Retriever Bonnie

Bonnie was a wonderful Chespeak Bay Retriever. Lively and always ready for action, these sporting dogs are strong swimmers and have a lovely, curly coat that comes in two colors. This is the light cinnamon and it was fun to paint the curly hair. A nice memorial portrait of a sweet girl who lived a long, wonderful life.

Dogster Art "Pics We Love"

Yay! My work has been featured in the national magazine Dogster.

http://www.dogster.com/the-scoop/sue-betanzos-dog-art-public  Check it out, it's a fun magazine for dog lovers and their mate Catsers is for kitty lovers. There is a link for it on the page :~)

They showed my acrylics and mosaics below including a few of sweet Risa, my 24/7 K9 companion.

I am excited and honored by this and most of these are available on my website, just click on the purple title to visit the art link.

Betsy - acrylic on canvas

Olivia - acrylic on canvas

Risa Belly Rubs - acrylic on canvas board

Risa Stargazer - mosaic, reverse glass painting

Risa in Yellow - mosaic, reverse glass painting

Mosaic Day

Still working away at a mosaic that if  I had the time to devote exclusively  to would take a couple of weeks to finish. But time is what has been very short since last year when mom got cancer, had to go through a lot  of chemo/radiation plus other commitments.  So now I am devoting as much time as I can to finish this very cool mosaic. There are hundreds of stained glass pieces to go. I will be using a Double Reverse method of application; hence the layout on contact paper over the cement board hand painted with the logo to get it as accurate as possible.
Cement mortar is the adhesive that will be used to attach the finished mosaic to the board. No room for error - a one time deal.  Then colored cement Grout to fill in between the lines and add stability to the piece. This is for an outdoor sign to be mounted onto a gate. The outdoor grout will allow for expansion and contraction of weather heat and cold. Using the correct quality materials is what extends the life of outdoor installations. Always research the specs of materials to be used in any permanent artwork for outdoors. I have learned so much since starting mosaics.

Below are two pieces being offered in my Studio Cyber Savings. (yep, click on the words to view the sale site!). Nebula mosaic, had tinted grout, hand made box frame, signed. And an acrylic chickadee painting for springtime.
Excellent savings for original artwork  that is handcrafted by ME! Plus most of the smaller pieces offer FREE Shipping in the lower 48 USA only. If not in the states, just contact me for shipping fees.

Carabobo Fire

This is in memory of Carabobo, the sweetest kitty. She had dignity, poise and grace - a classy cat.

A sunset background with bits of green to suggest the green of her amazing eyes.

On another note - Arizona is on fire. The smoke from fires in the area have caused so much damage. My heart aches for the people and animals caught in it. Today I just heard Mrs. Green's cabin in Greer AZ was burned to the ground.

I stopped by to introduce myself again to Mrs. Green, the radio celebrity environmentalist. The buzz of activity I encountered when I arrived at Renee's Organic Oven was totally unexpected. Apparently it was a soft grand reopening of the restaurant that specializes in an organic and gluten free menu. Everyone was rushing around and I wondered for the 'inth' time how i lived in an alternate universe - unaware of the goings on. Though my work has hung in the cozy eatery, I tend to happen upon events - an unintended party crasher - again. Where is that inside loop, the 'in crowd' so I can join too?

There was an open house sampling inside the new and improved interior, another sampling outside via Yelp, and a radio show all at the same time. Kudos to Renee for pulling off the hyper busy events.

Mrs. Green graciously included me in her radio show and I got a few minutes to explain what I do and say my name and website. She's a gem and very simpatico, sincere.

Lastly, for all of those out there who have asthma, doesn't the smoke from the fires makes breathing feel like your lungs are two sizes too small?

Risa - Belly Rubs, please?

Risa asking for even More belly rubs! She is so easy to spoil. This is a rich red, which I loved working on. Now for the next one, another aussie since I am in an aussie painting mode. I love the breed and am really working to get more exposure in this genre of dog painting/portraits. I love dogs, but aussies are my passion - intelligent, intuitive, quick to learn & respond, a pleasure to train.

Stay tuned for more paintings and a very cool mosaic project. Hint, it has to do with a wonderful wildlife organization ...