Category: Art

Nature Friday ~ February 13, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 63 Comments

Welcome to another episode of Nature Friday where we join those cuties from Adventures of the LLB Gang. Don’t forget to click on the link to see what others have shared for their Nature Friday blog hop. Wilson here…oh dear…I guess today is Friday the 13th. Mum says the date is associated with bad luck in Western cultures and can occur up to three times a year. She thinks I’ll likely suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia, which is derived from three Greek words – Paraskevi (“Friday”), triskaideka (“thirteen”), and phobos (“fear”) to describe the fear individuals experience relating to the date and to diagnose those who suffer from it. This fear is also sometimes referred to as friggatriskaidekaphobia, the joining of Frigg (the Norse goddess for whom Friday is named) with the term triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13). Mum started off my day by telling me that I’m getting a bath today {gasp} even though I was just groomed 3 weeks ago. Apparently my once white feet paddles aren’t so white now. She said I’m going to be a guest at a fundraiser for the rescue hosted by Kendra Scott, a jewelry store who will donate a percentage of each sale to the Rocky Mountain Old English Sheepdog Rescue. The store is located in Cherry Creek (you can read about the last Kendra Scott Give Back event that Angel Norman participated in here). She told me it’s a big honor to participate since a portion of their sales tomorrow will go to the rescue. Mum said peeps can order online or go to the store in person and any sale will count toward the give back fundraiser. I’ll be going for the treats while you humans can shop for your Valentine’s day sweetie.

The Mum: Listen, I realize you despise baths, but just think about the yummy treats you’ll receive. We’re going to our favorite self-wash, Lily’s Bath and Biscuits and I’ll be picking up another bag of those yummy dehydrated buffalo treats you like so much…

Wilson: {interrupting and drooling} Wait…did I hear you say “dehydrated buffalo treats?” Ok, count me in…I can endure a bath for those kinds of treats. Those are my absolute favorites.

The Mum: {smiling} I thought you might see it that way.

Wilson: Anywho…let me share a few slices of Nature that we encountered this past week including this sunset. We missed the brightest part of it but it still has some pretty color on the clouds and the nearby western foothills.

Sunrise

Wilson: Mum says she saw a new neighbor early one morning but she’s only seen him/her in the window. She thought it looked like some kind of Doodle and we hope to meet the owner and pup in person soon.

The Mum: We were lucky to catch the same view of sunset a few days later.

Wilson: So I heard DIA’s Blue Mustang sculpture, often referred to as “Blucifer,” located just outside the entrance to the airport, had a birthday a couple of days ago. Hard to believe it turned 18 on Wednesday. It’s been a controversial piece of public art since it was created by Luis Jiménez, who tragically died in 2006 when a piece of the sculpture fell on him as he was working on it. Members of his family and staff eventually completed the sculpture. The statute is 32 feet tall, and weighs 9,000 pounds. It’s made of blue fiberglass with glowing red eyes which are said to have been a tribute to the artist’s father who owned a neon sign shop. Located along Peña Boulevard, it’s been a prominent but immensely controversial art installation. Originally a buffalo stampede had been proposed but abandoned after the developer deemed it a poor choice due to the near extinction of buffalo in the West. Jiménez who was known for his fiberglass sculptures that are brightly painted, proposed a mustang as a more appropriate symbol of the West. It was partially modeled after Jiménez’ own horse and designed to welcome travelers to the gateway to the U. S. West.

The Mum: I know a lot of people despise it and it has often lambasted, but I’ve always thought it was an impressive piece of public art, because of its scale and appearance. It is particularly extraordinary at night. What do you think of this sculpture?

“Blue Mustang” at night courtesy of 9News

Wilson: Whoa…that night view is…gosh, I don’t know…kind of creepy, Mum.

The Mum: I wouldn’t say creepy but it definitely makes you think how you feel about it and isn’t that what art’s supposed to do?

Wilson: Hmmm, you make a good point. Ok, let’s just say it’s just not my favorite. How’s that?

The Mum: I can respect that. So what plans do you have for the Valentine’s Day weekend? Doing anything special for your sweetheart? We hope your weekend is fun and special. Happy Valentine’s Day from us and we send our best wishes for a great weekend.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Nature Friday ~ February 6, 2026

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 74 Comments

Howdy peeps, Wilson dropping in here for this week’s edition of Nature Friday where we join our mates from at Adventures of the LLB Gang. Don’t forget to click on the link to see what others have shared for their Nature Friday blog hop. Mum loves it when I parkour for her. This log is kinda slippery but I managed to hold on long enough for her to fumble around take the picture. Hel-lo, I’m sliding down here. Sheesh, humans don’t realize how hard we try to please their silly whims and what we have to go through to get there. Anyway…last week we said we’d share a few of the nature pics from the Pissarro exhibit, The Honest Eye: Camille Pissarro’s Impressionism. Mum is a big fan of Impressionistic art and was pretty blown away with more than 100 beautiful paintings from Pissarro, learning Denver is the only venue where his exhibit will show in the U.S.

