Saturday, January 31, 2009

Valerie answers "Why she paints".

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Why do you paint?

I paint because doing so takes my mind off my worries and petty annoyances. Also, painting whimsical animals is just plain fun. My images make me laugh; perhaps they’ll entertain others, as well. And, I think Tony would be relieved to know that I’m “stay[ing] out of trouble.”

Picture credit: "Moo-vin", acrylic on paper

Friday, January 30, 2009

New topic for Fridays

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For Fridays, I've decided to include some other websites of interest to cow and art enthusiasts. Today's link is a rather interesting look at the inside of a cow.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

"Isabel" can enjoy coffee with you

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Valerie has also created a mug with Isabel and Isabel's friend Lisabel on it. It is microwave safe and also available through the Cow Art and More gallery website.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Valerie's advice for other artists

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What advice do you have for wanna-be artists?

If I—a little ol’ lady school teacher--can do it, you can do it! I taught college English or served as a college administrator my entire career, never having picked up a paintbrush until I was 58 years young. You, too, have something to express, whether it’s joy or pain, hope or despair. Paint is a great place to start. Don’t restrict yourself with “I can’t draw” (neither can I, my friend); or “What will people think?” (who cares?) or “I’m too old” (as long as your fingers or toes or mouth can hold a brush to dip into paint, you’re plenty young enough).

Picture credit: "Mint chip moos", acrylic on canvas

Monday, January 26, 2009

Adding a new perspective to the blog

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Since I started writing this blog last fall, I have made many additional contacts in the agriculture community. What I have come to appreciate is that we all share a common interest: providing the world with a safe, quality and nutritious product. For me, that product is milk and beef; for others it has been grains, poultry, citrus, and list goes on.

Starting today and every Monday, I will post a website or blog that I have found interesting and useful and will share it here. There is a lot of information out there; let's share it!

Today's website: http://farmanddairyoutlook.com/ A blog commenting on current events, new products, innovations, and ideas about anything agriculture

Sunday, January 25, 2009

A little more about Valerie's lead character "Isabel"

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What are some of Isabel’s fantasies?

Well, Isabel can see herself on the "Oprah" show. You know: grieving senior citizen artist/writer gives back to the community by donating a percentage of her book and art sales to important causes such as educating people about the critical nature of organ donor/transplantation registration; or reminding people to fasten their seatbelts; or establishing a scholarship program for aspiring artists or aspiring chefs who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; or establishing guidelines for a nationwide roadside marker/memorial program. Or, who knows?

Closer to home, John Travolta owns a home just down the road from Micanopy, FL, a quaint and charming town where Isabel World’s art is on display for exhibit and sale at the Gallery Under the Oaks (a small artists’ co-op housed in a 1920-built log cabin) and Coffee ‘n Cream CafĂ© (a small gathering place for locals and tourists who are hungry for homemade chicken salad or a hunk of fudge, or just want to hear the spontaneous country jam fest out on the porch, or hear owner Cliff talk about his other profession—clowning at rodeos). Isabel imagines that one day, Mr. Travolta will roar into town on one of his motorcycles, find Isabel, sweep her off her feet, and tell all his international friends what a treasure she is. (After having written this, I learned that the Travoltas’ son recently died. I am so sorry for their loss. My heart sank to my toes as I recalled the days right after our Tony was killed.)

Picture credit: "Biker Cow Girl", 16" x 12", watercolor on paper

Friday, January 23, 2009

Valerie looks to the future with "Isabel"

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What are your future plans with Isabel’s World?

Isabel’s World will be forever under development. What started as one whimsical “stick” cow has multiplied into hundreds of painted stories. I’m fascinated by the idea of merchandising Isabel’s World. I’ve already produced MOO-month Calendars (08 was the 4th year), MOO Mugs and MEOW Mugs, greeting cards, and post cards. I can “see” Isabel on children’s pajamas, bed sheets, wallpaper, and tee shirts.

One day, I intend to slow down long enough from other obligations to concentrate on putting books together. My children’s donor/transplantation book to honor my beloved son Tony consumes my entire focus now. When the book is complete, I will have to find a publisher—or an agent—which ever is supposed to come first. The rest will fall into place, I’m sure.

Meanwhile, as long as I can see and my painting hand functions, I intend to keep painting whatever nonsense pops into my head.
Picture credit: "Mellow Yellow", 12" x 16", acrylic on paper

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

The continuing conversation with Valerie D'Ortona

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What are your future plans with Isabel’s World?

Isabel’s World will be forever under development. What started as one whimsical “stick” cow has multiplied into hundreds of painted stories. I’m fascinated by the idea of merchandising Isabel’s World. I’ve already produced MOO-month Calendars (08 was the 4th year), MOO Mugs and MEOW Mugs, greeting cards, and post cards. I can “see” Isabel on children’s pajamas, bed sheets, wallpaper, and tee shirts.

