Maggie's Day (NYC Carriage Horse) 6x6 Inches, Acrylic

$100 & $10 S&H

I'll admit to being a bit of a spoilsport about stuff like this, but even though I desperately wanted to go for a carriage ride in Central Park, I insisted on picking a driver who was kind to his horse.  You see them shoving and yanking the horses into a parking line - never patting them, never talking to them, never making eye contact.  Yeah, that's right, I said eye contact.  Ever since I was a child I sort of blurred the lines between people and animals - and the term 'beasts of burden' just makes me cringe.  I see that we need animals to help us with things - but it doesn't kill us to be kind or grateful that their lives are subject to our will.  OoooooooK!  Getting off the soap box!

I loved the design of this, and the straps were something I didn't notice until I started painting.  I actually eliminated a couple of straps and checks - really - do we need to tie their heads in 5 ways?  But this is Maggie, and her driver was caring and kind to her. Just why there was this pouffy thing on her head I don't know, but it did catch your eyes!

LIVE from the Big Apple

Sometimes you have to paint and sometimes you have to step off the train and just live.  So lucky me got to spend a few days in NYC this week.  As a member of the Providence Art Club we have a reciprocal arrangement with Salmagundi Club and the National Arts Club in NYC.  Of course did I have my current membership card with me?  No!  But a little phone call to the PAC, and all was well.  I took my husband, left and his business associate and all around nice guy, Dave Olive.  Here we are in the lavishly decorated club on Gramercy Park, after lunch.  I was actually asked for my card, my contact person at the Art Club, AND a photo ID.  Then was warned not to wander and not to 'touch anything'.  :)  The place is protected like Fort Knox.  Robert Henri and Fredrick Remmington were founding members, and they have a LOT of real-deal historic art in there.  And, no, I did not touch anything.  Yes, I took my own photo in the Ladies' Room - hey, the light was good - for Facebook.  

And then we headed off to the Red Dot Show I saw highlighted in the American Art Collector Magazine that I opened on my way to New York - there were 5 HUGE shows here this week.  I couldn't have hit it better if I tried.  Here's a couple of bad photos of some cool art I saw there:

Art of Anne H. Neilson

Bad photo of Robert Langford's work.  I actually was lucky enough to meet these two artists and they were not only really nice people,  but Anne gave me a book that she was inspired by, AND she is from Charlotte, NC, and knows my friend Kelley Sanford!

Then, across the street from Red Dot, while we were waiting for a cab to whisk us away to the Armory Show, we saw a shop with Dave's name on it.  Had to take a photo....

I have more photos but I just tried to upload them, but got a message that I am "out of space" in Picassa, and I need to purchase more space.  Which is strange because I didn't even KNOW I was storing anything in Picassa, and have no idea how to remove stuff from it!  Oh, well, hopefully more tomorrow! Stay tuned!