Progress on ‘Gathering up the reins’ Watercolor by Debbie Flood

More progress on 'Gathering up the reins' watercolor.

Now I'm mostly layering more color on, in places to darken things up a bit. This paper (300lb Arches Watercolor Paper) is really thirsty and the colors sink in and 'dull out'. I added more color to the sky, mountains, shadows on the man and his hat. I also started working more on the two trees to the left of the painting.

It seems like slow going now, but it will get finished in the not to far future.

I’ve ordered a gold frame for this, the frame is on back order, and I hope it will get shipped to me in time to put this into an Exhibit I was invited to, in September 2011, located in Raton, NM. Only time will tell.

Have a great weekend!

~Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: Raton New Mexico,New Mexico,Watercolor,Debbie Flood,Angel Fire,Palomino,Horse,Equine,Western,Western themed art,Southwest

‘Gathering up the reins’ Watercolor in Progress, by Debbie Flood

 

This is my latest Watercolor painting, titled Gathering up the reins.

Depicting the Tour Guide that took us through the Forests and Fields in the Mountains of Angel Fire, New Mexico. This area is the same area that Bullet & I were Blessed by the Butterflies. You can read the Blog post before this one “The coolest place in town”-Bullet, for more info about the Butterfly experience.

This little mare is a dark Palomino. Her tail is more grey than white and her color is a dirty looking chocolate horse…lol. You could tell she loved her job, with a little bit of a “hot under the collar” approach to staying ahead of the pack. Definitely an Alpha mare.

It’s interesting to see my three progressive images here, of the painting. I can certainly see what colors my camera picked up, at the time of photographing the painting.  This last photo in the bunch, seems to be leaning towards the hues of blues a little too much. Though the foreground does have a lot of blue layered in for shadows, I think that is where the camera picked up the dominating color and changed other areas to match. It always seems to be difficult to get a good color match on a computer screen. On the most part, a lot of my paintings do photograph right when I take the final shot, of the finished painting.

Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: Palomino,Quarter Horse,Tour Guide,New Mexico,Angel Fire,Forest,Mountains,watercolor,South west,art,Debbie Flood

“The Coolest Place In Town”-Bullet. Watercolor by Debbie Flood

 

Here I am, playing a little ‘catch-up’ with my Blog posts! I’ve been painting fast and furious, to capture my feelings and experiences of New Mexico! My Blog posts got a little behind.

This watercolor, here, is of ‘Bullet’. He’s the horse I rode on the Road Runner Tours in Angel Fire, New Mexico. We took a ride up into the Mountains, well, actually the head quarters was sitting on the mountain! We rode for two hours into the Forest and across a field or two. I was in Seventh Heaven!

On the ride, we came out of the Forest into a clearing that over looked distant fields, Mountains and Eagle Nest Lake. Before we stopped, for some candid photo shots, I had a Butterfly flutter up between Bullet’s ears, over the crest of his neck, the saddle horn, and into my face! Over the top of my head it went, and I warned the rider behind me to watch out for that crazy Butterfly! But before I had the whole sentence out, it veered off into the woods, not bothering the horse and rider behind me. A few minutes after, I had another one do the same exact thing!

We finished up our ride, and back at the ranch, I took a bunch of photos. I hung out in the paddock with Bullet and his friends. Bullet and I formed a really great bond, and I think of him now, often. This painting I have posted here, is after the ride and Bullet hanging out by the water trough. Titled: The coolest place in town, Watercolor on 300lb Arches Watercolor paper, image size: 11 x 14 inches. If you are interested in purchasing this painting, send me an email at debflood@debfloodart.com thank you.

The next day, after the ride, I drove to Eagle Nest Lake and the Cimarron Mountains. At a gift store there, I found a T-Shirt with butterflies all over it. With that Butterfly moment on Bullet, I just had to have the T-shirt!

The next day, after purchasing the Butterfly T-shirt, I took a day trip into Taos with CheyAnne. I told her about my Butterfly experience and the T-shirt. She had a look on her face, like, “No way!” She then proceeded to tell me the New Mexico Spiritual meaning of having a Butterfly flutter into your face.

“When a Butterfly flutters into your face, You are Blessed”.

I had two get into my face, one right after the other.

Bullet and I are very blessed.

Love and Peace to you all,

~Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: road runner tours,angel Fire,New Mexico,trail ride,equine,horse,quarter Horse,watercolor,southwest art,gallery,butterfly,eagle nest lake,cimarron

New Mexico Romance Watercolor by Debbie Flood

(Original post from the Painting The SouthWest Blog).

