It was A Dark and Creepy Night….

Go Away!

We love it when we spot an owl. Seeing two was a special treat late one  afternoon, trail riding in a wooded area of the ranch. We always carry our cameras with us on our saddles, but these two were long gone before we had a chance to capture them. This is a big painting  in oil that I have started that reminds me of that day. If we had been lucky enough to get that shot, the depth of field would have been shallow and the image pretty much out of focus and underexposed. I will never forget the eyes, though.

Cows

This has been the most fun painting to work on. It is painted with oil and I feel like I finally have the feel of it and I really love it….I thought watercolor would always be my first choice, but for now I am hooked on the richness of oil…….Besides these beautiful bovines, my inspiration comes from Andrew and Jamie Wyeth. My artist friends call me Dandrew and that is a compliment. My models for this painting belong to my neighbors. You can see how fat and sassy they are. They are contented cows, for sure…..Most of my paintings have been reproduced as Giclees by the finest photographic lab in the country and I just posted them all for sale on Etsy.com. This painting will be available in a limited edition (less than fifty) and will be reproduced on archival quality Artist’ stock material. Hand signed by Dana Spring Parish.

Debajo de Mismo Luna

I never fully understood what the true meaning of this sentence in Spanish was until I was separated from my family for too long of a period to be able to cope with it. We lost our precious brother, Russell  and are grieving still….but we are all under the same moon and that gives me peace. I painted this little tribute dedicated to that thought today…..

Bunny and Poppies

Here is the finished painting……..What do you think?

Little Bunny

I love bunnies!!!! The cottontails and jackrabbits run around the fields and are so much fun to see, but I worry about all the predators that they face. I just started this sketch of a bunny with pencils, ink and pastels. I may add some flowers before I frame it and hang it safely on my wall to enjoy forever in my home….

The Adventures of Cactus Jack & Mesquite Joe

Part One of a series….

 Party hats, clowns  and streamers announced the arrival of these two precocious “Gifts” that came to celebrate Tom’s birthday on January 11, 2009. Everyone was excited to meet the new critters. The more mouths to feed means the more trips into the feed room for me and they all know that I cannot resist the meows, barks,quacks,oinks,moos,baas, nickers and neighs…..so EVERYBODY gets fed several times a day  so that nobody has hurt feelings or an empty tummy. It may sound like a hassle, but actually last week-end Tom and I had a fun time tracking down these two studly steers. We were on our way out to go for a training run for an upcoming 5K race and decided to feed the menagerie first….. Usually it would be here a moo, there a moo everywhere a moo moo, but the absence of this greeting was noted with alarm and then we realized that our two blonde bombshells were not begging at the fence line as usual…. .Our run was put on hold while we loaded our pockets with cattle cubes and grabbed our cell phones heading off in separate directions to track down our renegade steers….. This story will attempt to share all of the many possible adventures that they encountered during their traipse  across 1,000 acres of South Texas ranch land. Just to give you a preview of what they may have encountered, first there is a beautiful herd of Beef Master cattle along the way, a herd of Longhorn heifers just a fence-line away and last but not least…..lush green grass on the other side of the fence.

The grass is ALWAYS greener......

Painted Bunting

 

acrylic painting 8X10 inches

Painted Bunting finally finished!!!!!!

2008 Sacred Heart Wine Cheese & Art Festival

BJ Sonia and Dana

In January of 2008 the 3rd annual Wine Cheese and Art Festival was held at the Wilson County Show Barn in Floresville. Tom and I made some new friends  and it was great to talk to the people who bid on the artwork that we donated to the auction and see that they will really cherish their paintings especially because the proceeds are going to such a great cause. One darling Priest bought my “Golden Eagle” giclee to hang in the halls of the parochial school where he teaches in honor of their  team “The Eagles”. I was honored to sign it for him as well as other paintings bought by super nice people that probably will not just cram their paintings into a closet……One of the greatest compliments I received was from a really cool young gentleman named Sammy who told me not to ever worry about anyone else’s opinion about the value of my art because some people do not recognize a Rolex when they see it. Our friend Sandy who owns Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard made reference to Andrew Wyeth in the same sentence as her  admiration of my art. This beautiful woman is an incredibly artist  and I can only dream of being able to take lessons from her at some point in our lives…..The truth is, actually…….that, Tom and my precious Mamacita Reet LOVE my art and for that reason, I am at peace with it all.

 

Baby Peyton Pawlik

Longhorns And Bluebonnets

I just picked up an incredible Giclee of my painting…… I did not have to worry about the care and consideration of my cherished paintings! I could hardly tell the original artwork from the reproductions. I can go to HEB and get copies of snapshots, but this process is just incredible!!! The print is done on the same paper that I use for my originals and it is even more archival than most surfaces that artists use. I can put my originals side by side and they are so comparable it is awesome. it is not expensive and I love being able to share my artwork with my friends and family without giving up my originals……I did some price shopping and also checked out some mediocre labs and this is what 

Giclee of Longhorns And Bluebonnets

I found out….

 

ALAMO PHOTO LABS,INC in San Antonio,Texas ROCKS!!!!!!!!!

3814 Broadway

San Antonio, Texas 78209   210 828-9079

I Survived The Hurricane

Going Out On A Limb

Just a tiny little Falcon, but he knows when the weather is threatening. It doesn’t matter if you are sitting on a delicate branch or a sturdy tree, if you are in the path of destruction “no importa nada”. We are thankful for today and just knowing that it could have been much worse in the wake of the recent tornadoes, we need to appreciate that we did not lose more lives and pray that everyone remains safe in the aftermath…….