A trip to Saratoga inevitably provides an endless stream of inspiration for an equine artist, particularly when directly involved in Thoroughbred racing. After three days of taking photos at the beautiful track - followed by a visit to good old Woodbine on Sunday for the last jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown, the Breeders' Stakes, I'm itching to get at it. Unfortunately for me, I have some pressing paperwork and prior commitments that take precedence at the moment. I am dealing with some serious easel envy today, having just read fellow Saratoga-goer Kim Santini's blog post! It will be interesting to see how we both interpret our trip, as often we were standing side by side taking photos. Photographer Juliet Harrison was also with us, but we're going to have to wait to see her black and white work, as Juliet is off to Scotland now!
It was a fun day out at the barn today. Yesterday, for the first time, I put flymasks on the babies, knowing the game would be to see how long they lasted! I was amazed they left them on yesterday, though one of them got Gracie's off (from the opposite side of the fence, no less). Today, however...Clever's colt had his off before noon, and about an hour ago I saw Leo's was about to follow. It's all a game with those two boys!
Priority number one in the painting department at the moment will be the piece I'm working on for the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame silent auction, to be held the evening of the induction ceremony, August 27th. I've been asked to paint harness horse extraordinaire, Somebeachsomewhere, one of this year's inductees. So while my Saratoga paintings must wait a while, I'm looking forward to painting this great horse. My panel is prepped, and I've started sketching. I won't be posting it until it's done, but in between stages I'm sure I'll be able to get at some of those images floating around in my head following out trip. All I'll have to do is buy some Ben & Jerry's to bring the atmosphere back!
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