Diana's Painting Journal

Just posted – a commission I did for Lynda Rivington, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada – a painting of her lovely Hackney pony “John Henry”. Many thanks to Peggy Binns for taking the photograph that is displayed here. I think this was one of the most complicated paintings I have done because of the harness and the… read more

I have finished another painting. This one is of a local Atenas, Costa Rica, horse having a siesta. My friend, Diane Reid, took the reference photo and gave me permission to paint it. This was a different kind of painting for me. Yes, it has a horse but all the shadows made it intriguing. It… read more

I have been painting a lot this year. The trouble with me is that I am slow. But, I did finish a commission and it is now in the hands of it’s new owner, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

I just finished this … an oxen that was part of a team participating in the annual Atenas, Costa Rica, oxcart parade last year. The team was beautifully turned out, with polished horns finished with gold tips and ribbons. Both oxen wore body ribbons in the national colors of Costa Rica. This painting is acrylic… read more

Just completed a new painting, “Cleo, Jungle Cat”‘, acrylic on canvas board. Cleo is the pet of our Canadian friends, Diane and John. She is a beautiful Abyssinian cat and I believe about 14 years old now. When they moved here to Costa Rica, of course she came with them. Diane and John have been… read more

This painting recently sold and is now residing in Southern California. My client has indicated he is very pleased with it so that makes me happy. This was my first time shipping a painting from Costa Rica to North America and it was an eye opener. The cost is very high. I used to ship… read more

The Eastern Ontario Pleasure Driving Society (EOPDS) online auction is up and running for the month of March, 2013. Over 150 items are up for sale — horsey & non-horsey – carriages, tack and related equipment, artwork, books, stamps, gift certificates, signed Ottawa Senators jersey, Brad Britch golf items, ‘Sam Bat’ bat and much more.… read more

If you are looking for a chance to buy some really super horse related items, and other great stuff, check out this site: www.myminiauction.com and, especially, you might want to bid on item number 1004!!!

I just want to thank all of you who took the time to write here about Ann Hatchett-Sprague. There is not much information available about her on the Internet. I am not sure why that is because it seems she painted a lot of beautiful Arab horses. I treasure the small miniature I found in… read more

I have finished a new painting of a Costa Rican ox, part of a team, titled “Simbolico de Atenas”, so named because the oxcarts and their drivers (boyeros) are an important historical part of Costa Rica and particularly our town of Atenas. The beautifully painted oxcarts of Costa Rica are famous and oxen teams are… read more