One day, I intend to slow down long enough from other obligations to concentrate on putting books together. My children’s donor/transplantation book to honor my beloved son Tony consumes my entire focus now. When the book is complete, I will have to find a publisher—or an agent—which ever is supposed to come first. The rest will fall into place, I’m sure.

Meanwhile, as long as I can see and my painting hand functions, I intend to keep painting whatever nonsense pops into my head.
Picture credit: "Bovine Blossoms", watercolor on paper

Monday, January 19, 2009

Valerie in action

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A picture of Valerie at the easel putting her thoughts on paper!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Valerie explains her "goof ups"

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Do you ever have goof ups or work you don't like?

Honey, I have a rented 10 x 10’ storage building chock full of paintings that I’ve done along the way. I don’t know that they are all goof ups, necessarily; they are simply earlier (than today) work. When I print too many reproductions and they don’t sell, I stuff them away in storage also. One of these days I’m going to have to have a large “storage unit” sale—or a bonfire.

Picture credit: "Wanna Come Out and Play", watercolor on paper, 16" x 12"

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Next in the conversation with Valerie

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How long does it take you to make a painting?


I paint very quickly. For a 5 x 7” canvas board, for instance, I may paint for part of an hour; then I “revise” and then add detail. Of course, the amount of time will depend on the size of the canvas and the number of “people” who populate the scene. A 20 x 24” piece might take days of my working off and on. I’ll take a break when my body hurts or I’m starting to make too many mistakes (or I have to meet appointments or teach a college English class—as an adjunct).

I work quickly because acrylic paint dries quickly—and because I’m impatient. Life is too short; I want to finish a piece and move on to the next.
Picture credit: "Bovine bouquet"

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Welcome new artist Lynn Bishop!

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Cow Art and More is excited to welcome painter and photographer Lynn Bishop to the site. Lynn is a veterinary pathologist who has pursued her art full time since 1985. She lives in Colorado, yet has exposure over the entire United States. Lynn has a keen eye for capturing the beauty of livestock in her art.

Picture credit: "Curious Creatures, Cows!" giclee prints of original oil painting

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Valerie's ideas

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How do you get your ideas?

Sometimes I’ll toy with words, maybe a clichĂ© such as “Hang in there!” Then I visualize Isabel and friends in various circumstances and positions of “hanging in.” Sometimes I’ll sketch the image before putting brush to paint, but, mostly, I “draw” as I paint. One of the beauties of working with acrylic is that if I don’t like the way something looks, I can just paint over it.

Sometimes I’ll see something in a magazine that triggers an Isabel moment. I’m notorious (just ask my family) for cutting up magazines. For a couple of years, I kept a file on magazine eyes; one on frogs; one on barns; etc. Recently, I threw out all those scraps of paper. Most of the time, I paint from memory or imagination, sometimes referring to a calendar or book for a particular detail.

My images tell stories, I’ve found. Even if Isabel is by herself, one may guess a scenario by the scenery or props. Also I try to give clever titles to pieces, such as “Udderly Octo-whelmed,” tools to prompt the viewer into understanding the story.

Picture credit: "Manly Man MOO", acrylic, 16" x 12"

Monday, January 12, 2009

Jewelry by Valerie's son Tony

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Art also runs in the family for the D'Ortonas. Valerie's son Tony worked with Damascus steel and made knives along with large jewelry pieces. One of his pieces is shown here. Unfortunately, Tony's life was cut short last year. I knew him also and am sad that he is no longer here to grace us with his art.

Marines help Iraqi widows

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I know this is the "behind the scenes" for Cow Art and More, but I just loved this story so much I had to share with everyone. Cows are great and I'm glad to see they are helping women halfway around the world. Marines buy cows for Iraqi widows.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Valerie's technique

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What is your technique?

I usually use acrylic paint, although sometimes I have used watercolor. I’ve never tried to oil paint. I notice that red, black, white, and yellow usually turn up. Although I started out painting on paper, now I seem to prefer stretched canvas or canvas board.
Picture credit: "Bovine Ballerinas", 16" x 20", acrylic

Friday, January 9, 2009

Valerie at class!

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Valerie has included a picture of herself taking one of Linda Blondheim's classes!

Thursday, January 8, 2009

The creation of Isabel

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In our continuing conversation with Valerie D'Ortona....

Where did Isabel's World come from?

Who can say? I’ve been prolific with my work (probably at the expense of quality control, sometimes), so I was anxious early on—probably before I should have—to show off my work in shows, exhibits, in stores, etc. I needed a name for my fledgling company. “Isabel” just kind of popped up. I have no Isabels in my family; I just liked the name. I selected “World” because I felt as if I had many stories to tell (through images as well as words). Using Isabel’s World has given me permission, so to speak, to develop whimsical animals other than “just cows.” Now Isabel (my main cow) has friends, such as Freddie the Frog, Kitty the Cat, Millie the Pig, and Hattie the Hen, among others. Last year Isabel morphed into a MOO-maid for a series of several paintings. Who knows what ‘09 will birth?