One of the beautiful pieces he painted of the Caribbean before moving to Paris

Wilson: Perhaps not as well known as Monet, Pissarro was a central figure in the movement, and is often credited with being the father of Impressionism. Pissarro was the only painter to exhibit in all eight Impressionist exhibitions (1874-1886) and significantly influenced many of the Post-Impressionists, like Paul Cézanne, Georges Seurat, Paul Gauguin, and Vincent van Gogh, mentoring them through many artistic challenges. Pissarro ‘s art often championed everyday scenes, painting peasants and rural workers with dignity and respect, thus elevating the lives of common folks in his art, which Renoir said was a revolutionary act at the time. Pissarro was known for his consistent work, but he also experimented with Neo-Impressionism (Pointillism) but abandoned the movement after a few years. He spent his life exploring the effects of light and atmosphere and how it affected color, according to Create! Art School and The Denver Art Museum.

The Mum: Pissarro was completely dedicated to holding independent exhibitions in the early Impressionist period as it emerged in the 20th century. I was particularly impressed with his work utilizing the pointillism technique developed by Georges Seurat and Paul Signac, the technique of painting where small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image. It was a demanding technique that took much longer to complete the work. Pissarro’s life was fraught with personal and financial difficulties, having married his mother’s maid which caused problems within the family. He was the only artist to have shown his work at all eight Paris Impressionist exhibitions, from 1874 to 1886.

Wilson: He must have been something back in his day despite struggling financially his whole life. Didn’t you say several of his children became artists?

The Mum: Indeed. He constantly wrote letters about and to his children and was a devoted father to them as well as being the father of Impressionism. His use of color and light was extraordinary.  As I walked through the exhibit, I was very impressed by his devotion to the family and his art.

Wilson: You walked through another exhibit that you really liked as well. Just check out this piece. These grapes looked incredibly realistic.

The Mum: Yes, I was very impressed by that piece. I sadly neglected to note the painter’s name, but think he was an American artist. All in all, the museum outing was great fun and I was especially glad I was able to see some amazing artwork showing lots of scenes from Nature.

Wilson: In other news about Nature, I noticed your friend, Figaro is back after you cut back all the spindly branches when we moved. I guess your tender care after he looked outside last autumn and said, “Eek! It’s autumn and I must shed my leaves like all the other plants,” is finally paying off. This week he started to set new buds and leaves. Maybe it’s a sign that Spring is just around the corner? {paws crossed} I’m looking forward to watching him grow leaves and hopefully he’ll set a bunch of fruit, too.

The Mum: I was practically beside myself when I saw that buds were forming. It’s all very exciting and hope he continues to grow back.

Wilson: Like I always say, whatever turns your handle. I just hope the fruit tastes good. Well, that’s it from us, let’s wrap up and sweep up this latest episode with this sculpture from outside of the museum, shall we? Have you got any plans for this weekend beyond watching the Super Bowl, the half-time show and the ads? We’ll be entertaining some out of town company and hope everyone has a great weekend even if your team isn’t in the game. Have a great time and don’t forget to get outside and take in slices of Nature, whether in a landscape or even in artwork. Cheers mates!

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Nature Friday ~ June 28, 2024

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 78 Comments

Welcome to the last Friday of the month. Gosh, it is just me or did this month fly by? Elsa here and I’m joined by Wilson, the House Pony  with today’s edition of Nature Friday where we join our pals from Adventures of the LLB Gang. Don’t forget to click on the link to see what other posts were shared. Today is the first installment from Mom’s recent trip to the Denver Botanical Gardens where she saw the latest outdoor exhibit called Spirit Guides in addition to gorgeous beautiful trees and blooming flowers. So what’s this special exhibit all about? It’s full of fantastical, large animal sculptures that remind us of the connection between inhabitants of the natural and cosmological world. So who exactly are these artists? Jacobo and María Ángeles are a married artistic team based in Oaxaca, Mexico. These brightly colored sculptures are made from fiberglass and acrylic paint and are distinctly patterned, combining contemporary art practices with folk art traditions. The workshop where they created these sculptures doubles as an art school, allowing its attendees a way to advance and develop their artistic skills. These creations have been exhibited in museums throughout the world depicting imaginary hybrid animals that act as spirit guides. So come along and let’s check a few of them out.

Wilson: Near the entrance to the gardens, this guy greeted everyone. Can you say colorful?!

Elsa: WHAT…I CAN’T HEAR YOU…THAT SCULPTURE IS TOO LOUD!

