It's almost Spring!

This is the kind of day we're having!  The First Day of Spring is tomorrow, but it's snowing like crazy!  It feels like every time I sign on, my previous post says "I can't believe it's been so long...." but I've been busy in 2013, so I'm not even going to say it!  Coordinating the MontPolar Frostival, searching for a new dog for Smeagle (who doesn't think he wants one), building a feral cat house for the Wampus Cat (Not a very involved project, but necessary for a below zero winter), working and painting whenever I get the chance!  No wonder I'm not a champion blogger!!  Enjoy the snow, enjoy the spring and enjoy the latest portraits I just posted to my pet page....

Visit the  Humane Society of Chittenden VT's FB page and check out the photo albums to learn more about feral Cat Houses.

What I did on my summer vacation....

I can't believe it's been such a long time since I posted to my site!  Don't think I haven't been busy however, painting pets, participating in several shows; two of my own and painting a mural at the Black Door Restaurant in Montpelier!  I've also become gainfully employed at the Youth Service Bureau, to whom I donated two pet portraits for a fund raising silent auction this Spring and doing my tasks at Montpelier Alive including coordinating this year's July 3rd parade!  (Yes Montpeculiar celebrates July 4th on the 3rd....)  Anyways, enough about me!  I am making a cold weather resolution to get back here more often!  Now I'll share a few of my latest works with you on my pet, news and mural pages! 

 

Here's Smee, who not only would like all of my time, he bites too!  Maybe it's because I'm yet to do his portrait!





Spring is right around the corner!

It's mid March but the days feel more like May!  One of Mother's Natures tricks, or is it just the "new normal" for weather in Vermont?  In any case, everywhere you look grass is rising from beneath the snow and people are running or walking with their very eager canine companions!  I have been so busy in the world of life, art and pet portraits that I find this blog sorely neglected, but I've made some updates for my faithful followers and hope to have many more paintings to post with new pet portraits in the works as well as the Spring growth of my Animal Icon series!  Happy Saint Patrick's Day to all, but don't share the green beer with your "best friend" unless he's well over the age of consent and a two footer! 

I'm enjoying the creative life in Central Vermont!

Find my artwork on Facebook!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Christine-Hartman-Art/288800047809829#!/pages/Christine-Hartman-Art/288800047809829

Preparing for a New Year....

Every year brings good and bad to all of us...and I have been fortunate to explore new places, meet new friends and learn new things in 2011!  There have been hard times for those close to me too, and the loss of my best friend Mizar left a hole in my heart that little Smee, the Norwegian Forest kitten, is slowly helping to heal.  2012 brings many promises of new adventures...and many more Pet Portraits to paint!!  And I have two shows beginning the New Year.  I am very pleased to have been accepted into Randolph's Chandler Gallery's theme show "The Chair" with a proposal for a 3D found object/mixed media piece, incorporating a pet portrait, that will appear in these pages soon!  Then in February I will be filling Montpelier's City Center with many of my works; old, new and in between!  So much to look forward to and still so much to accomplish in 2011!  For now I wish everyone a Healthy and Happy New Year and close with one more photo of Mizar, posing for a Christmas card in 2004, just five years old! 

Thank God for Dogs! 

It's the Holiday Season!

And as any time of year, a great reason to share pet portraits!  I am painting quite a few Christmas gifts this year, some commissioned and some for my own loved ones!  My current favorite however has to be this vision I recently painted of Mizar entitled "My Guardian Angel"!  Lexi is eagerly awaiting a stocking full of treats and Smeagle knows that there is a "made in Vermont" fresh catnip trout hiding around here somewhere!  Happy Holidaze to all of you!  Don't forget to treat your four footed friends to something special this season,  and keep those poisonous Poinsettas out of reach!


By the way, if you happen to be shopping in Montpelier, stop by Village Pizza for a snack and check out my pet portraits and acrylic paintings!  My exhibit there has been extended though December.

It's been awhile....

There has been quite a lot going on in my world and I've been just too busy to share!  Now that the cold weather is starting to drift in and my focus is moving from outdoor activities to indoor ones, I hope to wander back to this blog much more often!  My computer is right next to a radiator...

I am happy to announce my current exhibit at Village Pizza in good old Montpeculiar through the end of November.   I have posted a few photos of that event on my news page as well as two new pet portraits of our buddy Fritz!  As Wegman discovered, Weimaraners are great models!!

I would like to reflect briefly upon the current state of our country and it's affect on our canine companions!  Fortunately our beloved dogs are far above social movements, but being owned by the 99% can result in inferior dog foods, infrequent treats and fewer check-ups! I'm in total support of the demonstrations, but don't leave your four footed friend in a hot car or alone in a cramped apartment all day while you are fighting for justice!  To the dogs, if you are ready to get off the couch and ignore the nice biscuits and water that your owner left for you when he went out to change the world, lets start a movement for you too: OCCUPY THE AKC! I don't know exact statistics, but would bet that there are 99 percenters in the canine world too!  Why shouldn't a lab crossed with indeterminate other breeds get the same perks as a Poodle or a Pomeranian?  Just saying....

Life Goes On!

It's been a very busy summer, filled with camping, farming, collaborating on the July 3rd festival, lotsa fun music and of course painting and exhibiting.  Sadly the rain that fell on all this activity was the death of my beautiful Mizar.  I have lost pets before, but never had to make the decision to end the pain of someone I loved so much...My heart goes out to all those who have lived through this heartbreaking yet necessary experience. 

Check out my pet page for two new paintings!