Go Lexie Lou!

Lexie Lou ~ oil on linen.

I've been working on a few smaller studies these days, on various surfaces, just to keep things going in the studio while other things still keep me from spending a more solid chunk of time painting.  I have ideas and blog posts running through my head all the time...they'll eventually get out.

I'm not sure I ever posted this completed painting, for whatever reason.  This is a painting I did of 2014 Queen's Plate winner, the filly Lexie Lou.  Lexie missed most of last season because of an eye injury, and returned to the races last month.  Today she is back in action...in tough, running against her stablemate, Breeders' Cup Mile winner, Tepin. I'll be cheering for the underdog, Ontario-bred! Just a little bit of trivia - Lexie Lou is a half-sister to the mother of our homebred, Rachel (Relocate the Bank).

Cold and sunny day here in Southern Ontario - sounds like a day to spend in the studio, after doing the stalls, of course!

Rachel...cheering for her Aunt Lexie today?

When The Year Really Starts

The boys of winter?

New Year's never really seems to hold much meaning for me.  Okay, so I have to remember when I write the date that a year has passed (and I actually still write cheques, as well as keeping a couple of logs and journals for different things, so yes, I write the date often!). Otherwise, for the most part, one day blurs into the next this time of year. Get up, do horses, do more horses, hey, horses again, then a little break before I have to, yes, do horses once more.  I maybe sit down twice a day (not counting driving from one barn to the other), and hopefully eat a couple of times (though not necessarily sitting down!). Evenings are when I paint - not usually for long, but I've been doing a little bit most nights.

When the layups go back to the track, things finally slow down a little. It's that big trade-off, though -– horses leave, income plummets! It would be nice if people decided February was a good time to buy art or commission portraits, but it doesn't tend to work that way. I do have to take advantage of the time, though, and get caught up on, well, everything.  Painting, bookwork, farm maintenance, and so on.

The girls of winter!

We're almost at that time, now.  The layups will be going back very soon – the Woodbine backstretch opens mid-February.  I will be left with a very odd assortment this year.  I sent my one and only in-foal mare to another farm in November because I was supposed to be moving, and didn't want that stress on top of everything.  The move thing fell through (another story altogether!) and for now I have a stay of execution of sorts, but I'm not going to bring that mare back this close to her due date – the whole reason I sent her in November was so that she could be well-settled in her foaling environment.   I have last year's foal, now a yearling, and his mother, who is not in foal.  I have my "old" girl, Monster (officially sixteen!), and two off-track Thoroughbreds looking for new homes. Hopefully they will find homes soon, though that will leave things really sparse around here, until horses start coming back from the track, with one need or another.

Anyway...that's where things are at in my part of the world, right now! This means there should be more frequent updates around here.  I think one day on Facebook, I don't remember exactly where, but I committed to finishing one painting a month.  As the end of January is coming at me quickly right now, I guess I'd better make that happen! Stay tuned!

Happy New Year?

One of the WIPs spending time on the easel.

Them's The Breaks

Left-handed drawing of Briggi as a baby...she may look sweet!

I have often joked that when it comes to horses, I am more of a danger to myself on the ground than on board. It's not that I'm a terribly good rider, I just seem to have a certain degree of self-preservation that comes with riders as we get older, the cliché being, we don't bounce like we used to. It's not as if I avoid potential trouble – let's face it, I like to ride green OTTBs, not necessarily the most bomb-proof choice of mount in the world. The thing is, the ones I'm handling around the farm are younger and usually sillier than my riding horses, and coming off stall rest. Most of the time they are more of a danger to themselves than to me. But...as with anything, it just takes once to change that!

Selfie with glasses and cast?

It's been a month now, since Briggi Wild Child slammed me into the doorframe of her stall as she bolted in, catching my arm and fracturing (and dislocating) it in the process. That would be my right arm, of course. Can't write, can't draw or paint, can't do stalls – all  the things I do to make money. Can't ride. So, I'm paying someone to do my stalls, and paying someone to ride the princess. Now that part, at least, is not a bad thing – as much as I miss riding my mare, we will both benefit from the training she is getting right now. Financially, well, it hurts more than the arm! Naturally my truck needed $300 worth of maintenance, and my teeth more...please insert whiny face here.

 I'm still able to do quite a bit in the barn, and my poor parents have stepped up to help out (I'm trying to tell them it's like a free gym membership). Just for fun, I've been playing with drawing and painting with my left hand, and that's actually gone better than expected.  I'm even going to put some of the decent ones on my website to see if I might be able to sell some, and help pay for the growing pile of unexpected expenses. They'll be in the $25 range...just might be a few weeks before I can mail them out!

Left-handed Leo. Leo is bored, bored, bored, not being ridden!

So, here's your chance to own what I'm sure will be a valuable collector's item in the future, haha. If you'd like to commission the most affordable portrait you will ever have the opportunity to have me paint, drop me a line at lindashantz *at* gmail.com, or send me a message on my Facebook page!

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