"His Flock"      Casein on board      12 x 12"  ©2011

Our fields are green The horses feed most of the day in the far pastures and I find it hard to remind myself that it is winter!! The days have been warmer than usual and Nellie have been able to take walks with no need for her to get duded up in her barn coat or sweatshirt. We will enjoy the mild weather has long as Mother Nature cares to bless with this reprieve from winter's cold.

A new casein, titled "His Flock", is up on my website and I am busy now on a few small oils on copper. The casein, pictured above, was inspired by a man I saw a few years ago at a farming event we had attended here locally, and I have been wanting to paint him. But what was he looking at so intently? So I used artistic license and painted in his "flock"......a small flock it might be, but still important to him....a bit like how I feel our Lord feels about us all....his flock. So I would say that this painting is a metaphorical depiction of my beliefs.

This year is coming to a close. I am taking some time to rethink my goals for the  new year [years?] ahead. There will be a few changes in my life, I know....but that being said.....I am looking at my "flock" and pondering life. Waxing poetic I retired to the studio.....with Nellie!

"Pay To Play Horses -Carousel"  Oil   6 x 6"  ©2011

This small oil painting on copper substrate and titled  "Pay To Play Horses - Carousel" is available on my website. I think I have lost track of new works done ....and realized that I actually had not put them up on my website or told anyone about them. Trying to play catch up today on things that need doing!! The next thing on my to-do list is frame some work that needs to be done!! I need longer days!!
And I swear I will paint tomorrow!!! or else.................

Comes Winter

Nell the snow bunny...       ©Kathi Peters  2011

Snow came last week and covered the farm with a soft white blanket ,brightening our days. Nell donned her new barn coat and burrowed in the white, gone to ground in pursuit of moles or other varmint.Thanksgiving day was shared with our children and family. Fall is slipping into winter as it often does.

Our outside greens are up.

And then on Saturday our mail brought a pleasant surprise......the Fall issue of StrokeSmart magazine arrived and it is sporting my face on the cover!! It actually is my self-portrait that I did...A study of my face in casein.StrokeSmart magazine is put out by the National Stroke Association  .In 2009 I donated a portion of all sales in my solo art show  "Finding My Voice", held at Gallery B in Lexington,KY. , to the National Stroke Association.had been contacted by a freelance written for StrokeSmart about doing an article about me, my art and my recovery after a ischemic stroke in 2006. I never thought it would be such a big article....and never thought I would make the cover!! Imagine my surprise to see my face
on the cover!!! I try to do a new self-portrait every year.....and they used my 2009 painting! Lisa Pogue,the writer, did a lovely job capusclating my stroke and personal approach to recovery.Thank you Lisa and StrokeSmart!!



My mug.....my self-portrait  ©kathi peters.2009

Article featured two paintings that are now with Gallery B.

Maybe next my painting will make the cover of The  Rolling Stone!!!!

Paintings Of Kentucky Done In Maine



"Foal From The Farm"       Casein     5 x 5"

Winter came early.With leaves still left on the deciduous trees a heavy wet winter storm covered the farm here in Maine with a taste of what is coming in the next few weeks.That was on Saturday night.This Monday most of our snow is gone...the grass is green or ice covered.Time to get ready for the hours of studio time that winter affords me. Most of today I have been busy packing done works away and making room for new works to come.....and getting rid of some old work too. A cleansing of sorts. Maybe it is also the nesting syndrome?

One of the new works done is a small gem...5 x 5".... and is offered in a gold wooden frame. "Foal From The Farm" is one of Cobra Farm of Lexington, KY's foals....all cozy in a nest of sorts it seems. And then I also did a small oil on copper of the wonderful barn at the Red Mile race track in Lexington,KY. This is a 8 x 6"  and is also offered framed and shipped for free within the USA . "The Barn At Red Mile" is on my website.

Now back to rearranging the studio.....right after taking a fresh air break with Nellie.I am going to walk the dog!!

Immortalizing The Chippie



"Little Chippie"     Casein       6 x 6"

Nellie and I have a certain chipmunk who likes to chatter at us when we are working in our garden. He darts in and out of the rock wall that surrounds the garden, then he is up the tree and throwing crab-apples down. Nellie has declared an out and out war with said chippie.I chose to paint him. There is a gray squirrel family that lives in our woods too...they are raiding our bird feeders. Nellie is waring with the squirrels too. I will do a painting of the squirrels. But for now the small casein painting of "The Chippie" is up on my website and available.

I also painted a small landscape of an old barn that is down the road from us.This barn was shelter for an old appaloosa horse and a small mismatched herd of cows.I drive by this barn a lot and always wanted to paint it.....so I did.This 6 x 8" oil is also on my website and offered frmaed and ready to hang.

"The Shade Barn"  Oil      6 x 8"

Les and I have been busy painting the house,.....still. We can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I have had a bit of time in my studio, but not enough to get into anything big or complicated. Soon I will be able to......I can't wait!

