Painting horses from life

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Painting outdoors can be challenging. Painting horses from life adds another level to that. Unlike a human model, "posing" a horse with the expectation of them staying in that position for 20 minutes is not possible. Plus, the light is changing every seven minutes. My goal in painting horses from life is to capture the essence of the horse, the feel of light, and be as anatomically correct as I can get. There is nothing more invigorating than painting from life, and living in the moment is where horses live. If I can connect to that horse and make a statement with paint, I can remember that and take it into the studio when I work on commissions and don't have access to a live model.
When I approach a commission I consider the feel of the horse, within the context of light and the surrounding landscape. Bringing the personality, spirit, and essence of the horse to life is my goal. It has been an honor to paint each horse that I have, because the final spark in the chain of inspiration is connecting with the viewer.