An Invitation to Dubai!

Just after this past Christmas, I was contacted by a company in Dubai about an art auction and exhibition to take place in conjunction with the 2007 Dubai World Cup. Of the artists contacted, 11 were chosen and commissioned to paint one of the past winners of this prestigious race. My assignment was 1998 winner Silver Charm, one of my favourite racehorses in his day.

The timeline was short -- they wanted the paintings by the end of January! Anyone who knows anything about oil painting knows that in itself is a huge challenge. The other challenge was the size. The paintings needed to be large, and the 30 x 40" canvas I opted for was toward the small end of their suggested sizes. I set to work, and managed to get the painting done. A deadline is a great motivator!

I won't bore you with the ordeal of shipping -- another challenge with the short timeline. The important thing is the Silver Charm painting (and two others they requested for the exhibition) made it safely over to Dubai. The paintings of the World Cup winners were photographed for a limited edition book that would commemorate these past winners.

A couple of weeks ago the Art Connection emailed the North American artists with the news that the Dubai Racing Club was going to be issuing invitations to us to attend the art exhibition and the World Cup! Needless to say, we were all stunned by their generous offer. The best news is we were all able to accept. All of us are also members of the Equine Art Guild so it is quite exciting to have an EAG contingent travelling to Dubai for an art show!

Be sure to check out these other North American artists! Tom Pauly painted Cigar(1996), Rebekah Creech painted Captain Steve(2001), and Ginger Lowry, Almutawakel (1999). The remaining artists are from overseas, and it looks as if we are a truly International group.

Above you'll see the painting -- Silver Charm and Swain battling it out. Naturally we're all hoping for a successful event, but regardless, we're all honoured to be given this wonderful opportunity.

On another note, the latest Equine Art Guild online show, The Artist's Muse, is now live! Don't miss this incredible collection of artwork, and read the stories about the horses that have inspired us. Monster and her mom are there, and in good company!!