Equestrian Art: How to capture your horse on canvas, with Lesley Humphrey
Not only does world-renowned artist Lesley Humphrey have a gift for art–she’s dedicated to sharing it. Amanda Ronan relates her story.
From Amanda:
Shortly after purchasing my OTTB horse, Lizard, I put him up for sale. I know…I know… It makes me sound like a flake, but long story short he was green as grass and I was unsure about my ability to handle that. In the end, after some spills, thrills, and verbal threats I opted to keep him and I’m learning more from him than any other horse I’ve ever owned. But on to the story…
In the short time I had him listed for sale, Lizard’s photo was passed throughout my many horse acquaintances, including my fox hunting club, Longacre Hunt. Somehow or another Lesley Humphrey, who among other things was commissioned as the Official Artist of the 137th Kentucky Derby, got a hold of it and asked if she could use my photograph for her online paint tutorials.
Lesley’s work is amazing to me…and I’m not just saying that because it’s my horse although he is clearly magnificent…but even more amazing is her commitment to sharing her gift.
From Lesley: “I am asked to teach workshops all over the world, as far away as New Zealand and Australia! I cannot do the workshop schedules as I have in the past, so I decided to put it all ‘out there’ for anyone and everyone. You see, I lead such an incredibly, almost unbelievably blessed life, and this is something I love to do, so I….Just do it! “
Lesley’s work was also recently featured on the cover of Contemporary Fine Art International. You can check out her article starting on page 45.
And here are a few more ‘horsey’ demos from Lesley!
I’m happy to report that my husband willingly bought me Lizard, oil on canvas by Lesley Humphrey, for our sixth wedding anniversary and we are picking it up in May…he said this ‘Lizard’ would inevitably be cheaper to maintain than the first! 🙂
Go Riding! …and then paint a picture of it!
About the Author
Amanda’s experience with horses is just as eclectic as her taste in movies. She has dabbled in almost every discipline from eventing to team penning to fox hunting. She started riding when she was 8 with her local 4-H club in Western performance events. She moved on to the AQHA circuit with her Quarter Horse, “Aggie,” when she was 12 and he was a green 2 year old. Through college she held a working student position at Seahorse Sporthorses, owned by Terri Adams, where she was introduced to the wonderful world of show jumping and eventing. Along with Aggie, who just turned 20 years old, she has two OTTBs in her herd named “Gump” and “Lizard.” Amanda continues her jumping training with Ms. Adams and works on that necessary evil also known as dressage with Mimi Burch of Blue Moon Farm.
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