Susan Monty Fine Art
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​​Nature Blog

Watercolor Nature Journal

10/11/2020

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One of my favorite things to do as an artist is to spend the warm days of spring, summer and fall working in my summer studio (our screened porch) watching the birds and animals in the backyard and recording them in my journal. I use pens and watercolor to make the entries. Almost anything I see can be a journal entry…simple things like a hummingbird at the feeder or exciting things like the visit of a fox or owl. I also record events from walks and visits to other areas. Beavers, Great Blue Herons, Loons have all made it into the pages of my journal.  I'd like to share a few of my favorite pages. In future blog posts, I'll share more  including tutorials on how I create a journal page.

 Barred Owl, February 22, 2020

Although I have the intention to journal all year, most of my pages are created in the warm months when I'm outside and able to easily see what's going on. Every once in awhile I am lucky enough to glance out a window in the winter and see special visitors like fox or deer, and Barred Owls. 
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Baby Red Squirrels, May 8, 2020

In the spring, my journal pages are full of babies. I was walking down the driveway with Sketch and saw three tiny baby reds on a big pine tree. I grabbed my camera and watched them scamper up and down for the longest time. I even saw them going in and out of a hole in the tree - their nest , I assume. I kept my eye on them for days after. I last saw them in the backyard trees, and I hope at least one of the occasional adult red squirrel I see in the yard is one of these little cuties all grown up.

Turkey Dust Bath, May 28, 2020

I always have wild turkeys wandering through the yard. I saw this hen turkey doing something unusual. At first I was concerned that she might be sick or injured, but I soon realized that she was taking a dust bath – something I’d never seen before. She ruffled her feathers, stretched out her legs, preened and her movements created a lot of dust. At the end, she stood up and shook herself creating a round cloud of dust with two skinny legs sticking out of the bottom. So funny!
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Red-bellied Woodpecker, June 15, 2020

I don’t usually feed the birds in the summer, but I had a few suet cakes left over so I decided to use them up by hanging a suet feeder on the old dog run. (Squirrel-proof I thought, but that’s another journal page). The feeder was a huge hit. To my delight a steady stream of woodpecker, catbird, chickadee and blue jay families came to the suet. This juvenile red-bellied woodpecker was a daily visitor. I still see him and his family at the feeders. 
Baby Raccoons, June 24, 2020

I was thrilled to look out the porch window and see two itty bitty baby raccoons climbing a tree right outside Sketch’s fence. I grabbed my camera and headed out to see what was going on. The babies were nervous so I kept my distance. I didn’t see mom, but the little ones did not appear to be in distress. I took some photos and went back to the porch. I watched them for a few minutes, but they quickly disappeared. I went out trying to figure out where they went, but they were gone! Maybe back to a den in the trees that I couldn’t find? It was an exciting afternoon and I couldn’t wait to record them in my journal. 
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Bunsen, Hobbes and Sketch - my studio help

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Hello Again!

10/10/2020

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​It's been awhile since I posted here, but I've updated this page and plan to add lots of new and what I hope will be interesting content. 2020 has been a strange year so far, and I’ve seen a few changes in my art career. Despite that, I’ve had some exciting things happen, and I‘d like to share with you. As I have for the last few years, I’ve spent the warm weather in my summer studio – the screen porch – watching the birds and animals in the backyard and working on my nature journals. I haven’t been able to teach any classes since March, so I’m missing that a lot. I plan to share some tutorials on how I do my journal pages, the materials I use, and the things that inspire me to journal. In the autumn I get super busy with ornaments and portrait commission. I’ll share some of my ornaments in progress and completed. Last, but not least, I was lucky to be asked to illustrate a children’s book. I had an amazing time doing this project and I will share the book and my process in future blog posts. It will be available at the end of October so watch for updates!
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December 30th, 2013

12/30/2013

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HAPPY 2014

2013 is almost over, and it has been an eventful year for me, in more ways than one! I have been juried into East Coast Fine Art, a vibrant and beautiful gallery in Manchester. I just hung my first group of paintings, and I am looking forward to an exciting 2014 as a member of the gallery.

I started doing hand-painted Christmas ornaments this year, and they were a great success. They were so much fun to create, but after almost 50 ornaments, I'm ready to get back to paper and canvas! One of my first projects for this year is a large 18x24" snow scene featuring the orphaned Navajo foals being cared for at Live and Let Live Farm in Chichester. The babies had a blast kicking up their heals in the first snow and I hope to capture that excitement in my painting.

I'm also working on my new year's resolutions (how about you?). Mine is, of course, to spend more time on my art - not so hard to do! The other is to be more organized and keep up with the office work in the studio - this one will be hard!

Here's to a wonderful 2014. Thank you for following my art and for all your compliments and encouragement!

Wishing you all a very happy new year!


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Hello Again and The SAFE Act

7/17/2013

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PictureRequiem
It's been a while since I've had a chance to post here. I've been busy painting, teaching, Facebooking, and setting up a Pinterest account. I wanted to write something today because I just read a very disturbing article....It is very likely that horse slaughter will start again in the country as early as August 5! The USDA has granted licenses to several plants despite that fact that the Senate and House Appropriations Committees amended their fiscal year (FY) 2014 Agriculture Appropriations bills to eliminate all funding for the inspection of horse slaughter facilities. I think I smell a rat. There is a law suit pending by several equine welfare agencies to stop the plants from opening...fingers crossed. However, the ONLY way to get horse slaughter stopped for good in the USA is for The SAFE Act (Safeguard American Food Exports Act) passed in the House and Senate. Please take a few moments to contact your representatives and senators and ask them to support The SAFE Act. Horse slaughter is never humane and will not solve any problems.

There is quite a lot of information available about horse slaughter and The SAFE Act. Just Google!

The illustrations for this post are paintings from my Auction Series. Some of these horses were saved from kill buyers by rescue groups like Pure Thought Horse and Foal Rescue. Others, like the horses depicted in Requiem, were not so lucky.

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Dearly Departed
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Innocence Lost
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World's End
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Black Friday
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    I am a fine artist specializing in animal art.  I draw and paint whatever captures my eye, but animals will always be my favorite subject. I strive to capture a realistic, but artistic and expressive likeness of my subjects. I have a special fondness for horses and dogs, especially yellow lab mixes! Living in New Hampshire has given access to many beautiful and special wild creatures. Birds nesting in my backyard (including hawks!) and wild animals such as moose, deer, loons, and owls seen on vacation trips to the great north woods and White Mountains are a constant source of wonder and inspiration to me.

    Commissions and custom orders are always welcome!

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