<sub>Hello and welcome to “Horsin’ Around”, a bi-monthly article that brings you the latest news in and around the dA Equine Community! Each issue will be packed full of articles all showcasing the work of our talented artists. There will also be interviews with your favourite equine artists, links to helpful accounts, contests and tutorials, and even a stamp for you to use! Since this is the first issue, I’d be grateful if you could give me feedback on what you think of it, and if you have any suggestions for future issues, I’d love to hear them. I hope you enjoy this issue, and thanks for reading!

~Boribaby</sub>

Featured Digital Equine Artist



I cannot express just how much I adore this artist’s work. She captures the tiniest details in all her work; never overlooking even the finest strands of hair. Go check out her gallery now if you haven’t already done so!


Featured Traditional Equine Artist



Colourful, vibrant, smooth – just some of the words I’d just to describe *karzi01’s beautiful gallery. She is a talented and friendly deviant, so don’t be shy in stopping by her gallery to say hello!


Featured Equine Photographer



A beautiful gallery of photos consisting of everything from peaceful beach scenes to exciting rodeos, ~holdyourhorses has a collection you won’t want to miss!



Spare a Minute For...

_{A selection of artists and some of their works that I feel deserve more faves and views! Please spare a minute, go check out their wonderful galleries and show them your support.}



This artist has a wonderful gallery full of exciting and beautiful pieces. She has a good eye for colour, too. Please check out her work, you won't be disappointed!





A more stylized artist, but a great one nonetheless. She has a lovely style, and has wonderfully bright works in her gallery. And at only 14, she's a really talented young artist!




I was amazed to discover this talented artist only had one picture in her whole gallery that had over 100 faves... her artwork is incredible! I have never seen fur painted so realistically. If you visit her gallery, be sure to fullview her pieces - you will be amazed!



Interview

<sub>Every issue of H.A, I will be interviewing one of your favourite equine artists! This issue, it is Mia is a very well-known and exceptionally talented artist who has graced dA with her exquisite artwork. She has been awarded with three Daily Deviations, and her incredible work is the source of inspiration to many a budding equine artist. If you haven’t already done so, please stop by her gallery... here are just a few of her beautiful pieces:


Hello and thank you for joining us! Could you tell us a little about yourself?
---Thanks! Well, I'm 25 years old, and if anyone didn't know, I love art, and I love horses, thus putting the two together seems kinda natural to me. I've been doing art since I could hold a pen, and school has always been focused on art for me. I currently work as a Visual Merchandiser for a big chain clothes retailer in Sweden, but do freelance commissions on the side.

Cool. How long have you been drawing horses for?
---Since I knew what a horse was and could hold a pen.

Wow, really? Can you tell us why you enjoy drawing them so much?
---It's passion really. To me, there is not one thing so beautiful in all the world as a horse, and I love everything that is beautiful. I mean just look at a horse, they are pure grace, pure wild grace.

Do you have a particular way of drawing horses?
---Emotionally. I paint my horses emotionally - I guess painting horses is a way for me to channel my own dreams and emotions.

Interesting. Can you share with us what your very favourite piece in your gallery is?

---It's not one of my more popular pieces, but I love the colors, and there is a certain peaceful, enjoyable loneliness in it. She's so happy by herself - she rules the dunes, with a silent sense of inner peace, strength and bubbling laughter in her soul. Everyone should be able to enjoy seclusion.

Looks amazing! Do you have an OC (original character)? Can you tell us a little about him/her?
---He was one of my very first, if not THE first (there is a tie between him and my blue Aequus) - Ataraxe. He's mean, hard, rude, and he has a terrible darkness inside of him. He channels some of my own bitterness, but he has a good heart, even if it takes some digging to find it under that scary brutality.

Sounds like a great character. Is there any particular part of equine anatomy that you find difficult to draw?
---Not anymore. In the past I had trouble with various parts in periods - for a while it was the shoulders, then it was the flank/hip area, then it was the hooves. I always had trouble getting the head in proportion as well. I got a lot of critique about my heads being too small - I took it to heart and tried very hard to change that.
Nowadays my biggest troubles are certain angles and perspectives. I think as you work on getting to know your problem areas you learn equine anatomy by heart (best way to solve your anatomy issues? - learn the anatomy!)

Good to know we all have trouble, then! Do you own any horses? If not, do you ride?
---I own one horse yes. She's not been ridden much for the past years since she had a severe injury to her back knee, but she's doing pretty well nowadays. Getting old too, she's 19! This is her: [link]

And do you have a favourite breed?
---I favor Andalusians, and Morgans - but not when that massive neck goes to extremes. Maybe my perfect horse would be a cross between an English Thoroughbred and an Andalusian? My favorite horse color is a seal bay or a very rich mahogany bay.

