Mudzilla!

October 13, 2013 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 8 Comments

(with my apologies to the Blue Oyster Cult)

Deep from the depths of the backyard, a savage creature awaits, stalking, sniffing

…chasing tennis balls…

The day comes when he pounces…

With a purposeful grimace and a terrible sound

He’s a mole sniffing muck digging grimy hound

Eastern moles who think he’s a pain

Scream bug-eyed as he looks in on them

He picks up a clod and he throws it back down

As he digs through mole tunnels underground

Oh no! They says he’s got to go

Go! Go! Mudzilla!

Oh no! There goes the mole’s burrow!

Go! Go! Mudzilla!

History shows again and again how Sammy harasses the moles’ clan.

Mudzilla!!

History shows oh man, how I have to wash the dog again and again!

Mudzilla!

Meanwhile in between washing the dog and refilling large holes in the yard I painted these little landscapes for a trade. These are all acrylic and 2.5 by 3.5 inches (the size of a playing card).

Disclaimer: No moles were harmed in the making of this and in fact they are currently digging up the back yard while giggling themselves silly over the foolishness of any one trying to outdig them..

Oops..

I’m just kidding, my husband saved this one from the lawn mower and put him back safely.

(He is sooooo soft!)

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog, 2013

Hi!

August 17, 2013August 17, 2013 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 13 Comments

Hi….

It’s been awhile…

But this is what I’ve done so far with my summer.

I was sidetracked for a bit by a large monster.

It said ” Rawrrrrrrr, Rawrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, RAWRRR!!!”

Which is for monsterspeak for

“Help! I’m stuck!!”

And he struggled back and forth..

“Rawwwrrrrr, rawwwrrrrrr! RAWRRRR!!!”

Translation: “Hmmm. Maybe if I lean a bit and put one leg down and rock back and forth…”

“Rawrr”

Translation: “Okay, I’m out, it’s all good”

And then he sheepishly crawled away.

Even the hummingbird did a dance for him.

“I’m so HAPPY!!”

While the grumpy hummingbird rolled his eyes..

Then I saw a butterfly..

And “Marine One” flew the President over my house.

So I painted this in acrylic for a WetCanvas Paint Along.

And I bought a new Bic pen so I did some quick doodling.

Other then that, there’s not much going on. Though I did let Zeus and Sampson watch Sharknado and now they’re making their own film called “Dognado”. Zeus, as the art director of the film, thought the garden looked too fruitful so he promptly picked all the tomatoes.

Yes, I have no tomatoes.

Sigh.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog, 2013

Procrastination, Corruption and Weird Animals..

March 31, 2013March 31, 2013 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 15 Comments

And no, I’m not talking about Congress.

Alas and alack, my computer is corrupt. Not surprising really, I do live in Illinois after all. Yes, the State that was just charged with securities fraud which I guess makes all the Illini and our puppy dogs too, felons (allegedly).

“Oh I’m a felon, you’re a felon, he’s a felon, she’s felon, wouldn’t you like to live in Illinois too!”

*sigh*

So anyway, I have 2600 plus error messages on my computer. And yet it keeps on going, generating error after error after error. I’d like to say I’ve never worked with people like that but sadly, I have.

At least I’m over my Hitchcock/Poe/Ansel Adams stage..

Almost.

Okay I think I’m really done.

(I’m not making any promises mind you.)

I was considering going back to being a bird stalker (allegedly).

But my bird stalking desires were temporarily sated by finally being able to take a photo of the barred owl in my backyard. For almost four years he’s been back there yelling “Who cooks for you!’. I don’t know why he’s so obsessed with what goes on in my kitchen but at least I now have his photo in case he breaks in and rearranges my pots and pans.

So at a loss at what to do with myself I went over to the local zoo.

Little did I know that they recently acquired a panda. Yes a panda!

It’s on their Endangered Animals Carousel.

This is the rare prancing, fanged panda.

Then I meet the Tiger who was seems to be designed to make sure your child never ever wants to go back on a carousel.

And just in case that didn’t scare them..

Which explains why this one looks so nervous.

But doesn’t explain the supercilious grin on this one.

Which is followed by my favorite, the not so rare naughty cat with a fish.