Picture credit: "Baby Bovine", 16" x 12", acrylic

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

New oil painter on website

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Cow Art and More is excited to welcome oil painter Michael Steinberg to the site. Michael lives in north central Florida and has an art degree from the University of Florida. His own beef cows serve as the models for his one of a kind oil paintings. Michael also does private commissions.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Continuing the conversation with Valerie

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Where did you learn your technique?

(My first) teacher Dale, actually a potter rather than a painter, was pitching in for someone else. Dale pretty much let us splash paint around as we saw fit, and, in that process, I discovered that I always chose bright colors and created “primitive” images (probably because I couldn’t draw worth a hoot). Dale concluded that what I was doing looked somewhat similar to paintings from his friend Mike Segal (Cedar Key), so Dale brought in one of Mike’s pieces and suggested that I try to emulate it. That’s how the bright colors/primitive images part began. A class member brought in a photocopy of a stick-figured cow, saying she thought it looked like the subject matter I seemed to like to paint. Thus, the cows started mooing to me.


In more recent years, I’ve become friends with Mike and his wife Marvi. Although he probably internally cringes when I re-tell him the Dale/Mike/bright colors/primitive story and claim that he’s my (unauthorized) mentor, Mike is always very patient (well, as patient as Mike can stand to be) and has encouraged the development of my style. We end up in some of the same art shows, such as Thornbrook and Tioga. He wins the prizes and the big bucks, of course, while I look longingly in his booth’s direction, thinking, someday . . . .


After the beginning painters class, I took a couple of acrylic painting lessons with Elizabeth Barakah Hodges, another character in her own right. One time, I had the privilege of being her sole student for an evening. She introduced me to using collage with acrylic and, so, opened up another avenue for me.


I found out about Linda Pence’s watercolor classes, and thought that maybe I should learn a softer touch. It didn’t work. Even in the painting exercises, my work was always “Bold” and “Graphic” instead of subtle and delicate. Pence, being very wise and also quite flexible, didn’t try to change my bold color/primitive style. She just tried to sneak in some lessons on basic stroke work, mixing colors, thinking about composition, and stuff like that—you know, more the fine-tuning kinds of things.


We’ve become friends, and whenever I can, I take her workshops, sneaking in my acrylics among the watercolorists. Everyone is always friendly—in fact, when my son (only 33) died in June 2008—these wonderful people were the ones who made me an art sympathy card, and who donated money to the Artisans’ Guild where, after he had moved to Gainesville in 2007, he had shown/sold his exquisite Damascus-steel knives and jewelry.


Somewhere along the way, I also had the good fortune of hooking up with landscape artist extraordinaire Linda Blondheim. Going to her once-a-month open studio workshops has boosted my self-esteem as well as my skills. As with Pence, Blondheim has never tried to eradicate my style. She simply wanders around the studio, spending quality time with each (sometimes only two to five people) student, studying the painting in progress, asking questions, and making suggestions. Occasionally she hires me to write press releases for her, too.


Friendships with Blondheim and with her students in these studio visits have also helped me in my grief journey. To honor my son (who attended a couple of the open studio sessions with me and, although color blind, painted a respectable still life that Blondheim generously varnished and framed for me after his death), I’ve been writing and illustrating a children’s book on organ donation/transplantation. A couple of months ago, two of the studio artists listened as I sobbed my way through reading the draft and showing the images. Both offered excellent advice for continuation of my project and helped me feel comfortable after having shown my grief so openly.


Picture credit: "Loov-zies" , watercolor on paper

Sunday, January 4, 2009

A conversation with Valerie D'Ortona

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Since Valerie D'Ortona is the featured artist for January, I will be having a month long discussion with her about her art, techniques, and other interesting snippets.

How did you get started?

In 2003, I retired from college administration work and moved from Missouri back to Gainesville, FL, to live with family and bask in the sunshine. I didn’t “do” ice and snow very well, even though I was born in Bloomington, IL, and fondly remember building snow forts and throwing snow balls. When my brother and I would come in for tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, Mother would hang our snow suits near the radiator to dry a bit before we headed back out to fight off the enemy. I wasn’t even five then, so, of course, the snowy battles were fun.

Anyhow, back in Florida and without job identity (you know, “And what do YOU do?” “Oh, USED to be a college dean” stuff), I needed something to do to “keep out of trouble,” as per my son’s instruction. Consequently, my very wise son Tony, who had often noticed me dabbling with children’s paints while we watched evening news in Missouri, suggested that I take painting lessons. The local community college was offering a beginning painters class, so I signed up.
Picture credit: "Peek a Moo", watercolor on paper
To Be Continued....

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Valerie D'Ortona featured artist of the month

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Beginning this month, Cow Art and More will feature a different artist on the site. In addition to our regular blog postings, I will also post information about Valerie, her work, processes, and any other questions readers may have. Feel free to email questions to me at info@cowartandmore.com Any purchase of Valerie's artwork for the month of January will receive free shipping!
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