TOM WILLS PRODUCTIONS: No. 304: Burton

"Burton" by Tom Wills, watercolor, September 2015

The hair on a horse is not unlike the hair in paint brushes, alternately bristly and soft, long and short. I suspect some of the brushes used to paint No. 304, "Burton." are indeed horse bristles.

Burton is not the name of the horse. It's where the horse lives, in Amish country, Geauga County, Ohio. I don't believe the Amish name their work horses, of which Burton is one of a team. He's a big, strong guy and -- though the sign warns to stay away from him -- he's used to people and curious about them. That's probably because he lives right next to the Red Maple Inn and we bed and breakfasting Yankees love horses with our coffee and cake.

"Animals may bite!"

It took no coaxing to get the big horse to poke his head out of the barn door and saunter over to me. There had been a tornado warning the night before (a relaxing getaway for two!) and maybe he was curious to see if everything was in its place.
I reached out a hand and rubbed his long, hard and bristly nose -- which he seemed to like. I ventured above his eyes once to stroke his mane but he seemed less happy about that. After about two minutes a guy stuck his head out of the barn and told me to cut it out, the horse can't be trusted.

The photo, plus manure.

Really the horse was very sweet and loved the attention. Perhaps he doesn't get much during his usual work day.
So it was a brief encounter but the photo I snapped of him in the barn is now this painting.

Big boy. Trust him.

My watercolors are few and far between. I do perhaps two annually, usually during vacations because they are time intensive. This one got an early start, a week prior to September time off, and I worked at night after everyone had gone to bed. That way, by the next night, the paint would be dry and I could add the next layer of color and detail.

Here we go.

Watercolor wash

I first applied a light watercolor wash over a very light, rough sketch. This is in fact the most important step, because this background serves as the foundation for the entire painting to come. It also establishes the boundaries for colors, and the edges of the painting -- which I purposely leave a little rough.

Rainbow puddles.

Gradually details of the horse and barn wood began to emerge. The big animal is emerging from the dark of the barn and you can see his strong chest and forelegs, but have to imagine the rest. The barn wood was once painted red, but is now faded in places to gray and even white, where other coats of paint were haphazardly applied.

A horse of course.

I used a pencil and white acrylic paint thinned in water to get the barn wood effect. First came two coats of red and orange, then gray, then the white. I knew that the acrylic paint would repel the watercolors and cause them to bead. I applied another coat of brown/red/black over all of the "wood" and then wiped it off with a cloth. It worked!

I have been very knotty.

I then worked to sharpen the horse and darken his surroundings, hoping to make him "pop" out of the barn. I also did some work on the bricks at the threshold of the barn door. I used a little white to catch the light reflecting off of his hardware -- and to accent the white spot on his forehead!

Let's call him "Spot"

The dandelions were more problematic. First, they are in the foreground. Second, they're not just one shade of green -- there are many. These took a few coats of various shades plus yellow, black and brown. I'm not 100 percent satisfied but from a few feet away from the painting they look like weeds.

Weeds!

The next and last challenge was the manure. Yep, there was a ton of it. The manure dotted a clay surface, haphazardly kicked or shoveled out the door. Just keeping it real -- that's what horses do, and quite a lot. This took some tinkering with black and browns and, once again, the white acrylic paint. I thinned it again and added brown until it looked tan (clay), and then dabbed it on. I used my fingers to spread it around and make the pattern look irregular. Lastly I dabbled a light brown wash over all.
Not shitting you, folks.

Refining my manure technique.

I completed this painting in seven days, surprising myself. That's one big advantage of watercolors -- they dry quickly. It was a vacation project that got done before the vacation!

The last step was to treat a frame that I had on hand with a stain to match the color of the barn. I ended up making my own tint out of the very same watercolors used on the painting, and rubbed it in. After the color dried I applied a wood sealer to the frame and waited out that drying time.
I chose a tan mat to match the dirt foreground and to provide a contrast to the barn wood.


Happy 54th ...

My watercolor paintings are very different from my drawings, not just because of the color. They are simpler images -- yet more difficult to create.

It's a wondrous thing to me, still, how a basic watercolor kit with eight colors and a little water can create a lasting image. Those colors -- on the tip of a horse hair brush -- can make magic.

This painting is for sale. The price is $225, local delivery only. To inquire, email me at hankbonesman@embarqmail.com, willstom01@gmail.com or call me at 330-984-8376.

This artwork, these photographs and this story may not be reproduced without permission from the artist.