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I painted this one last night, inspired by the wicked winds we've been experiencing here in Northern Colorado. My horses can't seem to stand still in wind, they chase it up and down the hill in their pasture, manes and tails flying, snorting, kicking, bucking, and yes, as horses will do...farting. (They like to make a little wind of their own!)

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A little sparrowhawk found refuge from the blowing snow this afternoon on my porch. She stayed there for a couple of hours, flying away when I came too close to the window to try and take her picture, but then returning to shelter. I wondered why this beautiful kestrel had come to visit today. Normally I would have been at work, but came home early because of the blizzard-like conditions. I looked up sparrowhawk totems to see what message their might be in her visitation.

According to Morningstar, "Awareness that opportunities that seem small on the surface have the potential for great growth and expansion over time. This Hawk helps us to see through to the heart of events and synchronicities that are trying to lead us to our greater goals and higher good. So often we ignore the smaller things in life because we can't see how they could possibly be of much use to us or help us to resolve a problem. Yet when we soar high above to see where they fit in the larger scheme of things, we see how they are a jumping off point that if it were not presented to us and pursued, we could not reach that we are truly seeking."

Seeing the sparrowhawk inspired me to try painting one. This colorful kestrel is a bit more vibrant on my canvas than what you might find in the field!

Back east, it is the Robin that is heralded as the harbinger of Spring. Out here in the mid-west and west, it is the Meadowlark's song, rising up from a newly greening field, that foretells the warmer weather of Spring.

I heard my first Meadowlark of the season on Monday morning as I was out doing my barn chores. Feeling a bit apprehensive about the surgery I had scheduled to be done later in the morning, the sweet song of the Meadowlark filled me with good cheer and positive thoughts.

My surgery was successful, and now I'm home recuperating. Not quite up to standing at my easel to do a large painting, I'm having fun painting small studies.

The first in a series of small paintings depicting the barns of Wallowa County, Oregon. This barn is on the road up to the Fergie ski area.

I'm working on this painting today - a 30x30 Oil of my friend Janet's Norwegian Fjord mare, Helga. According to Wikipedia, "The Fjord horse has its own unique conformation, which is a blend of draft horse muscling and bone, with smaller size and greater agility. It has a strong, arched neck, good feet, and a compact, muscular body. Despite its small size, it is fully capable of carrying an adult human and pulling heavy loads. The hair coat is smooth and shiny in summer, but longer and furry in winter. The mane is long, thick, and heavy, but is usually clipped to between five to ten centimeters (two to four inches) so that it stands straight up, making grooming easier and accentuating the horse's strong neck and full-length dorsal stripe. There is some "feathering" on the legs."

The raven is an intelligent, clever and mystical animal. People who have an affinity for Raven tend to be peace loving, idealistic and charming. They long for harmony in the community and must stay away from uncertainty and inconsistency.

In this painting, the squares represent the Number Four. The number is alluring to the inquisitive Raven, who contemplates its mathematic, scientific, theological, cultural and historical significance.

There are eight squares in this composition. Can you find them all?

My trip to Oregon to visit my daughter and grandkids was wonderful. Aside from almost missing my plane out of Denver, the flight into Boise and then the four hour drive to Enterprise was uneventful. Since I was flying in a turboprop we flew at a lower elevation than the big birds, so I could really see the lay of the land on our route. We mostly flew over what looked like badlands, rolling hills with deep ravines and no vegetation to speak of. Recent snows coated northwest slopes with white and the southeast sides were brown. Made for some lovely abstract patterns! The drive from Boise to La Grand is through the steppes of northeastern Oregon – again, rolling hills and hardly and trees, except for ones that take hold in creek (pronounced “crik” in those parts) and river beds.

It was dark once I turned northeast out of La Grande toward Enterprise. It wasn't long before I started climbing up on Rout 82, which is part of the Hell's Canyon Scenic Byway. Even though it was cold, I drove with the window opened enough to let in the lovely scent of pine trees. Enterprise is a tiny remote mountain town with a population of around 1800. It is one of several small communities surrounded by an incredible natural beauty as diverse as the individuals that make it home. According to the Wallowa Chamber of Commerce, “From world-class bronze foundries to exceptional hay and beef, Wallowa County is everything that defines The American Spirit at its best.

“Our communities have double the states average of small business entrepreneurs, so you'll find that unique products and services are the norm. Notably missing from the area are the big-box names so dominant throughout the rest of the country. This is due in part to market forces, but it probably has more to do with the fact that knowing and supporting one's neighbor, a hallmark of small-town life, is something we consciously practice and prefer.”

More about the trip later...

I "finished" this painting last night. Now it gets to hang on the wall in my studio and "cure." No, I'm not waiting for the paint to dry, although it will need to set up a bit before I can make any changes. But the real reason for it to cure on the wall is to give me time to look at it objectively. You see, when a painting is on my easel I have a kind of love-hate relationship with it. There are parts I love. There are parts I hate. After a few days, or weeks, I begin to lose my subjectivity, and can look again and see what is working and what is not. It is not all that uncommon that when I put the piece back on my easel, the parts I "hated" turn out to be the parts that are working the best, that give the painting its character. And sometimes the parts I loved turn out to be the parts that need changing. Strange thing, this creativity.

While working on this painting last night I came up with the title - "Connected." I'm hoping to have this finished in time to put in the "New Beginnings" show at the Collective Gallery in Fort Collins, Colorado in April. In this painting I'm trying to use the same technique that I've been using with the Totem series - but with the suggestion of a landscape, since I want to show the mare and foal connected not only to each other, but to their surroundings.Both the mare and foal are aware of the viewer, and so the connection goes beyond their world and enters ours, as we enter theirs.