| About the Artist Barb Gable |
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| The artist with husband Dave |
| I live in Northeastern Pennsylvania, near the Pocono Mountains and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre...when I married Dave and moved here from Chicago, I had no idea I would come to love this rural setting as much as I do now! A real city mouse living in the country! Ancient history! I knew from an early age that I wanted to be an artist; luckily my parents recognized and encouraged my talents! I graduated from Northern Illinois University in 1977 with a B.A. in Studio Art; I have worked as a draftsperson, advertising manager for a newspaper, and a graphic arts assistant...I was also Art Director for a small-size advertising specialties company in suburban Chicago. Dave and I were married in 1979; from Illinois I moved to Northeastern Pennsylvania... Family, Activities Son Mark and daughter Jennifer grew up in our piece of countryside--we had our own forest preserve in our own 88 acres of backyard! Deer, raccoons, chipmunks, squirrels, wild turkeys, grouse, pheasant--even bear live back in our woods (though I`ve never had personal contact with one!) Mark went to college and played football; Dave is an ASA umpire during the summer months, and Jen is an extraordinary horsewoman and pet specialist. Horses became a part of our lives when Jen joined the local 4H group--sometimes we ride in local parades with the horses, and I get to sew the Western shirts that we wear for that...Dave and I are wearing MATCHING shirts in the photo above...see Dave and Jen below on their horses...Our latest adventures with horses are with the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) where they are outfitted in Middle Ages Tournament barding...ask me about it! (see photo below, I`m on the horse!) My SCAdian website (more garb, scrolls, and horses)-- is here. Recent endeavors I never painted during my art education; I never thought I would be using anything but "dry" medium--pencil, marker, pastels, ink...but one day I picked up a copy of Lin Wellford`s "Painting Animals on Rocks" and I was enchanted...there is NO shortage of rocks in Pennsylvania, so my rock-painting adventure began! Somewhere in 1999 I discovered internet art groups on the computer; and I found new friends who shared my passion for painting on rocks... THEN a dear friend of mine had mentioned feather-painting...now, here on the East coast, where not many Western Native American arts are common, I had never heard of such a thing; but I was willing to teach myself this "new" art! There are no instruction books to be found...YET. I HAVE created a "Feather-Painting Kit" that teaches the basics to a beginner; check it out HERE. Through much trial-and-error, I succeeded in getting a painting onto a feather, and since then I have created many paintings on unconventional objects--rocks, feathers, leaves...and I`ve even tried my hand at painting on canvas! Shows, sales, and publicity I have sold a lot of my painted pet portraits on rocks; it seems to have become my specialty! And I`ve probably given away more than I have sold! I have painted various breeds of dogs and cats on river stones; even horses, bunnies, frogs, and zoo animals... My vendor career began with "equine art"...painted horses on T-shirts and other wearables, and functional art (such as tote bags and ball caps) A painted feather photo was published in Decorative Artist`s Workbook magazine, my very first published work of art! See article here. My work can be seen at various art/craft shows in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, and on the Internet (as you have discovered!) Around October through December I start painting for sale on Ebay, my seller name is shadyladyblue- ...check out my auctions HERE. All of my work is hand-painted; I do not use transfers or published patterns from craft books, although I may use my designs more than once for other things--the animals I paint are from photographs or other reference pictures. Paintings are done with acrylic paints; frames for painted feathers are purchased as I am not handy with power tools! All rock paintings are sealed with clear acrylic for beauty and protection. Thank you for taking the time to read about me, I hope you enjoy your visit to my pages! -Barb [Douglas] Gable- |
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| (photo by Lord Lev of Whyt Whey) |