And all this means is that I spent all day in a zoo and mostly took photos of fake animals.

Yeah, that’s how I roll.

I finally remembered how to paint again, thank goodness, I was getting worried.

This is an acrylic, of a pond near my house with ice on it as the sun was thinking of going down.

As you can see, I also remembered how to write run on sentences.

This is an acrylic that was done in a paint a long session on Wetcanvas (with thanks to Beth for putting her photo in Wetcanvas’s Reference Image Library).

And this one is also from a paint a long on Wetcanvas, which I hosted as a lesson in painting on a black background. My thanks to SBJ for the original reference photo.

Note: There’s no time limits on a paint a long, so if you want to join in, go for it!

My apologies for not being around too much, other then sheer procrastination, I have no excuse.

None at all!

Take care!

I’ll be back.

(Please read that last part in a Schwarzenegger type of voice.)

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog, 2013

My Summer or How I Was Kneecapped By A Groundhog..

September 3, 2012September 5, 2012 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 20 Comments

So how’s your summer going? I know, I know it’s nearly over and I haven’t posted much but I swear I have a great excuse, ahem I mean reason..

So there’s this groundhog and like all groundhogs, he is so cute, a big darling fat ball of fur. Adorable.

Actually there are a lot of groundhogs,woodchucks, whistlepigs, whatever floats your boat, there are tonnes of them all over North America.

As everyone knows, groundhogs often study meteorology. They quite enjoy it even though they get dragged out of their den every February to tell us when winter will end. And since all groundhogs have a strange sense of humor, they will often lie and give us the wrong info. They’re funny like that.

Some groundhogs, especially those located in Ohio are infamous for their archeological interests. In fact, The Ufferman Site in Ohio, which is on the National Register of Historic Sites has been solely excavated by groundhogs. They have brought up human bones, pottery and rock tool bits used by the Cole culture (circa 800-1300AD). No human has ever had to excavate as the groundhogs have done such a great job of it.

Groundhogs, can climb trees, they can swim and they can run. To their dismay, they cannot cycle and since all groundhogs dream of competing in Ironman competitions, their sorrow is great.

But there is one thing that Groundhogs are renowned worldwide for, there is one thing they love to do more then anything, there is one thing that amuses them to no end and that is to dig holes, big deep holes…

And while many people think they dig them to live in for safety and food storage, that’s ridiculous, everyone knows they prefer bungalows with full size pantries. They actually dig holes to trap humans especially humans walking around with cameras, so that that human walking around with a camera will twist and turn as they fall to save their camera and tear all the muscles holding their knee cap in place. And then that human will spend the next six weeks wearing a hot awkward metal and foam cast that makes me, ahem that human, walk like Frankenstein and since that human will be in pain occasionally they will groan and small children and animals will run from this Frankensteinian beast, except of course for the fat black cat that lives with that human and likes to scratch her face on the metal contraption and enjoy her pain cause she’s an awful sadistic animal and meanwhile the groundhog is rolling around slapping it’s knee, bubbling over with mirth and glee, because even though he’s adorable, he’s a mother of a mean little so and so…

And that ladies and gentlemen is how you write a run on sentence…

Anyway, it’s not that bad. (rolleyes) I’m fine (whine whine moan). Seriously it’s all good. (sigh)

Actually did some drawings for a trade. Lots of fun.

The only rule was that they had to be small 3.5 by 2.5 inches (ATC’s, ACEO”s whatever) about the size of a playing card and they had to be in black and white.

As always they might appear larger on your screen then they actually are

This is a little windmill, in black and white that’s down the road a ways, I think someone lives in it.

This is from a photo in the RIL on Wetcanvas, many thanks to the person who put it in there for all to use. It’s acrylic.

This is a barn in pen and ink that we have driven by a few times.

This is an 1800’s bread oven off in the woods (to keep the heat away) at Balls Falls in Ontario, Canada. This is an acrylic.

This is an old wagon that for some reason, someone stuck in their yard. Acrylic.

This is a penguin, cause I sure as heck wasn’t going to draw a groundhog. Pen and Ink.

And this is a Victorian house we drove by on the way to Saint Louis in acrylic.