New Mexico Romance 11 x 13 Watercolor on Watercolor Paper Board. $1,200.00 Inquiries to purchase may come to my email at debflood@debfloodart.com thank you.

The Hot Romance, in the Hot Country of New Mexico is finished!

It was interesting for me, to paint them as they are one entity. I mostly concentrated on the light and shadows and the shapes of items on the land. I also paid attention to the colors and what would most represent what I wanted to show you, what I saw, while in New Mexico for the first time in my life.

I feel as though this was a good starting painting, to lay the path for the rest of the New Mexico paintings that will soon follow.

As I write this, I have started another, of the horse named Bullet, that I rode in the mountains and forests of Angel Fire,NM. That was a very special ride for me and I’ll be posting the painting soon.

~Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: romance,man,woman,watercolor,Taos New Mexico,New Mexico,Hot,portrait,figurative,art

New Mexico Romance. A Watercolor in Progress by Debbie Flood

From the Original Post on the Painting The SouthWest Blog

My first day in New Mexico. Well, my first full day in New Mexico, after un-boarding the plane in Albuquerque at midnight, renting the car, finding a Hotel close by, and then hunting down my lost luggage when I left the Hotel later that morning. Yeah, that was an ordeal that really needs it’s own blog post. ha ha.

As I made my 3-4 hour drive North on I25 towards Angel Fire, I was mesmerized by the mountains, gorges and lack of trees! I was constantly stopping to take photos, as camper buses and trucks and cars sped past me, as if they have seen it all, day after day.

After I bypassed Santa Fe and was well on my way towards Taos, there was a large gorge to my left! Click…click…snap…snap…goes the camera.

One such place, a wonderful wide river ran past. There was a nice wide turnout, so I pulled in. When I got out, I was introduced to 100 degree dry heat! The hot breeze was blowing and the sound of the rushing water was relaxing. I could see Kayakers coming around the bend up stream. I snapped more photos of them, as they paddled closer. After a few minutes of taking in the rocky mountains, water and heat, I turned around to find this young couple sitting on the edge of the rocks that hung onto the side of the gorge. They were both wearing white, and pretty much all I could see was the bright hot light bouncing off their white clothing. I immediately saw a painting! All that white light and bounced color in the shadows. I snapped a few photos, the couple was just too busy to even notice I was capturing them. No, I’m not a stalker, only a stalker of images for that next great painting!

The heat was bouncing up off the ground and nearby tar of the highway. It was time to get back in the car, that for some reason, was rented to me “Black with a Black interior”! (go figure!). I switched on the Air Conditioner to high and continued on my way, knowing – hoping, I had captured something good enough of that couple to paint, when I returned to my Studio in Maine.

The image above is the work in progress. I’m working on a Premium Watercolor Board, put out by Cresent, it is 100% Archival all the way through.

I’m enjoying, reliving that day, as I recreate the moment in watercolor.

~Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: White dress,romance,couple,New Mexico,Taos New Mexico,Angel Fire,Santa Fe,kayaker,river,watercolor

Progress on The Taos Black Stallion in Watercolor by Debbie Flood

Original Post from the Painting The SouthWest Blog.

Today I was able to jump right into painting the dust and horse!

It seems that more and more of my paintings are hinting towards abstract. As I think more in relations of shapes with one another and forget about what the actual object is, things start taking on new meanings.

So far, for me, this painting seems about the flow of the mane on the neck of the horse. It’s waving in the dust, almost as if it is free to roam where it pleases. Yet it is attached to the horse and cannot flow away freely. That’s the feeling I was getting from the horse, himself. Here he was loose to do as he pleases in his space, like rolling in the dust and shaking it off, yet he was still confined to walls and fences that kept him from going further. The solid fence behind him, also constrained to stand in that one spot to hold the Black Stallion in. Everything was in it’s place for a purpose. Everything in that space wanting so badly to go beyond the boundaries. So parallel to the human conditions. We all wish to break free, shake the dust off and go! I felt I was able to do that. But in my freedom, I had to leave the Black Taos Stallion behind.

As I paint this, I wonder today, what he is doing. Have others gone to visit him? Has he been taken out of those confining walls and fences? Maybe someday I will know the answers to my questions. And then again, I may not.

~Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: Black Stallion,Taos New Mexico,South west,art,cowboy,cowgirl,dust,western art,Debbie Flood,Watercolor,arches paper

Tickled Pink watercolor finished for the Straw Hat Series by Debbie Flood

Tickled Pink is now finished. Created in Watercolor on 300lb Arches Watercolor paper, Cold Press. 13 x 16 $1,200.00

The image for Tickled pink was submitted by a follower and friend on Facebook. Thank you!  I just loved the sunlight that washed across her hat and face and hair.