Awesome! You’ve been an inspiration to a number of budding equine artists out there – can you share some tips to those just starting out?
---For aspiring horse artists - invest in a good horse anatomy book and learn the horse carefully - its skeleton and muscles as well as the exterior proportions. It will save you a lot of grief if you know what the horse actually looks like underneath its skin.

Thank you for your time. Any last pieces of advice you can give to your fellow equine artists?
---Take a step back. There are all kinds of problems you run into when painting - it’s easy to get absorbed with one little thing, but take a step back every now and then and look at the 'big picture'. If something troubles you, work on something else for a while instead. Be patient! It's easy to rush an image when you think you're getting close to finishing it! The lure of posting it on DA (or any other site) is a treacherous one - give the image one more day to mature when you think you are finished. You won't regret it!

And a little greeting to you all- I'm always available if you want critique on your artwork! Just send me note, or two if I'm slow at getting back to you!
*Losmios

Next issue’s interview will be with Do you have a question for her? Send me a note, and see if it’ll be featured!

Featured Equine Web Comic

There are many wonderful horse-related comics around dA, and I hope this article will help bring them more exposure!

This issue, I would like to introduce *Katusia's comic, "Whirlwinds of Darkness". It’s well written, has gorgeous scenery, and interesting characters. Go read it now!




Features

Every month, the theme will be different! August's theme: Mares and Foals.





Photography Corner

Showcasing some of the finest and most majestic images of equines from talented photographers around the world.





Contests

There's always a contest or two going on in the equine community! I've listed a few of the current ones going on at the moment, and ones ending soon. Are you hosting a contest and want it advertised here? Let me know!


Theme: Create a horse. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: August 21 2009


Theme: Draw one of your characters, with one of mine as pegasi. The catch? The wings must be based on a bird. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: September 1st 2009


Theme: Turn your favorite musician(s)(depending if its a duet), whole band, or band member into a horse. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: No deadline yet


Theme: Design a stallion for her mare. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: Check with deviant


Help Desk

In this section you will find links to horse stock accounts, clubs and helpful tutorials.

Horse Clubs



Helpful Resources

Having trouble with a difficult pose? Stuck on how to draw from a certain perspective? Don’t fear! There are a number of wonderful stock accounts around dA with plenty of beautiful stock photos for you to reference. Always abide by the stock artist’s rules, and always remember to link back and credit the photo you use.



Helpful Tutorials

Need help with drawing manes and tails? Can’t figure out how to colour in photoshop? Unsure how to shade? Then look no further! Here’s a collection of helpful tutorials for you to look at.



Letters

Got something on your mind? A question that needs answering? Any comments in general? Then send me a note, and I’ll try my best to answer! The person who gets Star Letter will win themselves a special feature in the next issue.

Since this section is too new to feature letters and such, I'm going to end this issue with a note from my friend, =Susesz who is looking for a bit of help! If you think you can help her, drop her a note. Until next time, everyone!

"Beauty, elegance, freedom...words came into many of our minds when we hear the word: HORSE.
We all love horses, draw them and this is why we are the "Equine Community" here on deviantART.
I used to draw them too. Firstly I started to draw horses when 'Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron' from DreamWorks came out. The movie amazed me and I started to like horses too. I drew many of them, studied their anatomy and wanted to be better and better. I also came to dA as a Horse-artist and my name spread here as a horse-artist too.
But a half year ago something changed in me. I don't really know what happened with me but I started to get bored about horses. My horse art became worse and worse and my last deviation about a horse took me almost 10 hours to complete and still look bad with that anatomy. To explain it in the older times a horse art which looked good and the anatomy was nice took me just 4-5 hours. But now...
Of course it doesn't mean that I hate horses now, I still love them and I want to draw them again that good like I used to. I just need something which inspires me again and gives me joy of a horse's drawing. I still have some horses on my To-Do-list I just don't know how will I complete it, because the ones who I owe these to are waiting for a long time and I feel bad about it.
I wrote it down because I don't know if it happened with any of YOU here? In the older times just started to draw horses again? If yes please write to me I want to understand what exactly happened with me. I became a wolf and fantasy artist and I don't want to lost my horses who I love so much. It's not an art-block because I'm still drawing. So please write to me if you feel, understand this problem together!

Thank you if you read it and also Thank You to Michelle aka =boribaby who was so kind and accepted to write this article into "Horsin' Around."

~Susesz</sub>