Other then that, I took a photo of the blue moon. It wasn’t blue but it’s negative is.

I also found a potato with dancing angels in it, I was going to sell it on EBay but I gave it to the raccoon instead..

I hope everyone has had a wonderful summer and has a fun holiday weekend.

Happy Labor Day!

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog, 2012

Cemeteries and Black Cats…

May 1, 2012April 16, 2023 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 8 Comments

It has been a chilly, gloomy rainy week.

A perfect time to clean the house or closets or..no no that won’t do.

We rarely have long periods of gloom here so in keeping with the atmosphere I have bravely ignored the housework and instead have reflected on our trip to Mount Moriah Cemetery in Deadwood, South Dakota.

Mount Moriah, a cemetery established in Deadwood after the old one filled up, is an interesting place. It’s the final resting place of the some of the most infamous of Westerners. Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, Sheriff Bullock and Preacher Smith. It’s been said that Calamity Jane was buried next to Hickok as a rather rude joke as she drove him nuts in real life. The more likely explanation is that interest in the cemetery was waning and they needed a tourist boost. They still charge admission to the cemetery to pay for it’s upkeep.

I had envisioned a much tackier tourist attraction, I mean really who charges admission to a cemetery. Being from Niagara Falls , Canada, I’m a bit of a cynic, tourist attraction wise. I’ve seen many wolves come out to try and fleece the tourists for all they’re worth. But like much of what we saw in South Dakota, the spirit of the west, the charm and ruggedness of the scenery and the decency of the people overrode any modern attempts to exploit it. I wish we had taken the time in Niagara Falls to care for, maintain and respect both our natural beauties and history as the people South Dakota have. Hats off to them.

This is an acrylic miniature (4×6 inches) of a path that leads up to Sheriff Seth Bullock’s grave. The Sheriff, a Rough Rider under Roosevelt was a tough, rugged and fair man. He managed to stabilize the rough lawless town of Deadwood and surprised everyone by doing it without killing anyone. His grave is up on the mountain, 750 ft above the rest of the cemetery facing Mount Rushmore.

I took many photographs of Mount Moriah as well. Don’t worry they encourage that, the visitors and admissions pay for the upkeep of this absolutely beautiful resting place.

I don’t normally much like sepia toned photos but I thought it suited these.

This one appeared to be made of petrified wood.

Overlooking the mountains.

Mass grave of the victims of a boarding house fire.

Wild Bill Hickok.

Meanwhile back at the ranch..

It’s still raining, both dogs are soaked. Zeus being a lab is impervious to the rain.

But Sampson is soaked and he smells. So I helpfully mentioned a bath might be in order. Sampson hates baths.

And this is his “We are not amused” face.

Normally we do this little dance. I run the bath. He hides, behind the couch, behind the curtains, or he will continually walk around the dining room table with me in slow pursuit.

Today he upped his little game and instead of hiding he chose to sit behind the one thing that could stop me from bugging him. His biggest fan and protector. Five of her six ends are pointy and she knows how to use them.

Well played, little dog, well played.

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog, 2012

Twitchy eyes and pirates

March 6, 2012March 6, 2012 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 24 Comments

I’m suffering from eyestrain. My eyes are hot and dry. And the right one keeps twitching.

twitch twitch twitch…

I also pulled the arch in my foot.

limp limp limp…

It’s so bad now that when I went to get the mail with my hair unkempt, limping and twitching, small children and animals ran away from me.

It probably doesn’t help that I call the mail “My Precious”.

So I need to take a break.

I could put a patch on my eye. But then I would have to say “Arrrr” and “Matey” and get a parrot. I’d also have to get my boat out and float up and down the Mississippi pillaging and looting.

But the boat is still winterized and Sampson is not fond of parrots (he has met a parrot and it mocked him). And to boot my mother would be mortified if I pillaged and looted.

All together it’s just too much work.

But that’s okay, I’ll be back in a week or two. In the meantime Dummy has decided he’s capable of helping me out. He played a couple rounds of golf with some doctors and now he thinks he knows everything.

I just hope he doesn’t try to use his stethoscope.

It’ll break his heart to find out that he doesn’t have ears.

