple of weeks and quit March 31. Today marks my 3rd full day without smoking. The Zyban has really helped also and I know I couldn't have done it without it. I'd tried soooo many times throughout the years. I'd been hearing from a lot of people about side effects and all that, but in all honesty, I have none. I also have no cravings for any cigarettes. None. Even if I would've had side effects, I would've stuck it out. Better to put up with a few little side effects and give up smoking rather than the possible alternatives later on, right? I mean, the excuses we smokers come up with are truly ridiculous. And all of the gross commercials and pictures on cigarette packs did nothing to help me quit. Nothing. What did convince me this time was a new commercial that took away all my excuses. Taking away excuses is an old trick in sales and I'm surprised it took so long for the cigarette police to finally think of this. After seeing this commercial several times, I'd made my decision. I also used to say that I enjoyed smoking, and that was another convenient excuse to keep smoking. Then it finally dawned on me a while back that a heroin addict like his drug too. An alcoholic loves his booze. That's nothing but addiction speaking. So, I'm proud of myself, but I'll never, EVER give up coffee! I wish the best of luck to anyone else out there trying. G'luck!

Charlie

2008-03-20T22:00:00.003-05:00

Lonesome Charlie

24 x 18 original acrylic

Everyone, this is Charlie. At least, that's what I call him. He's a rodeo horse I saw last summer. He was a little banged up, I'm not sure what from, and it broke my heart. Whenever I'd look at his picture, I'd envision him as a wanderer, a nomad, a vagabond, travelling the country, always on the road. Then, this reminded me, strangely enough, of Boxcar Willie, and then travelling vagabonds, derelicts, and, winos! Okay, stay with me here and how some ideas come through in the strangest ways. Thinking of cheap wine then reminded me of a wine my friends used to drink when we were, well, young. We'd put our money together and buy magnums of this really nasty, cheap wine called Lonesome Charlie. My dad always used to say that was a wino's drink. So, that's the strange process which occured when I thought of his name.

I also debated with myself whether or not to paint in the wounds. After much wrestling, I decided to go for it. Most horse paintings are always beautiful, showing perfect horses. Reality isn't always so. Things happen, and Charlie happened to have battle wounds, or whatever they were. So, there's much conflict in this piece. Beauty vs. reality, perfection vs. raw wounds, green pastures vs. being a road warrior. So, here's Charlie, both beautiful and imperfect, but real.

New Still Life

2008-03-12T23:03:00.002-05:00

Pottery

8 x 10 original acrylic on masonite

Yes, on occasion, this gal does enjoy doing still life. This vase is one of several that were given to me by my dear aunt who lived in New Mexico for, I think, over 30 years. I've collected so much pottery and jewellery over the years, thanks to my aunt, and I cherish each and every special piece. I did alter some of the pattern on the vase, however, and added more light than what the original clay vase had. It just looked better with more light rather than leaving it flat. And pardon the glare; the photo was taken tonight using a flash, which of course, always creates a glare.

Hope you enjoy this piece! It is for sale, along with more great art which can be found on my website. You can always contact me through my website also. I really need to add a contact on here . . .

Winter Scene

2008-03-06T20:55:00.003-05:00

Heavenly Morning

11 x 14 original acrylic

Here's the latest completed piece. I painted this scene from my yard after a beautiful morning before going to work a couple of weeks back. It was bitterly cold, but the sun was dazzling! What a deceptive scene, but that's the way it is around here during winter. If it's cloudy, it's warmer. When the sun's out shinning bright, it's cold. It was still such a beautiful scene though, and begged to be painted. So voila!

This painting can be purchased from my site for $225.00. Be sure to visit my website at http://www.carolerodrigue.net/ to see more paintings too!

Where's Spring?

2008-02-11T12:51:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! Yes, I'm anxiously awaiting spring. Winter's been here long enough already. It's been bitterly cold and the flu bug's made its way into our home yet once again this season. Amazing how these little invisible critters can have so much impact on one's life. Plans get shoved aside, paintings are left unfinished, the house becomes a mess, and the television's never had so much play time.

