Long dry spell with no computer........

That was awful. And scary. Thankfully I did not have to replace my computer though.

During this time away, the "Le Cadeau Du Cheval" (The Horse Gift) mural project was completed and unveiled in Alberta at the Masters, my panel was number 101 and was of Almanzo Wilder's two Morgans, Prince and Lady. I'm proud to have been able to participate as a member of the creation team. The Mural is huge! It is now in the USA on tour. There is a book coming out about the mural which will have the art panel images and overall mural image.

I am making good progress on my commissioned painting of Old Fella, a dog that is becoming the national symbol for the rescue of stray dogs. There is a bronze monument to him and there will be a memorial service where my painting will be shown for the first time. It will then be honored by a police escort to the public institution where it will reside. I will post all those details when I am sure I have the info put together correctly. My thanks to Dr. Douglas Turmail and his wife, my dear friend Sandy, for selecting me to be the artist to paint Old Fella. I am proud to do it.

This is the month that a book I illustrated is coming out from Lyon Press called "Alive in Africa".

This is bittersweet, as the author, my friend William Wheeler Jr., passed away a few months ago before seeing this book, his life's dream, come to fruition. Bill and I worked together during the time I illustrated Robert Vavra's "Unicorn of Kilimanjaro". Bill was an adventurer, explorer and photographer and had accompanied Robert to Africa, one of many of Bill's trips there. He acquired my sketches 20 years ago and saved them for inclusion in his own book. The irony of it, waiting so long to publish this book and not getting to see it or go to book signings.... I'm sad. But he did get to see the book's poster and draft and was filled with that excitement. For that I am grateful!

I am beginning to work on the oil sketches for a big painting of Chincoteague Ponies, two paintings actually, which I was inspired to do by the exquisite photography of Lori Faith Merritt, a kindred soul. Bless her for allowing me the privilege of creating art from her gift of the spirit. I hope to get to do some art for her book she will do, too. This art shown today is a study of two Chincoteague ponies that will probably be part of the herd in my bigger art