Dressage, Oil Paint and Cats Hunting

"Tempi Changes"   oil on board       6 x 6" 

A beautiful day out today in our part of Maine......I sit with the door open,the sun spilled in and the air is filled with the sound of the wind blowing through the defrocked trees, stripped of their fall color, the rustling leaves blow across the lawn and into my gardens. I want to head out to plein air paint today. It is too beautiful a day to stay in.

I just did this small 6 x 6" oil of a dressage scene shown above. I have explored before. I often do this, re-explore a previous work, tweak it, change colors, composition...my approach. This small painting will be available on my website in the Small Works section.

While was outside this morning our Mittens went hunting.She has spent most of the morning stalking a chipmunk.....I am doing a small casein of this chippie.....Mittens is determined that she will be having a chipmunk dinner soon. I will immortalize him for prosperity.

But for the time being...the chipmunk runs around storing food for winter, Mittens waits for the perfect meal [in her eyes] and I am going out to paint or sketch.....out into the sun!

Focused Friesian Done

"Focused Friesian"      Mixed Media                 12 x 12"         copyright 2011

I am enjoying working on Ampersand clayboard......a very interesting substrate to work on. This painting is actually a drawing that grew into a painting. I like the small note of color in this very graphically designed depiction of this handsome mare. This mare from Tanbark Acres Farm has been the subject of my work before. And hopefully again.........
It is available on my website.

Lift Off

"Lift Off"                              8 x 13"                           wateroolor

This watercolor was finished earlier this week.......it is available on my website.

After this watercolor painting, I am putting away my watercolors for a bit and getting back into my caseins. It has been a hard week for us here at Cob Cottage ...........but more about that later.

Equestrian Fine Art Exhibit And Auction

With many stunning pieces of art ,this exhibit is a MUST SEE if you are in the Saugerties,NY area next Friday, 10th of September! My painting "Riding With" was juried into this show and is available for purchase AND you can bid on line too. Check it out at http://www.hitsshows.com/

Three Bigger Biggers As A Casein Work In Progress

A 30 x 40" canvas

How do I apply my paint?

Well, if it is casein... then this is sort of how I approach a painting. Sometimes I do start with a colored ground, but I am just as likely to start out with a plain old gessoed canvas........ as white as driven snow! I took this photo that I am working with, a few years ago, of horses up at Acadia at Wildwood Stables. A pair and a spare. You can see the photo sitting on the easel, the canvas image is sketched out in charcoal and I have gone in with Payne's Gray and later with Purple to establish my darkest of darks. [ Bare with me now. I am not a teacher...so my explanations might not be the best! ]

My palette,sort of empty at this point,but this is how I set up.

Then I go with the old middle tone color that I will build on as I go on painting.I often start out my work with Paynes Gray,Terra Verte and Golden Ochre,and Purple.........I do...Don't ask me why....I just do?!! I like to establish my shadows and light's direction from the get go.That helps pull the painting together later. Casein has the most wonderful colors I feel....all earthy and with a lovely matte finish.

A cropped version of the painting.

Design, Design, Design!! I feel the MOST IMPORTANT part of a painting is DESIGN! If the design is bad,...'the composition',... then the entire painting won't work. I cropped the painting in progress here and I think this crop would work as a painting on it's own. In other words...I am happy with my design. So I proceed............

It is coming along here.

The darkest shadows and  the light color notes are in.

Now I leave it alone for 24 hours, to let the casein base colors dry..and I take time to walk the dogs, clean the stalls, feed the man and sleep. Then I will be back at it when I have time.  Hopefully later today.

My Work In New Exhibit & I've Gone To The Dogs

"Riding With"   casein on paper    9 x 12"

HITS, Inc. and Fletcher Gallery are announcing that after several months of public display throughout the  Woodstock community, the HITS-on-the-Hudson Equestrian Art Exhibition will now be on display for a month-long gallery show at Fletcher Gallery located at 40 Mill Hill Road in Woodstock, New York. My casein painting "Riding With" is part of this stellar exhibit.

The HITS-on-the-Hudson Equestrian Art Exhibition features 59 equestrian-themed works of art in various mediums, including painting, photography, and sculpture that will be auctioned in September to raise money for FAMILY of Woodstock, Inc. and the participating artists. The collection is a mix of both existing and newly commissioned pieces created by local and national artists, as well as several estate and period pieces which have been curated by Tom Fletcher specifically for this event.
At the conclusion of the August gallery show, the collection will move to the HITS-on-the-Hudson show grounds in Saugerties where it will be on display for a two-week preview leading up to the grand finale – the Auction on Friday, September 10 that will raise money for FAMILY of Woodstock, Inc. and the participating artists. FAMILY will receive 50% of the proceeds from each piece auctioned, with the other 50% going to the artist. Friday night’s auction is a by-invitation-only event that will kick-off the festivities for the Pfizer Million Weekend at HITS, which will also include another Saugerties first – the $50,000 FEI World Cup Qualifier on Saturday, September 11, followed by the highly anticipated Pfizer $1 Million Grand Prix and John Fogerty live in concert on Sunday, September 12.. This is a grand affair and I am happy that even though I won't be there to enjoy it all...my artwork will be there representing me!

