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Painting Gower Cows

I have painted five “cow portraits” in all, recently. Here they are. I have enjoyed getting to know them as individuals, their long history in art and human society, and especially painting them. I have learnt a lot about their anatomy, especially their curious two-toed feet, or rather “paired hooves”. I have also discovered that cows have “dew claws” (digits that most animals have, including cats and dogs).

The White Cow, an oil painting by Emma Cownie
The White Cow (SOLD)
Cow Standing by artist Emma Cownie
Cow Standing
The Sitting, a portrait of a cow in oils by Emma Cownie
The Sitting
Sitting Bull an oil painting of a cow by Emma Cownie
Sitting Bull
Family Portrait an oil painting of three cows by artist Emma Cownie
Family Portrait

I am ready to switch back to landscape/woodland paintings now, after a long break from the trees.

Buy cow portraits here

I’ll leave you with a few photos of the cows in their natural environment.

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Curator for the day

I have been asked to be a curator for Artfinder.com. This means I will put together an art collection for the online gallery http://www.artfinder.com. I am very excited and honoured by this chance. I have been represented by Artfinder since 2013 and I have sold 599 works through them. The site has grown and grown over the years and now represents over 10,000 artists.

It’s not the biggest site out there but for several years its been the best one for independent artists. I’ll explain why.

Each artist is given a lot of control over their own page or “store front”.  You can directly upload photos of your paintings to the site without waiting for an administrator to approve it. You can also directly contact collectors through their messaging system, rather than through the administrator. This makes customer care a whole lot easier.

There are many very talented artists on the site but the increase in the sheer number of artists has made it more and more difficult to be “seen”. So being a curator for the day is my chance to bring attention to the many excellent and talented artists on the site.

As a teenager I used to fantasizing about having the chance to do a supermarket sweep. I used to think about where I would direct my trolley and what to sweep into the trolley in less than three minutes. Funny, how that has no appeal to me these days although, I do like to get in and out of the supermarket in a short amount of time as possible! Twenty minutes, in and out and I am happy.

This is going to take a bit longer than that!

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Andrew Reid Wildman

So I have my chance to “sweep” about 150 artworks into my basket or collection. I am very excited by this. Over the years I have book marked and pinned artworks that have caught my eye and here’s my chance to show them off to the world. I try not to think too much about it. There are some artists who spring to mind immediately like Jane Kell and Andrew Reid Wildman, whom I know I want to have in the collection and others I have to look in my bookmarked collection to remind myself of their names, and a few who present themselves to me as I look through the new art on the site.

 

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Snehal Page
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James Earley

I have largely gone with works that highlight colour and light such as Snehal Page’s vivid oil portraits and Sri Rao’s colorful landscapes.

There many artists’ who skill with the paint brush has me in awe especially people like James Earley and Abi Whitlock.

One hundred and fifty painting may seem like a lot but it isn’t. I want to include as many artists as I can with out the collection becoming too “bity”. So some artists get as many as 4 paintings but other only one. I am hoping that the choices I have made will tempt collectors to click on their names and take note and “follow” them or even better buy their work/s. I believe that art is about a conversation between the artists and the viewer.

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John Kerr

I say conversation, but I believe that good art provokes an emotional reaction in the viewer; whether it is joy at the remembrance of a summer’s day at the seaside, or empathy with the humanity in another’s face or posture.

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James Henry Johnston

 

 

As viewers we invest a lot of energy in choosing our favourites, we follow their progress and want them to do well. I am only the 5th artist (I think) who has been asked to put together a collection but I am hoping this a successful collection and other artists are asked to do the same thing.

If you wish to view the whole collection, you can see it here

Capture
Part of my collection
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Another selection

 

 

 

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Puffin Paradise

My recent return to painting after a week away saw me follow up my Puffins series of paintings – these are Pop Art type paintings of these lovely birds. The last Puffin painting “Puffin Paradise” sold after a few days! If only they all went that quickly  eh? I like doing them, they are fun to paint; fresh, simply and colourful. They kind of make you smile! 

Puffin Paradise
Puffins (SOLD)
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Puffin in the Pink – Pop Art puffin

I have been off holidaying in the Black Mountains which are part of the Brecon Beacons National Park and did not paint for a whole week which was very difficult.

I am sure I was experiencing withdrawal like symptoms.

Anyway I am back and in the groove with a new painting “Puffin in the Pink”.

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Puffin in the Pink