Although I have been bucked off of a horse or two, I have never had the inclination to try and ride a real-live bronc, so when I am painting one, I get to let my imagination fly as to what the cowboy's and horse's experience might be like. The horse straining with every muscle to unload this unwanted man from his back and the man straining as well to predict the horse's moves and ride him out, all the while as the dust flies and the sky whirls and melts into the earth and arena. In this painting, I focused on the experience, color and action of the event by using bigger brushstrokes than usual and letting go of all the details that did not add to the spirit and intent of the painting. 

I am pleased to announce my new association with Nature's Wonders Fine Art Gallery in Bridger, Montana. This painting will be on display with several others at the "Fall Classics" Fine Art Exhibit. There will be an open house the first weekend in November, with a reception on Saturday, November 1, 2008 from 4 - 9 pm.

We are told to "get out of our comfort zone" so I definitely did here, but only out of necessity! I normally use a sanded pastel paper when painting landscapes and rodeo because it forces me to focus on the big shapes and not get too nit-picky about details. I did not have any Wallis paper on hand (which is an even textured sanded paper), so decided to try a different brand that I had bought a while back. After sketching in the main shapes I started in on the painting and was immediately put off by the very rough texture. I thought "I am never going to finish this at this rate" because I couldn't get the pastels to cover at all.

I kept at it and alternately kept thinking that I needed to start over on a more familiar surface. I was getting more and more frustrated when I  happened to grab my kneaded eraser and decided to try scrubbing the pastel into the paper with the kneaded eraser. I liked the effect and continued on in that manner. Lay down some color and pretty much mixed it on the paper with a swipe of the eraser. It almost felt like painting oils with a brush and I really enjoyed the process. I'm sure I will try it again... when I remember what paper it was I was using!