I will be home...doing my thing. Cleaning stalls and waking dogs!..AND painting! I have been working on several new oils on copper.One of the paintings is the two greyhounds below,who belong to an artist friend of mine. They are rescue boys and she loves they to pieces. I love their clean lines,full of grace and movement.But truth be known...those boys are naughty little devils!!

Starting an oil on copper painting

So I am heading down now to the studio...It is a good day for painting.....everyone is sleeping, [THE DOGS,THE AILING HUSBAND] the house is quiet. I am seizing the moment..

Art Installation!

Freeport Creative Arts and the Town of Freeport

Invite you!

"Experiencing Freeport, Maine,

Showing Our Town Through Art"

Art Installation Celebration!

Freeport Village Station
Main Street
Freeport, ME USA

Friday, September 4, 5:00PM to 6:30PM

Artwork by members of the Freeport Creative Arts

highlighting Freeport's history and natural beauty.

James Chute, Sebastian Meade, Becca Case,

Karen Pettengill, Kathi Peters, William Larkins,

Jennifer Moore, Kathleen Meade, Natalie Nye,

Petrea Noyes, and Alice Kirkpatrick.

Meet the artists, see the work!

Sponsored by an Artists In Maine Communities Grant from the Maine Arts Commission,

an independent state agency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts and partners – Town of Freeport, Freeport Square Gallery, LL Bean, Berenson Associates, Key Bank and Freeport Community Improvement

Refreshments by Dinner at Your Door.

Music by Not Too Shaap!

FMI: 207.865.1616

Reception sponsored by: Berenson Associates

Belted Cows

Two small works of Belted Galloway's will be added to my website. Above is "Belted Cow #1" and below is the second, appropriately titled "Belted Cow # 2." Done in casein on board, they are being framed in neat thick stressed white frames...ready to go! You can see them on my website in the Small Works Collection.

The weather holds fair on the farm...but they say a touch of fall is in the works for the end of the week. I, for one, will be busy working on a bigger Belted Cow casein in the studio.....but will be taking breaks and deadheaded and trimming back perennials in my gardens. I also want to get some use out of my new riding helmet. In a sense.....getting my life back!

Start Of A New Day Done - Really

Here is a close up of the subject of the finished casein "Start Of A New Day", 18 x 18" on canvas. I put the last brush strokes on it today. [ I promised myself that I did!!] And the rest of the day was spent trying to fix my router for my DSL. It seems to be working now. I will keep my fingers crossed.

I also have several sketches I have worked up for a couple of new paintings.

But I do want to get back to doing some more of my family images / mixed media work. Some of the work done so far can be seen on my website in the Figurative Collection. It is a stretch from doing equine art, but I am feeling the pull to get back to that. This work has me playing with acrylics and casein mixed with some collage thrown in for good measure.

In the meantime I will be getting my thoughts together about what is happening to me this year, artistically and career wise. Good things are happening.....but I still have a hard time getting all my "ducks in a row".......paddling like crazy under the water....but skimming along it seems on the top!!

Heh...I am still afloat!!! and that is great!

Thinking about Summer?

I am sitting in my studio putting off doing barn chores. The outside temperature reads 6 F.. It is much more comfortable here in the studio loft, with good music playing and the pups sleeping...but I know I need to get the chores done. They are saying we might get up to 20" inches of the white stuff starting the afternoon?? Our horses are way out in their fields digging through the snow for grass. It is as if they know that after tonight there won't be as easy a dig to find those few green blades buried under the heavy new snow.

The above watercolor "Heading To The Pull" reminds me of summertime.........a long way off it seems now. I love going to the Maine fairs ...with all the noise and commotion...the smells of dough boys and popcorn...of hot dogs cooking and of sweet candy floss. This painted scene is one that you could see at any fair. It is a framed and matted watercolor ...the image is about 9 x 14" ...and it is can be seen on my website too.

Now down to the barn I guess and get chores done before the storm hits...........

The Tree Line

Our pastures are surrounded by forest...spruce, pine, cedar and fir..and tamarack trees..and some hard wood too. But it is the tall spruce and pine that captures my muse ..tall like sentinels they stand protecting our farm. They dance and sway in the wind, are clothed in white robes when it snows...and the air smells of their sweetness on damp days.

This is one of two pen and ink I have done of the fortress around our farm. They are both sized at 8 x 9" and are on watercolor board. I love doing pen and ink. I used to do a lot of them, mostly landscapes ore figurative works...and am thinking I will do more in the future.

They will be on my website in my Sketches and Studies Collection.