I did this little acrylic, ATC size 3.5 by 3.5 inches before my eyes went buggy. It’s of the Chicago Lighthouse that can be seen from Navy Pier. As always it will appear bigger than it actually is.

So I hope you all have a nice couple of weeks. Enjoy yourselves. Run amok.

But if you do happen to see a wild haired limping twitchy person, please be kind. Really really kind…

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog, 2012

The Badlands…

February 20, 2012February 20, 2012 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 16 Comments

I was looking back at photos from the past year and I realized I didn’t share the photos of the Badlands of South Dakota. Badlands are a geographic feature where the earth has been stripped to the bare rocks as opposed to the Naughty Lands which only go topsoiless.

They’re a pokey bunch of rocks. Trust me don’t trip..

Doesn’t this one look like a bunch of medieval Sci-fi castles?

This one looked liked a temple with a pagoda.

There’s most likely a bigfoot monk living up there. Bigfoots can be deep.

And baaaaa or maaaa or blehhhh or whatever it is that goats say..

I’m still playing with this lightbox thing. I’m boring Dummy so much, he decided to take up a hobby.

A closeup of the painting which is acrylic, 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

It’s of downtown Deadwood, South Dakota. Why there are Wii people walking in the background is beyond me. (and why Wii people have big fat heads is also beyond me.) Looks like city hall is ready to collapse there, I really should pay more attention to perspective.

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Happy Groundhog Day!

February 2, 2012February 2, 2012 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 18 Comments

And a Happy Birthday to my stepfather Hartley, a lovely man.

I phoned Hartley this morning and he did not see his shadow.

Hazzah, hazzah! Spring is coming.

Which I pretty much figured seeing as I have 59 irises coming up. That’s right 59. I don’t know why I counted them but I am a bit worried about them so Hazzah! again for not seeing a shadow. I didn’t count the tulips and daffodils though, they can take care of themselves. Oddly enough, I haven’t heard a peep out of the crocuses.

I made Hartley this card. I was out having a chat with the local groundhog, Jack Fickle McRumplestein, when I mentioned that Hartley was born on Groundhog Day. Jack insisted on posing for me. I think he may be under the impression that Hartley is part groundhog and all the better for it.

I should have taken this photo before I varnished it. Ahh well.

I also did a few more miniatures. Except for the leopard, these all have new homes. As always these will appear larger than they actually are.

This is an acrylic of a path near my house. It’s 2.5 by 3.5 inches (ATC/ACEO size) I used a pointillism technique which is quite fun to do on something that is the size of a playing card.

This is the Point Abino Lighthouse which I grew up near. It was operational until 1989 and then fell into disrepair. It’s being worked on now and has been declared an Historic building with a capitol “H”. It’s the only one of that style. I used to love hearing the foghorn at night. Nothing makes you feel more secure than knowing someone is up in the middle of the night keeping an eye out. Especially as I thought that there was Loch Ness monster lurking in the bay and we lived far too close to the lake for me to be happy about it.

I was trying for a more painterly simple style with this one. My perspective is bit off but that’s ok, I like the effect.

Acrylic 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

This is a church in Prince Edward Island that my sisters and I came across while rambling through the Maritimes.

Acrylic, 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

I threw perspective right into the wind on this one too. That’s right I got down and crazy on the perspective. Rebel with a paintbrush, that’s me.

And now some sad news. A lovely lady passed away and left our zoo which you all know I’m fond of, $250,000 to either get a panda, which can’t be done without giving China the Mississippi or the money is to be used to fix the black bear habitat. Last year they had to hire a new zoo director. Well this guy showed up in an Indiana Jones outfit complete with hat and in his infinite wisdom he decided last week to give our bears away. He said they are and I quote “nuisance animals” as opposed to the other animals in the zoo like porcupines, various rodents, reptiles and such, all of which are adorable but none of which are fun to find in your kitchen. Then he said that the Will says the money is to be used for a black as in color of the bear as opposed to the black bears as a species. He also did this without consulting anyone including the forestry board which has authority over the zoo. Guess what the favorite animal of the Commissioner of the board is…

Needless to say, he is no longer director of the zoo. And the zoo needs to get a black bear.

Here is a photo of the bear that is now gone but who was a sweetie and comical. I’m sorry he’s gone.