Wilson: Now, now, little sister. Be nice. I rather think it’s quite fetching. There were some remarkable creatures and I was quite pleased there were no squirrel-like creatures in the lot.

Elsa: You and your obsession with squirrels. Let it go, dude.

Wilson: Ahem, let see another one of those colorful ‘spirit guides.’ This one was near the exit. Just look at the whimsicalness.

Elsa: You call that whimsical? He seems a bit scary even if the colors were amazing. You weren’t afraid of him?

Wilson: What? Oh heavens, no. He just put on a brave face no doubt because of all the visitors to the gardens. It was a pretty packed place with several large groups of kids visiting the gardens. I think he was just trying to brave the crowds and put on that serious face because of the heat. It was another toasty day in the Mile High after reaching triple digits earlier in the week.

Elsa: Seems plausible. It has been hot. Got any photos that aren’t quite as serious looking?

Wilson: Well, how about this one? I thought he was pretty silly looking in a whimsical sort of way. Can you believe all that detailed work on the tail feathers? Almost makes you dizzy, doesn’t it? You really needed to walk all around these sculptures and check it out from every angle to truly appreciate how amazing they were.

Elsa: You got that right…peacocks should never be taken seriously. They’re silly birds.

Wilson:  I’m not sure about the silly part. I mean, look at the close up of his face. He’s the first peacock I’ve ever seen. So what do you think this is supposed to be?

Elsa: Is that a rhetorical question? Those are Airbnb condos for pollinators who need a place to stay while passing through town. Mom said the gardens revamped that condo area by adding various kinds of wood and sticks as well as woolen baskets, boxes and fabric. The baskets are umm…creative. But I’m glad to see all the interest in helping pollinators out a bit. They need as much help as they can get these days, what with climate change and other environmental conditions.

Wilson: Blimey…look at all those fabric bits. A bloke could have a ball shredding/chewing all those bits.

Elsa: Ssshhh…don’t let Mom hear you say that…she’ll blame you for everything that mysteriously finds itself shredded/chewed. Hmmm, that gives me an idea…I think I just found a terrific foil for conducting special Ninja business.

Wilson: What’s that you say…I’m not sure I heard you right.

Elsa: Oh nothing {changing the subject}. Got any other photos  you care to share?

Wilson: Well…while we’re on the topic of pollinators, Mum said there were loads of Swallowtail butterflies and dragonflies flitting around. She followed a few of the Swallowtails but the dragonflies never landed long enough to photograph. Way too quick I guess, but they were apparently great entertainment. I’m sure I could have captured one or two of them.

Elsa: {eyes rolling} Oh right. You haven’t even been able to capture a single miller moth yet.

Wilson: Well they taste like crap so why in the world would I even want to try?

Elsa: Uh-huh. Whatever gets you through the night, Big Guy. Okay, let’s save some pics for next week, shall we? So what’s on your agenda this weekend?

Wilson:  Mum says I’m to going to have a second evaluation for doing pet therapy visits at the hospital. I hear there may be treats involved so I’ll be sure to be on my best behavior.

Elsa:  Oh for heaven’s sake…do you ever think of anything other than food?

Wilson: What else is there when it comes to securing a good dog’s attention? Apart from plotting against squirrels, that is.

Elsa: Oh jeez. Well whatever you do, we hope you stay as cool  as possible. Enjoy your weekend.

Live, love, bark!  🐾

Nature Friday ~ November 3, 2023

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 58 Comments

Welcome to the first Friday of November. My goodness, any idea as to how in the dog did we got to November already? As always we’re joining our friends from Adventures of the LLB Gang. Make sure you click on the link to see what else was shared.

The Mom: Yoo-hoo, oh Elsa…time to share pics from this week for Nature Friday.

Elsa: Nope, not coming out. I’m still recovering from the humiliation I suffered from wearing that ridiculous Halloween outfit.

The Mom: Aww come on, everyone thought you were cute.

Elsa: Cute?? Baby ducks are cute! I am a Ninja.

The Mom: Ahh sweetie, I’m sorry if you’re feeling bad about your Halloween photo. I was super proud of you for posing so nicely. You did well, Ninja.

Elsa: Of course I did well. Remember, I’m a total professional.

The Mom: And professionals don’t pout. They lift their head, put their big girl pants on and get back to doing what they are extra good at.

Elsa: Nope, I told you already…I’m not doing it.

The Mom: {begging while pulling out the extra high value treats from the cupboard} Please? For me? {crinkling the package}

Elsa: Oh man, you don’t play fair, do you? You know I can’t resist those dehydrated fish skins. They are so addictive and I absolutely love them. Ok, but you better keep ’em flowing if you expect me to share this week’s nature looks from around the ‘Hood. Got it, Kemosabe?