Now I’ll be moving on to painting images of New Mexico, from the trip I took in June. The hard part is deciding which image I want to paint first! I have horses, cattle, sage brush, mountains, horse back riding in the mountains, and the Taos Black Morgan Stallion! And of course much more.

You know the saying “One day at a time” ? Well, “One painting at a time” with me!

I hope you keep checking in here, to see what the next painting will be.

~Debbie

Technorati Tags: Straw Hat,child portrait,watercolor,western themed art,art,cowgirls,sunlight,shadow,Southwest,New Mexico

‘Dancing In The Dust’ Western White Horse Completed In Watercolor by Debbie Flood

Dancing in the dust. 21 x 27 inches. Watercolor. $2,500.00

I have finished Dancing in the dust. I’m very motivated to start paintings from my New Mexico adventure that I was recently on. So, needless to say, I am working to complete the works that have been in progress, and those that are waiting in the wings to be started.

I’ve created a Blog for myself and CheyAnne Sexton to post our SouthWest adventures and Paintings and photographs that we have accumulated. We took one day, while I was in NM, to photograph Taos, NM. We had such a good time, we decided to do this painting challenge: http://paintingthesouthwest.blogspot.com  I’ve got it set up so you can follow it through Google or get the updates in your email.

I’m very pleased to announce that I am now Represented by the Angel Fire ArtSpace Gallery, in Angel Fire, New Mexico. You can find my Western and Equine Genre Watercolors there.

I do hope you are having a fantastic week and staying cool if you are in any of the Summer locations around the globe.

~Debbie

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: Western Genre,Art,White Quarter Horse,Southwest,New Mexico,Angel Fire,Gallery,Watercolor,Paintings,Horse,equine

Meeting the Black Taos Morgan Stallion by Debbie Flood

I was along for the ride, with CheyAnne driving her father’s old pick up truck, that had more Character than the Peanuts Gang! She drove down this dirt road in Taos, NM. It was a hot, dry day and the wind would blow up dust devils every so often. She parked the truck in what seemed like a wide driveway. It’s hard to tell where road, driveways stop and start, with so much dry dirt around.

As we got out and started to make our way across the dirt road, to see a mare and foal out in the green pasture (yes, there was a green pasture!) we heard a whinny. Almost a pitiful whinny, but it had enough energy and lift to it, to make us turn around to see who was talking to us.

It was a black Morgan Stallion. Around the bend a bit, there he stood, with ears perked up, mentally telling us to come see him. With our cameras in tow, and our eyes feasting on this beautiful beast, he waited for us to get near.

He smelled of CheyAnne’s camera, as if to say, is that good enough to take photos of me?

I suppose he was confident enough, that we had a couple of good cameras, he laid down in the dirt and started a rolling dirt bath feast! Over and over he went. At times, he was almost invisible, shrouded in dust that danced in the Taos light. What a photo op! I’m surprised the clicking of our shutter buttons didn’t disturb someone!

Later, after he raised to his hooves, and shook off the excess dust, he went to CheyAnne, and rubbed his head against her, leaving streaks of drool and mucus that turned the dry dust into mud upon her clothes. He loved the attention, and watched us as we walked away. For a few moments, his boring morning, became a fun dust game.

Soon, I will be painting this Black Taos Morgan Stallion, to immortalize him forever. Just what I think he hoped we would do.

Debbie Flood

This post is originally written for the “Painting The SouthWest” Blog.

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: Black Stallion,Morgan,Taos,New Mexico,Horse,photography,Southwest,Art,Dust

‘Rumbles in the sky’ Wins The ‘Judge’s Award Of Merit’ at the Red River Valley International Juried Art Exhibition, Vernon, Texas 2011

 

I’m very Honored to announce that my watercolor painting, Rumbles in the sky, was awarded the Judge’s Award Of Merit. The annual International Exhibit is put on by the Red River Valley Museum in Vernon, Texas.

The Judge for this years show was David Band.

This watercolor is still available for purchase. The image measures 21.5 x 29 inches. Framed in a heavy Gold Wood frame with an off white 2 inch mat.         $2,500.00. Shipping is separate. You may contact me for a shipping quote. debflood@debfloodart.com thank you.

~Debbie Flood

http://www.debfloodart.com

Technorati Tags: Red River Valley Museum,Texas,Western Genre,Art,Paint Horse,Cowgirl,Museum Art,Vernon Texas,Watercolor painting