Today is the collector's preview for the Miniature Art Society of Florida annual miniature art show at the Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art in Tarpon Springs, Florida . I am pleased to have been awarded 1st place in "Best Historical or Mythical" for my miniature painting, "Traveling Companions".
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"Traveling Companions" 5.5 X 3.5 oil on board.
I am fascinated by all canines, and especially the special bond between humans and dogs. I love studying research about ancient dogs in the Americas, how they were loved and used by their human partners. An archaeological dig in Illinois revealed a skeleton of a dog buried 10,000 years ago. (https://www.sciencenews.org/article/dogs-lived-and-died-humans-10000-years-ago-americas ). This is why I've titled this painting with "Companions" in the title...her trusted pup goes where she goes, unquestioning, loving & loved, loyal and happy to just be with her. |
I have four other paintings in the show:
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"Scarlet in Winter" 3 X 5 oil on board
Last winter, I visited Wolf Park (wolfpark.org) in West Lafeyette, Indiana to spend a day with the wolves in the park. Along with the wolves, they have red and grey foxes. I was able to meet and photograph Scarlet and Joker in their enclosure, and was quite delighted with their antics. Later last winter, we had a spectacular snowfall, and I imagined Scarlet emerging from the woods in the back of my property. |
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"Stalking Shadows" 5 X 3 oil on board
During my visit to Wolf Park (wolfpark.org) in West Lafeyette, Indiana, I was able to walk among the pack and take a ton of photos for reference. It was one of the most incredible experiences, and I highly recommend visiting and supporting Wolf Park! Our day was rainy, cold and miserable. The wolves loved it! The best part, their fur was fluffed against the cold, and they were active and playful. The frigid water was no deterrent to the curiosity of the pack, who waded out to fetch and play with various sticks. Later, a lovely snowfall presented opportunities to study the pond and cattails next door, and add them to this painting of Khewa, one of the females from the Wolf Park young pack. |
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"The Prairie Schooner Journal" 3 X 4 oil on board
I am always seeking moments of human interaction in my paintings, and this one touches my heart, because of the love shown between siblings. These young ladies were modeling for me from inside an old Prairie Schooner wagon, and I imagined stories read from a journal would provide a little entertainment to the girls during the long, tedious and treacherous journey to unknown territories. |
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"Troubling Clouds " 3 X 4 oil on board
Sometimes I simply like to paint the beautiful faces of people that I admire. This young man modeled for me many years ago, and later I found out he had passed not long after I met him. I loved his hair, the fine bone structure of his face, the colors of the landscape, and his regalia. I called it "Troubling Clouds", because of the forbidding clouds quickly moving in behind him, an unknowable future, and the many tragedies the people of his culture have endured. My heart aches for the stories that are told and untold. My unending hope is that interest in my paintings of Indigenous cultures of the Americas will cause people to seek out knowledge and history, to gain understanding and empathy. |
The collector's preview its this afternoon, Jan 19, and the show opens to the public tomorrow, Jan 20. My paintings and over 700 other paintings are on display and for sale at the show. Demonstrations by artists who work in the miniature genre will be throughout the week. More information is here:
http://www.miniature-art.com/2019/Schedule.html
