Cows Cows Cows

New plan - don't waste the cows!

Yesterday, I attended my first plein air event. I paint en plein air all summer, but I have never done it with anyone but my husband and dog. I was scared. Not only was I going to be painting in public, but there were going to be artists in the audience! This event was at Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook, Maine, a bit of a trek and unfamiliar territory. I am more of a boat person than a farm person. But it turns out that if you are going to go set up your easel in a busy place and start painting, it is less scary when you are surrounded by other easels and someone else has already asked permission. It was fine. It was more than fine - there were COWS. Beautiful, bony, milk cows happily munching green, green grass. Right next to the fence. When I had my first baby, my country bred mother explained how breast feeding works by using cows as an example and told me to be a nice placid cow in a sunny field so I would have lots of milk. (Can you guess I am normally rather high strung?) And here were those exact cows! I set up my easel under a big tree for shade and got to work painting a farm scene. Painting the cow was fun. It wasn't a particularly good cow because even placid cows don't stand still, but it was fun. Then the pasture. Then I had to tackle the nice red barn. Architecture takes awhile, even sketchy distant architecture. And all the while I was working on the buildings, I was worried the cows would go away before I could start the next painting. I finished up and set up to do a second version of the first painting - and then came to my senses. Why on earth was I fussing around with grass and barns with cows to paint! Sunny cows, with intriguing unfamiliar bone structure. I decided not to waste the cows and spent the rest of my time doing brush drawings of whichever cow was closest. Their heads were the hardest because even when they stood still, they swing their heads around to rip off a new bit of grass. It was a race and I never finished any cow without having to steal a bit off a different cow. Not exactly accurate. I had a blissful time. A kitty visited me, too.

Smiling Hill Farm is a lovely place to bring small children. There's a playground and barnyard and icecream cones.