HOLY COW FOR KAY by Linda Popple

Kay's moleskin theme is "HOLY COW!" and I painted a few cow studies for practice and in one word they were pitiful!  So, in keeping with her theme (sort of!), I decided to paint something associated with cows.  Cows produce wonderful milk, and from cream, butter.  YUM!  For Kay, two plates of butter with a silver butter knife waiting to spread this treat on a slice of bread.

Angela's Moleskine by Kay Wyne

Aspens for Angela

Texas Moleskine Round-Up

Here's a shot of Angela's painted Moleskine....I thought an abstract aspen painting in bold colors with lots of layers would be something different in her book. I am the last artist to paint in her book, and it is filled with wonderful paintings!!! Lots of doggies. No aspen trees.....so here you go Angela. This painting is fun, colorful, and bold.....just like you!!! Thanks so much for starting this Moleskine project...it is a great way to get to know other artists and to be challenged. I am using clothespins to keep the wet pages flat....it will take a while for this to dry. That will give me time to title this piece....all for Angela!!! Kay

STORMY by Linda Popple

This is a painting of one of my favorite dogs ..... and family member.  Her name is Stormy and she was adopted by Abby, Ben and Asher (three of my fantastic grandchildren) after she was abandoned by her previous owner.  I painted Stormy in Angela's moleskin.  She has several dogs in her book and they are all special and beautiful!  I hope you like this very late addition to your book, Angela.  I'll get it in the mail to Kay so she can add her work.

MUDBUGS

The so very talented, Jean Townsend selected detritus as the theme for her Texas Moleskine. I struggled quite a bit with the subject matter. I wanted to be original, but did not have a clue what to paint until I thought of painting crawfish. Hailing from SW Louisiana, I know a thing or two about the ever popular crawfish boil...served on a heaping pile of newspapers and with the crawfish and vegetable remnants left behind you have the perfect pile of detritus. I usually begin with a sketch, but since I did not know where to begin with this tangled mess of legs and tails, I "drew" a few lines with my brush and then just jumped in. It was cropped "rough" so that you could see my own detritus in the making. Thanks, Jean...this was fun!

Happy New Year to all of you!!

Hay Bales for Ann Rogers

I found an old image of hay bales that I loved to paint and decided to do them for Ann. The lush fields and rolling hills really attracted my eye. This was so much fun to paint that I think I'll be doing a large version soon. This whole moleskine adventure has been fun and has taken me out of my comfort zone and forced me to grow! Thanks everyone!

"Brown Lab" by Ann Rogers

oil on moleskin paper

Have had the pleasure of meeting Sharon Hodges through this Texas Moleskin project and have painted this brown lab for her book. Figured that if Sharon's blog profile photo included her dog, then this pet must be an important part of her life. 

Thanks to everyone who's been involved in the Texas Moleskin Round-Up, as well as the followers who have continued to check in on us. Believe this is my last entry, so we should all be getting our original books back before too much longer. What a treat it'll be to see the completed books.  

HOME GROWN

For Carol Morgan's book with the theme of Sides, I painted a woman tending her garden outside. Jean, this will be mailed to you shortly and then I will paint in my final book, which happens to be yours. I'm stumped on what to paint in your book, but my goal is to return it to you before the end of the year.

Baby burro at the Fair by Carol Morgan

This baby burro at the state fair was so adorable and since I know what an animal lover Sharon is..... I decided to use my palette knife and knock him out just for her. He was all curled up in the hay and looked so innocent and dear, I just couldn't resist. I'm sure Kay is going to fuss at me because it will take eons for this to dry because there is a ton of paint on this little page!

He was a lot of fun to paint and of course I love using my palette knife.

Colors of Fall by Kay Wyne for Jean Townsend

"Colors of Fall"

For Jean from Kay 

Kay's detritus palette.

Here is my post for Jean....her topic, DETRITUS was a challenge for me.  I thought and thought about it, and decided to use my detritus on my palette to start her painting.  I have a habit of immediately starting a new painting with my left-over paints when I finish a painting.  I had been working on a large rooster, and decided that I would take the detritus of my palette, and go through the detritus of my vacation to Jackson Hole.  I had flyers, photographs, ticket stubs and all kinds of odds and ends.  I decided that the landscape of Wyoming was so beautiful that I would paint some aspens for Jean.  So, Jean's moleskine is drying...it may take a while since I used the palette knife on the tree trunks.  I painted this on the first day of fall, Sept. 23, 2011, thus the title, "Colors of Fall".  I hope that you enjoy your moleskine posts.....Artfully yours, Kay and her detritus palette.  

"Pathway to the Top" by Ann Rogers

oil in moleskin book

Linda Popple suggested that in her moleskin we paint "whatever gives you joy", so this is what I have painted in her book. Linda, you have caught me in the midst of leaning more toward landscapes and plein air painting. Hope you enjoy this scene from the highest point near Fredricksburg in the Texas Hill Country.

Where in the world are we???

Texas Moleskin Round-Up Artists: Are we finished with our moleskines traveling through out the state of Texas? I don't think I know where we are on our project...and I don't have a moleskine in my possession. If you know where we are, help me out! Stay cool.....and have an artful day.....Kay

08/17/11 Destin Morning

SORRY everyone for the miserable crop job I did on this picture!! This is for sweet Linda Popple. Being at the ocean gives me joy and peace!! That is what I wish for you Linda!!

"Holy Cow" by Ann Rogers

oil on moleskin

Here's another member of Kay Wyne's herd for her "holy cow" themed moleskin! 

Remnants of an All American Snack for Jean by Linda Popple

Jean Townsend's theme is detritus. She has such a creative spirit. Her theme was quite a challenge. My first thought was to paint my leftover palette, but SOMEONE (a fantastic artist, I must admit ..... Sharon Hodges) beat me to it! And her painting and format was amazing. So that idea went into the detritus file (which is over loaded!) As I sat down with my peanuts, I was just stumped and thinking and thinking of something to paint. I left the shells and went to the studio to paint another mugshot and so frustrated that I just couldn't come up with anything. The mugshot was finished and I came downstairs and saw the remnants of my snack and there it was ..... finally. As soon as it is dry I will send it on to Kay.

MISSY

oil on moleskine

Missy was a much loved family pet, so loved that to this day, her framed photo sits on Ann's bedside table along with her children's photos. Painting loved family pets that have passed is always rewarding, usually the photo references I have to work from can be a little problematic. I must thank Ann for the old and fuzzy snapshot, anything for a sweet friend. :-)

Jean, two books are coming your way, sorry for the delay!