by Bobbi Dunlop on 6/6/2009 6:13:35 PM
Photo: Bobbi en plein air painting
Ok, so I can't make the claim that fishin' got in the way of my blogging for the past year. Although I personally know of a couple of artist friends whose fly-fishing passions cause lengthy absences from their studios, this hasn't happened to me yet. (Rick Berg, Dave Hodges). Nor can I claim to have been golfing, because I don't do that either. My only obsession is painting and I'm pretty pleased about that.
To give you the reader's digest condensed version of my past year, it was a busy one. Last spring my husband and I travelled to London (not to visit the Queen, necessarily), Paris and Amsterdam. In that incredible journey we took in the London Portrait Museum, the National Gallery, The Louvre, Rembrandt's House and Rijksmuseum. All in the blissful pursuit of Rembrandt.
We also visited Santa Fe, New Mexico a couple of times, the incredible art destination which we love to explore. In August I had the pleasure of having a gallery show at Brandon Michael Fine Art on Canyon Road.
And here I am, back again, eager to resume this business of blogging. I hope to have my newsletter back on track in the coming days, as well. (you can sign up here on my website at the link provided)
Many of you know that for my entire career I've been strictly a studio painter. My workspace is a wonderful, expansive, north-lit studio, in which I paint my still-life paintings, have models sit for me and I paint from life. Recently, however, I've been ceased with the urge to experience en plein air painting. ( *Google Definition for en plein air painting: French for "in the open air," used chiefly to describe paintings that have been executed outdoors, rather than in the studio.)
The photos above were taken recently on one such en plein air adventure. I'm hooked! You'll be hearing more about my en plein air adventures here and I'll post some paintings, too. The successful ones, that is ;0)
So, from this point on, rather than claiming to have gone fishin', it's more likely that I'll be gone paintin'.
My father, who passed away this past October at the age of 92 years, passed along his great love of horses to me. As I've mentioned in previous posts, as young artist horses were the subject of many of my paintings; many of them my Dad's. The hearts of artists and poets throughout the ages have been captivated by the beauty, power and grace of these wonderful creatures.
My Dad had such a way with them, such a gentle touch; it was apparent to all who knew him. Now, I do not see a horse without thinking of my Dad and the all I paint them, I think of him, as well.As a still life painter, the Tang Dynasty horse has become a great source of inspiration for me. Within the Tang society (China 618-906AD) the horse played an important role and was revered for their vigor and strength. They symbolized strength and status, as well as reflected on the personality of their owners and the prosperous and powerful Tang Dynasty itself.Ceramic models of the owner's horse have been found preserved in their tombs. Upon death, many Chinese horsemen were buried with clay horse sculptures and horses on which human figures are mounted, occupy a special place. These would often be found either preceding or following the coffin.The Tang horse portrayed in my painting "Tang Dynasty Prancer", 12x12, oil on linen, is not an authentic Tang horse but a reproduction which occupies a special place in my studio and which I treasure nonetheless. I've painted a number of them which I'll display in future posts. I hope you enjoy their elegant, and often dramatic, beauty as much as I enjoy sculpting them with paint. For me, with each brushstroke, the ancient horse comes to life.This painting is available for purchase at: [Space]Untitled or for further information please email me at bobbi@bobbidunlop.com
