Deb Trotter, Cowboy's Sweetheart

Get ready for an artful ride, pardners.

The latest edition of Haute Handbags is due to hit your newstand in April, and it’s a doozy. Chock FULL of wonderful creations.

I was lucky enough to have two articles published in this editon.

One article features Cowboy’s Sweetheart Buckaroo Bags … how they came to be … and how my good friend, Karna, and I collaborate to create these one of a kind treasures. Here’s the page showing one of my favorite bags ….

There’s also an article featuring an old mailbag that I altered with paint, beads and rhinestones – with a cowgirl theme, of course.

This issue also features wonderful bags by two of my Artsmiths pals, Kristen Robinson and Lelainia Lloyd.

You’ll also discover wonderful "reticules" in the form of lovely Victorian ladies by the remarkable Sandra Evertson, vintage style collage cases by Patricia Guthrie, and rich velvet "Morroco Spice Bags" by Lilla Le Vine. And of course there are plenty more marvels to tickle your fancy.

That being said, I’m off to work on some new design for those Buckaroo Bags.

Happy Trails.

Posted in Western Cowgirl Art | 11 Comments »

I am lucky to be a member of an art group full of talented, energetic, and generous women.

Formerly known as Art Pub, we have reorganized and spiffed up our blog and are now known as Artsmiths. As stated in our "About" section … "Artsmiths is a networking community comprised of professional Mixed Media Artists. Our objective is to provide a supportive and nurturing environment in which to explore new ideas and promote our work in the art industry."

We will continue to feature an Artist of the Month. This month we explore the world of the mysterious and talented Sylvia Luna!

And thanks to Angela Cartwright we have a wonderful new banner that blends our new name with our vision – to share our art with the world and to support each other, both as friends and artists.

Please stop by and visit. We think you’ll love our new format, and we’re sure there will be some wonderful artwork to inspire you. You’ll likely be a yellin’ "Yee Ha!" with each and every click of the mouse.

Happy Trails!

Posted in Western Cowgirl Art | 4 Comments »

"Josie’s Window"

Posted in Western Cowgirl Art | 3 Comments »

"Buffalo Gals" 12 X 12 – Auction Price $ 300

Yee Ha! I was happier than a bull during stud season when my "Buffalo Gals" piece sold last weekend.

The 40th Annual Yellowstone Art Museum Show and Auction was held February 29 and March lst in Billings, Montana.  I set out in the Starship Enterprise (the alias Prius) with my buddy Jeanna (alias Captain Kirk) early Friday in search of adventure and lots of inspiring art.

Friday night was the Silent Auction & Beer Tasting. We sampled all types of new beers in our handy mini beer glasses. Both of us were especially fond of Landshark, which is partially owned by that beer guzzler himself, Jimmy Buffet, and is a light, mild beer worthy of a nice summer day. My favorite piece of the night was this one…

If I’d had the money I would have taken it home. 42 X 48. Do you realize how honkin’ BIG that is? I don’t know if you can see the writing inside the trees, but it was so intriguing. A wonderful piece!

Saturday night was more formal than Friday, with a more ritzy crowd. Mixed drinks, wine, and heavy h’ordeourves. Delicious! There was also a Quick Draw going on. We wandered around, anxious to see if the Quick Draw would be as much fun as the one at the Buffalo Bill Center in Cody. It wasn’t. There seemed much less "buzz" about it. As a matter of fact, we saw one poor guy, all alone – outside in the courtyard, painting a lit brick wall on his canvas. Not a soul was out there watching him – only us. And he was GOOD. It was a shame, really.

Still, there was some wonderful work going on and fabulous art to be auctioned live later in the evening.

Here’s another great piece…

The depth and sheen created by the encaustic medium was incredible. It was sort of Andy Warhol meets Judy Wise – if you can imagine such a thing. Wonderful, bright colors, whimsy, and encaustics like Judy and Pop-Artish like Warhol.

This one was another of our favorites. You can’t really experience this piece fully except in person because you miss the dimension…

The glass "pendulum" practically jumps out at you – and the painted texture and paper were quite visually effective. Love this!

I always save the best for the last. I don’t know if you were reading my blog several years ago when I blogged about how taken I was with the work of Jerry Cornelia. He had several pieces in the show – one for the Silent Auction on Friday night, and another for Saturday’s live auction. Jerry so often uses sheep in his paintings, and his work is so vivid – always clever and fun. This was my favorite piece of the night…

I had the pleasure of finally meeting Jerry as Jeanna and I were heading back to the hotel. He was friendly and delightful – just as I would have expected. Yee Ha! I must say I felt like I was shaking hands with royalty – at least in my own little art world. Had I had some guns along I would have shot out the ceiling to celebrate in true Calamity Jane fashion.

In short, I made a little money on art and spent a little money on drinks, and had a wonderful adventure and a fabulous time.

I’m already looking forward to next year, pardner.

Happy Trails.

Posted in Western Cowgirl Art | 7 Comments »