Oil painting on cow scapula commission
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Those of us who live on farms and raise animals know about the special attachment we get for some of our critters. We have raised horses and cattle for over 30 years now, and most of them had a price tag on them. However, a few I wouldn't let go for any price. They were like my kids and deserved special care and attention.
Most of the stock breeders I know are like that.
Julie Pack raised this cow from a calf and took her to shows when she was in High School. She won some pretty significant awards with her (Breed Champion) as well as scholarship money. The cow had a bunch of calves for her too, and when she died Julie managed to salvaged some of her bones - including this scapula. Some of you might think that is pretty icky, but Julie is on her way to becoming a veterinarian and like most people with interests bending that way, bones are a source of fascination and wonder - not things to viewed with dread and disgust.
Anyway, Julie came up with the idea of having the cow's image painted on the cow's actual shoulder blade, and since I always like a challenge and new "canvases" I agreed to the task.
I painted the image area with gesso first as a primer and then painted using traditional oils. To protect it I will spray the entire bone with a matte finish varnish when it dries. And the whole thing stands horizontal on its own due to the shape of the bone.
A pretty novel idea, don't you think?
If you are interested in a painting like this for yourself,
click here to send me an emailTo view my latest paintings on
Daily Painters go HERE.