The moral of the story is to never underestimate the silliness and ego of a person who dresses up like Indian Jones, complete with hat.

While I’m on the topic of zoos, here is another miniature, this one is a bit bigger being 3 x 5 inches and is acrylic. This one is based on a photo of the black leopard that is somewhere back in the blog.

Now I have to go find Dummy, he’s been a bit sulky since the tape from his Santa hat is stuck all over his head. He does hold a grudge. I think a nice photo shoot will cheer him up, he’s a vain little Dummy.

Take care!

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Deck the halls…

December 7, 2011 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 15 Comments

Deck the halls with singing doggies,
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff
Tis the season to be froggy,
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff

Tis the time to set up the tree
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff
And Dummy, his old friends he can see
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff

In poinsettias I take pleasure
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff
Dummy thinks they’re a real treasure,
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff

Fast away the old year passes,
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff
Thanks for reading my blog, ye lads and lasses,
Ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff ruff

Since this blog is supposed to about art
Art art art art art art art art art
Here’s a mini duck I painted for th’art
Quack quack quack quack quack….

quack… quack..quack…QUACK!!!!!

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Snow what!!!

November 10, 2011November 10, 2011 ~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 18 Comments

With many regards

To my dearest and beloved Mother Nature…

You scurrilous psychotic malevolent witch!

Listen lady, I get that screwing around with us is fun for you.

Tsunamis, earthquakes, super storms, tornadoes.

Making sure it’s cloudy every time I have even the slightest chance of seeing an astronomical event..

Seriously I had my camera and my most powerful lenses all set up to see the asteroid 2005 YU55, had my game plan set and then.. Clouds!?!!

Always with the clouds. Jeez.

Anyway I get it, you’re mad. I’ve seen photos of the Pacific Ocean Dump . It’s disgusting.

And I get it, politicians are talking about building a huge electric fence along the Mexican border which will disrupt the migration patterns of several animals including the jaguar. Now I’m sure the politicians, since we all know how clever they are, will come up with a plan to allow jaguars to cross at mandated checking points provided they show proper ID and have visas. But although cheetahs read quite well and are often spotted curled up with a nice cup of tea and a mystery novel, jaguars don’t read. Filling out all those forms to get a visa would be out of the question. And even if they were given the visas and had ID, they wouldn’t be able to carry them. They don’t have pockets, though I suppose a lanyard wouldn’t be out of the question.

Yup, you do have a point, Mother Nature.

But to make it sleet, than freeze, then snow!

That’s just mean.

Thank goodness Dummy can fit in my tea cozy or he would have frozen to death while trying to clear the ice off the banisters.

He’s being very helpful since I actually managed to let him do his real job and pose for a painting.

This is a miniature, ATC Size (3.5 by 2.5 inches) in acrylic..

I also tried some gouache. Weird stuff, you can use it like acrylic or watercolor.

This is a miniature, ATC Size (3.5 by 2.5 inches).

Hopefully it’s obvious that’s it’s a pumpkin..

For the pumpkin I used a photo reference from the Reference Image Library on Wetcanvas. Thank you to the contributor. Normally I take my own photo references but the Wetcanvas RIL, is a useful tool for playing around. Most of the photos I take, I take with plans to use for references. In fact I have spent numerous hours trying to get a photo of the deer in my backyard. But the other day I was only trying to take a photo of this tree for a painting reference. When I looked at the camera monitor I realized I had been looking at the tree for so long, I had completely missed the two deer who were rudely staring at me.

Apparently being contrary creatures, deer don’t like to have their photos taken unless they think you’re not taking a photo of them. Vain, I tell you.

Oh hey, the sun is shining!

That’s good, I can get my tea cozy back from Dummy.

Thanks Mother Nature. Carry on..

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the purple dog painting blog

Art, Poetry, Photography & Other Nonsense

Painting

Mudzilla!

Hi!

Procrastination, Corruption and Weird Animals..

My Summer or How I Was Kneecapped By A Groundhog..

Cemeteries and Black Cats…

Twitchy eyes and pirates

The Badlands…

Happy Groundhog Day!

Deck the halls…

Snow what!!!

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