Chuck

Chuck ~ 6" x 6" oil on canvas panel

Bid now in the Daily Paintworks auction

So, I've painted you cows, and I've painted you horses, so I figured it was time to give you all a cowboy.

This particular cowboy is a very close relative of mine, actually, my brother...and he HATES being called Chuck...so don't tell on me...The name Charles just seems too sophisticated for a cowboy. 

...and even more ACEO's

Hello everyone...sorry about the lack of sketches, if anyone noticed...but I'm trying to make a few bucks to pay for the deluxe printer I just bought, lol!  And I need special paper, too, and Crystal Clear Bags...

Uhhh...the business of art. I'd rather just paint, and let someone else do all the other work, but I've made a new years resolution to get serious this year, and treat it as a job instead of a hobby...see where that gets me.

These cuties go active on Ebay at about 6 pm PST, 

Cheers, all!

Uncle Ron

Uncle Ron 16"x20" oil on canvas SOLD

This is my latest commission, for my Uncle. I loved the pose, the clothes, and the kick-butt (with slight sly humor) expression on his face. It was from an old sienna photo and I colorized it, with the help of the authentic hat and jacket, and a 'not-so-willing' little brother.

Paniolo -- Hawaiian Cowboy

Well, I just finished writing this whole post a few minutes ago, and somehow deleted it! Now I have to start again...DAMN! Sometimes I hate computers!
Anyways, I want to thank the wonderful girls who left me some great feedback. I took your advice and now I have a painting that I'm pretty happy with!
I lengthened the mane and tail, and made them fly out, adding to the sense of movement. I definitely feel like this makes it far less static. I spaced out the back legs slightly, defined them, and added a longer shadow. This, along with the longer tail, balances the painting out and makes the horse more grounded. I took away most of the dust behind the horse, and added some color to the dust in front. I defined some of the background shadows, and values, and evened out the color in the mountains.
All in all, I feel pretty happy with it now. Of course, there's still things I don't really like, but don't know how to change, or if they need it. Artists are their own worst critics! But, if anyone sees something that still might need help, let me know. I, unlike most, love constructive criticism!

Fresh off the Easel

It's finally done...I think. I'm not quite sure I'm satisfied, but I don't really know where else to go with this one. I've done so much to it already, that I should have planned in the beginning for. If anyone's wondering if it's really worth while to do those thumbnail sketches...IT IS!! I only did one, that I was pretty happy with, but, it didn't work when translated to this big canvas. It used to have three mid-ground figures, and a background guy on a horse, and a guy leaning against a horse in the far background. I decided it was too busy, and after many attempts at just trying to FIX everything to make it look like it was supposed to be there, I systematically began eliminating things, until there was nothing left to eliminate. This would all have been much easier to do before the painting was near completion...with the thumbnails...but once again, my initial enthusiasm for the subject overtook my logic, and I dove right in without proper planning. NEVER AGAIN! This one was so hard.
I want to put this one out for critique. I desperately need input from other artists, so if anyone thinks this painting needs some help, or could use something else, please drop me a line. I would appreciate it so much. Like I said, I'm not really sure if it's done or not, so let me know what you think. It also needs a title. "Fresh off the Easel" just isn't going to cut it.
I really want to thank Eduardo Amorim, the amazing photographer whose photo was the inspiration for this shot. Check out his work at Flickr by clicking on his name.