The Mom: Deal! So other than Halloween, what have you been up to this week?

Elsa: Well, there was that 6 inches of white stuff that hit us over the weekend. That was kind of an adventure. And then there was the cold that followed. But I gotta admit, I’ve been having a blast eating my weight in snow on our walks.

The Mom: Yeah, you have been obsessed with chewing snow along our walks. What’s up with that?

Elsa: IMy new job-I’m on water quality control recognisance. Denver Water contacted me to check it out for dogs everywhere in the metro area.

The Mom: Uh-huh…sure. I don’t think that’s a real job.

Elsa: It is for me. I can’t let snow that’s built up next to sidewalks go un-tasted. Plus, I’m keeping hydrated-very important for us canine ninjas.

The Mom: {eyes rolling} Maybe we ought to move along. So what would you like to feature this week?

Elsa: Well, let’s go with the obvious. Like I said, it snowed about 6 inches of white stuff but then it also added about 87 inches of green stuff.

The Mom: Don’t remind me. The Silver Maple and the Catalpa trees didn’t appreciate the weather and kinda went crazy shedding leaves.

We're gonna need more trash bins
87 inches of green stuff
So many more to fall

Elsa: Thanks for raking them up from the sidewalk…you know how much I despise walking on them…although I noticed they aren’t crunchy, but they are gross and mushy. Still…no bueno in my books.

The Mom: I agree, they stick to my shoes and your paws and we both end up dragging them into the house. Definitely no bueno. Vacuuming every 12 minutes is not my idea of fun and games.

Elsa: You’ll get no argument from me on vacuuming. That noisy beast scares me.

The Mom: And then as if on cue, the wind came up and dropped another ton. I need to figure out what to do with them in the interim since it’ll be next week before the city will collect leaves for the compost project. Sigh.

Elsa: Ugh. Don’t tell me things like that. I’ll worry my pretty little head off.

The Mom: Oh no, don’t do that. It’s just that it is that time of year where leaves fall; we just have to accept this part of Mother Nature.

Elsa: {boo…hiss} I vote no.

The Mom: Sadly, it won’t make a difference on that kind of vote.

Elsa: Harumph…so much for democracy.

The Mom: {shaking her head} Oh sweetie…what else you got?

Elsa: Well I was thinking we should share pics of those funky critters we encountered. I still can’t believe why some uprights put this kind of stuff in their gardens!

The Mom: The first one really cracked me up. Everyone around here has jumped on the Colorado Buffaloes bandwagon and their notorious Coach Prime…aka Deion Sanders. Lo and behold when I walked over to the Post Office, I came across this new sculpture. It took me a second to realize it’s a buffalo! Interesting metal work, don’t you think?

Buffalo sculpture
Giraffe
Guard dog

Elsa: Hmm, not sure I get it but this just goes to show art is in the eyes of the beholder. I was pleased to see you were brave enough to walk up the stairs to photograph that giraffe but glad you captured it quickly. That guard dog was none too pleased with us scoping out his giraffe. Speaking of giraffe, isn’t that the one we saw through the trees back in August? You can see that post here.

The Mom: Good memory, Ninja. Yes, it was obscured through all the brush but I decided to get closer now that most of the leaves have fallen. I really do like that piece. So unusual.

Elsa: Well as long as I don’t have to give that guard dog a piece of my mind, I guess it’s ok. Sheesh, not very hospitable was he? You should have let me teach him some manners.

The Mom: Umm, no..that’s fine. Besides, he was just protecting his giraffe. That’s his job and you wouldn’t want to deprive him of his job, now would you?

Elsa: {pondering for a moment} Yeah, you’re probably right but I was ready to go Rocky on his butt. Nobody talks to my Mom like that and gets away with it.

The Mom: Aww, aren’t you sweet? So I went back to Sloan’s Lake a couple of days ago to see how things looked after last week. All the gold and reddish colored trees have dropped their leaves but the cattails were kind of interesting. I also noticed the squirrels and birds should get nice & chonky this month with pumpkins and fruit setting on trees.

Cattails
Winter fruit
Mt Evans

Elsa: Mt. Evans in the distant with the snow was kinda cool. Too bad you couldn’t get a better angle from the hill. It was much prettier than this pic lets on.

The Mom: Sometimes you just gotta go with what you can get. Still, it was a pretty morning looking west from the lake instead of toward downtown.

Elsa: Well that’s it from me. So…got anything cooking for the weekend? I think we’re just gonna chill (though it will be nice around here for a few days). Whatever you do, we hope you get outside and check out what Nature’s got going on. We realize it’s that time of year where things get busy as folks gear up for the holidays, but trust me…it’d be good to look around and see the beauty out there. Have a ‘wagnificent’ weekend.

Live, love, bark! 🐾