Today’s 90-minute session began and ended with the blue halter, but also encompassed parts of the bridle, hardware on both and all of the horse to the right of the tack as color work continued.

I didn’t intend to spend a lot of time on this painting today as there were other things I should have been doing and there was half an hour or less of studio time left when I started.

But I popped in a Mannheim Steamroller Christmas CD and not only painted all through that (a 58-minute CD), but painted for another hour! Considering the fact that I’d already finished two small landscapes, that made today the best painting day this month.

Work began with the halter, which I painted using Cerulean Blue and Titanium White, with a little green mixture (Prussian Blue and Transparent Red Oxide) in the shadows.

In order to get the edges I wanted, I also painted the parts of the horse adjacent to the halter. The colors used on the horse were Burnt Umber, Transparent Red Oxide, Yellow Ochre, Titanium White and, in the deepest shadow areas, the same green mixture above.

The largest brushes I used today were a couple of old, beat up #2 rounds. Most of the work was completed using 20/0 and 10/0 sable rounds. I can’t say the work was time consuming because I was quite surprised to realize so much time had passed when I finished.

But I can say the work was very satisfactory. The parts I worked on are essentially finished with the exceptions of a few places that will need highlights dropped into them after paint dries. There will also be some repainting in some of the areas as I work edges from the opposite direction.

Click here to see a  step-by-step demonstration of Buckles & Belts.

©Copyright 2009 by Carrie Lewis. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit her website.