Blue Bison and Upcoming Events

Blue Bison              36x36 oil      

• FOR LATEST INFO, Follow me on Facebook: (Virginia Pedro Vaughan) and Instagram: (vvaughan8 )

     

SHOWS AND WORKSHOPS

SHOWS

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• Nov. 29, 2015  West Elm Austin. A "Pop-Up" Studio 12-4. Bring your pet pics and I'll sketch on the spot!
• Dec. 5, 2015 Open "Remote" Studios at the NEW Bradford Cowork, next to Joel's, Austin, TX.  With artist friends, Robin Cheers and Bruce Bingham. 11-6 demos. Reception from 6-8
• Dec. 12, 2015, Saturday. Living Waters Fly Fishing, Annual Christmas Party in Round Rock, TX. FISHING and Wildlife art! And Giveaways from LW
• JANUARY 22-23 2016- V...."Wildlife Preview". Be the first to see my newest works. Joel's and Bradford Cowork. Friday, Jan. 22 is the opening reception. Saturday is a STUDIO day. I will be painting demos and live dog sketches, if you bring in your "best friend" or a photo, I can sketch them for a small fee.
• Feb. 11-14, 2016 Southeastern Wildlife Exposition, Charleston, SC
• March 18-May 9, 2016 Cowgirl Up! Wickenburg, AZ                                                                  Fri., March 19 Miniatures Sale                                                                                                Sat., March 20  Bash n' Bid Sale                                                                                                     Sun., March 21 Quick Draw
• May 28, 29, 30 , Memorial Day Weekend Phippen Museum Western Art Show, Prescott, AZ 

WORKSHOPS

• WORKSHOPS on the TEXAS GULF COAST     April or May or BOTH. Info soon!!                    email V....  for info
• WORKSHOP IN THE MOUNTAINS                                                                                           Features Sunrises, sunsetrs, moonrises, moonsets and live ranch-life sketching. In the south San Juan Wilderness Area...along the Conejos River and 70 miles from Taos, NM.                  July 17-21, 2016. email V....  for info

                

1 Ballad: Chicken Chair

Detail: "Chicken Chair", from "The Rest"__48 x 36 oil for 

Ballad of the Farm: Then, Now. Tomorrow

The image above is a SMALL PART of my painting for a special museum event.
I call this part of the painting "Chicken Chair",
Over the next few days and weeks I will unveil the whole work, and tell of my inspiration.
My instructions from the curator were to "break out of my box", and explore the theme.
If you know my work, do you see anything "out of the box", here?

SO...I have been invited to "sing" part of a ballad!!

"Ballad of the Farm: Then. Now. Tomorrow." is a unique exhibit of artworks 

Presented by Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Art, with funding from NEA (National Endowment for the Arts),  MAAA, (Mid-America Arts Alliance), and others. 

The opening reception is Saturday, May 23, 2015. See the BROCHURE

Eleven artists have interpreted historic photos from family farms of long ago.

I think I am the only artist from Texas! 

I was given this opportunity last October, along with

 HUNDREDS of amazing historic photos to inspire me. 

My blog will take you along on my latest journey on the land!

Lets go!!

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UPCOMING FOR V....

Phippen Museum Western Art Show___Prescott, AZ___May 23-25

Ballad of the Farm: Then. Now. Tomorrow__OPENING__David City, NE__May 23

This event is a VERY SPECIAL exhibit, that I have put my heart into since October, 2014. I will have a month of TARGETED blog posts about this topic, and "unveil" my special painting very soon. Visit Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Art for more, and PLEASE follow my journey...soon!

After the Soiree

After the Soiree        8x16 oil on linen          FOR SEWE

Southeastern Wildlife Exposition is next week! Feb 13-15 in Charleston, SC. 

It has long been one of my very favorite events all year! So for the next few days I will post a few new works painted especially for this show.

To Sea

To Sea                       16x12 oil for SEWE

Do you follow me on Instagram? @vvaughan8

If you do, then you saw this already....I wish Instagram did not make EVERYTHING square!

I posted the "start" of mr. seagull the other day...went home and finished the background but hated it, so I "knifed it off" and slashed in...THIS....

I kinda like!

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A story today: I got a call from "Rex". A fine older gentleman who I befriended at my mom's nursing home. It has been MANY MONTHS since I went back. I have WANTED to go see old friends there, but was fearing the sadness, so kept avoiding it. Then REX called. He wanted me to come see some new artwork in his room....It was a GREAT excuse to FINALLY go back. So I bought a big bag of birdseed and drove over!

We had a very nice visit, and Rex had collected a coffee can full of Padre Island beach sand that he had saved for me all this time! He wanted me to put it at the bird feeders for the birds! That made this a PERFECT DAY to post this new Birdseed Project Painting!!! 
Also, Rex wants to sell some of his prized western art collection. Has anyone heard of Don Bowlin and David A. Carver?

Young Artist

G....All About the Blue__10 x 8 Watercolor Pencil__$150

He is the COOLEST kid in art class! Every teacher enjoys a student that contributes... "contributes" can mean a lot of things! In this case, it's all good, because this guy, G.B. makes 2nd period art a fun class. He is not too proud to ask a tough question or to model for the art teacher! AND, he was more than willing to pose with the artwork...though I couldn't get him to smile, and that's my favorite part about G....!

 I was teaching about highlights and shadows on mid-toned paper, and G volunteered to be my subject. My sketch is "all about the blue" light coming through our windows and creating the blue highlights on his face.