There are several paintings I'd like to get to but painting's a little difficult when you're stopping every couple of minutes to attend to the controlling effects of the flu. And my head, oh my poor head . . . So, I'm sitting tight and doing my darndest to try and get well quickly. I'm going to let myself indulge in a little down time on the couch, under a nice warm blanket, the remote firmly held. Yep, that's about all that can be done I suppose. Sit back and ride it out. And in the mean time, I'm dreaming of warmer weather and longer days when the nasty little invaders disappear. So, please wish me well, and I'll hope you all stay well too. Until next time, take care and try to dodge the invaders!

A Gorgeous Paint Horse

2008-02-07T22:45:00.000-05:00

MJ Scarlett Star

11 x 14 original acrylic

Hello everyone, meet MJ! She's another beautiful horse I photographed a couple of weeks ago. There were five of them, including Spritz, the pony I last painted. These horses just seemed so happy, especially after getting treats. It was great watching them running and being so playful, although a little difficult to take pictures too! There are more shots from this shoot that I plan on working into paintings. So keep visiting because there's something about a horse and a cat coming soon . . .

New Work and Painting Demonstration

2008-01-28T22:49:00.000-05:00

Sweet & Sour Spritz

16 x 20 original acrylic on canvas

This little beauty is my friend Tammy's Welsh pony. After visiting Tammy and her husband recently, I selected this image to paint. The shot isn't too clear, and I'm still going to tweak it up, but it's pretty much done. And although the pony is a dark bay, she did look almost black with her thick winter fur. I'm still not decided yet if I should add the sparse snowflakes that were falling. And, for your entertainment *cough* I'm posting a demonstration of this painting's progress below.

I started with my image and divided it into equal parts. I'm of the opinion anyone can learn to paint by learning some basics. Even if you can't draw, you can learn to draw by simply making a grid. Drawing free hand is great, but if you're a beginner, or just wanting to save time, gridding helps. Many pros also grid since it's one of the best ways to make sure you have your proportions correct.

The next step is to take your image and lay it on your sketch pad or paper. I drew out lines indicating my canvas size. Tape your image with masking tape or painting tape to ensure it doesn't move! Click on the images for a larger picture.

Here's where the fun begins. Using a large ruler, begin at the far top left corner of your image, not your paper. Then, find the end of each line on your image, and starting from the corner, make a diagonal line from the corner to the end of your original grid line on your image. Continue this diagonal line onto your sketch paper. Do this for all the lines.

Continue with your diagonal lines until you've made a line for each line end you have on your image's grid. Hope that makes sense!

Now you're ready to draw your image. This should be a lot easier now since you just have to make simple shapes, block by block. Draw your shapes as they appear in the blocks on your original image. If, let's say, the eye is more to the top left part of the block, then that's where you'll place it. Do this until you have your whole image. The edge of your image will also change, as indicated on the bottom line in the image. The edge moved up a tad.

For step 6, simply transfer your image onto the canvas. You can do this by coloring the back of your image with charcoal and then taking a colored pencil and drawing over your image, leaving an impression on the canvas. A colored pencil will help you see where you've already drawn, and helps make sure you don't forget any parts!

Now that you have your image transfered, you can begin the underpainting. I always start off dark and build up light as I paint, layer by layer. Once you've got your image blocked in, begin using medium tones, and gradually add lighter tones. In this piece, I used white, black, burnt umber, cobalt blue, and naples yellow in some highlighted areas. I couldn't live without burnt umber and cobalt blue, and use them in everything I paint!

I'm like many other animal artists when I say I like to work on the eyes first. Once the eyes, or eye in this case, are in, the rest of the painting comes into place more easily. It seems to be a lot harder if you don't get that eye right at the beginning. Once you're satisfied with the eye, continue with adding light and details.

Since the picture of the final piece isn't as clear as I'd like, you probably can't see a lot of the details and color, but you can see the impression of hairs. I don't paint every hair either. Using a bristle brush, I dry brush lighter paint in the direction the hairs are growing and at the end, I'll use a 0 liner brush and add a hair here and there, which gives the impression that I painted a lot of hairs.

And voila, you have the final piece! Well, hum, minus the tweaking . . . Hope this helped! Like I said, by using this gridding method, you can paint virtually anything. Start with simple images and gradually become daring enough to paint complex pieces, still life with many objects, animals, many animals, anything! Just have fun with painting and don't be afraid to stretch yourself!