When this one sells, I promised my model that he gets half for his college fund, so, I hope someone will buy it for G....!

 

 

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Below is a fun tee shirt that is only available for a couple more days!

Tee Shirt A Day is offering this one till Wednesday.

Read why this is PERSONAL for me!

ORDER a shirt from

http://www.shirtaday.com/shirt/missing-elderly/2118

26-Little Tri Color Heron

Little Tricolor Heron__8x6 oil on linen panel

#26 in my Bird Seed Project

I place my title at the mercy of my real birding friends....If I had planned ahead, I would have asked Adele, Joe or Lynn to ID this bird for me! I painted it from a photo I took last year at the wildlife refuge in South Carolina....My choices were a Little Blue Heron or a Tri-Color Heron...Because of the white on this one, I am thinking it is a YOUNG Little Blue Heron...help?

Of course, if you tell me it is something all together different, I will simply claim that I painted it poorly!...So, I am covered.

Actual Size

Actual Size___2.5 x 2.5 inches_oil on tiny canvas__$60 includes a tiny wooden easel

Yes, the flower is painted at actual size! I worked from a real little Columbine growing beside our place in Colorado...God Bless Colorado, tonight...

This is the state flower of Colorado, and July is the time to see them.  I painted a couple of these on tiny canvases that come with tiny easels. They are little flower gems! Let me know if you want one!

Sorry I did not get the workshop rolling this year, but next July I will teach in this part of Colorado. I have some great locations lined up for artists who like to paint outdoors. You can let me know if you are interested and I will put you in the list and send the info to you as soon as I finalize things next week...

Here are some locations for a few of my workshops. email me if you want more info on any of these...

And here is a link to a SPECIAL ONE.

I can't wait to see the water go down the drain BACKWARDS there!

July-August ___weekly__Austin___ "Chocolates and Chiaroscuro" 

Sept. 15, 2012___Salado TX

2013___New York City, Colorado, Massachusetts, Michigan, Pennsylvania...

2014___February 23-March 1___New Zealand

**BE SURE to tell me if you sign up! I like to send things to my students to get them ready, keep them "seeing", and thinking, and talking about it!

Pawnee Morning Star Ritual

Cold Crescent__11x14 oil on linen___available at Act I Gallery, Taos, NM next week.

A few days ago I posted a study I did on my Amtrak trip of The Morning star. An artist buddy quickly wrote to me about The Morning Star ceremony of the Pawnee Indians -a ritual sacrifice of a young girl in the spring. It's a shame that such a beautiful phenomena is associated with such a terrible ritual. I prefer the Bible reference to "The Bright and Morning Star" as a special name/description for Jesus.
Michael Ome Untiedt , a great artist and friend told me all about it and sent me some info. He also mentioned that there is a place in Ireland where there is evidence that their ancient peoples followed the movement of Venus, (actually a planet and NOT a star). They followed its very course in the solar system, and studies indicate that they had to keep track of this for some 400 years, handing down their observations to the next generation without the benefit of WRITING...So fascinating that I caught myself "wikipedia-ing" for part of my morning and had to hustle myself back to the Plains....

I decided today to make a larger version of the Amtrak study, and altered it a bit...can you tell how???

My workshop in Rockport this weekend has been postponed. They are expecting BAD WINTER WEATHER there for the next day or two. We are pushing it forward to next week, so NOW YOU CAN plan to come! It might be Monday, Feb 7...maybe Friday Feb 11. I will know the new date on Thursday.

PLEASE e-mail me if you are interested...maybe you can caravan with those of us going down from the Austin area. vvaughan8@yahoo.com

Moonset West of Rugby, ND

Moonset West of Rugby, ND__6x8 oil on linen panel___for Passing America: the Great Plains

This leg of my journey across the plains doing "drive-by" paintings, was chosen so that I could find some SERIOUS WINTER. ...and wanting to find snow, but not endanger my driver! I chose well! Minnesota to Montana in mid-January is a guaranty for snowy landscapes. A few weeks ago, it had been -30 in these parts, so I was blessed to have much milder weather. It was 7 in this part of North Dakota this day!

I also chose this PARTICULAR winter day because of the moon phase and the Amtrak schedule. Whether traveling east to west or west to east, the MN to MT Empire Builder route travels half the time in the dark. My mission is to paint on the move, so I need LIGHT to see. I chose a day when the moon would be full, and I would have opportunity to see reflected light off the snow....After a night spent sketching put the window from my bed in the sleeper car, with my buddy, Rhonda on the top bunk, we were gifted with a beautiful and brief moonset peaking through the clouds.

We passed many little farms at night. I viewed them all night long....sometimes the train would stop near their towns, other times we would pass on by...more about that tomorrow

***Oh, yes!!! About that moonset from the train! All night long I monitored the full moon. I sketched it's reflection on ponds (...I THINK they were ponds!), noted the deep shadows on the snow, and watched it track across the sky....THEN I LOST IT!!!...at about 6 am I noticed it was "gone", and I did not think it was due to clouds, but rather the direction we traveled! The train veered a little bit and I assumed the moon was right in front of us... Thinking I wouldn't see it again, I settled in to do other things when Rhonda came runing through the train, leaving her breakfast, to tell me she spotted it going down! THAT IS WHY I was able to paint this one!!! THANK YOU, RHONDA!!! (And hey....running down a narrow aisle of a moving train ain't easy!)