<sub>Hello everyone, and welcome to “Horsin’ Around”, a bi-monthly article that brings you the latest news in and around the dA Equine Community! 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. If you think that you, or anyone else you know, deserves a feature, let me know and I’ll feature them here! I hope you enjoy this issue, and thanks for reading!

*MichelleWalker

P.S: Sorry to all the regular H.A. readers out there for the hiatus - it was a busy time for me over Christmas and New Year, and it was impossible for me to keep up with the magazine. Forgive me!

Issue 1/Issue 2/Issue 3/Issue 4/Issue 5/<A HREF=”[link]">Issue 6</a>/Issue 7/Issue 8/Issue 9</sub> </b>


Love for the Underappreciated</u>

_{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.} </i>


_{Suggested by *scenceable}</i>

Stephanie is a very talented traditional artist who is highly skilled at colouring with pencils. Her beautiful drawings are full of life and colour – go see for yourself!
:thumb136321404:



I stumbled upon this amazing gallery only recently, and was blown away by the incredible array of photos in it! She’s very talented. Be sure to stop by her main account, ~paula2206, for stunning equine artwork and fantasy pieces too!



_{Suggested by ~fantasydreamer24}</i>

This artist has a small, but incredibly beautiful gallery with gorgeous equine art.  Be sure to check out her interesting “Feline Horses” - they’ll make you smile!


Featured Digital Equine Artist</u>



It was difficult chosing which category to place Kara in, but in the end I went with digital. But her traditional art shouldn’t be overlooked! She’s a very talented artist in both mediums.
  

Featured Traditional Equine Artist</u>



Photo or painting? That is the question you’ll be asking yourself when you look through this incredible artist’s small, but incredibly stunning gallery!
  

Featured Equine Photographer</u>



An incredible young photographer who has a gorgeous gallery filled with spectacular and inspiring equine photos! Definitely worth watching.


Featured Equine Photomanipulator</u>



This artist has a gallery full of beautifully crafted manipulations and some lovely equine photos too! Be sure to stop by and check out her work!
:thumb135492587: :thumb145229188:  :thumb96850204:


An Interview With... </u>

<sub>Every issue of H.A, I will be interviewing one of your favourite equine artists! This issue, it is Nicola has been a member of deviantART for three years now, and has a unique and beautiful style that most people will recognize. She excels in both stylized and realistic works, and her main character, Apache, is well known within the dA herd!  Nicola is known for her warmth and generosity, and her work is just a pleasure to look at. She is an inspiration to many an artist here on deviantART!


Hello and thank you for joining us! Could you tell us a little about yourself?
Hi, my name is Nicola and I'm 21 years old. I currently live in Aberdeen in Scotland where I am in my final year of studying Zoology.

Cool. How long have you been drawing horses for?
Ooohh for a very long time, but I only started seriously drawing horses when I joined DA, back in 2006.

Wow, really? Can you tell us why you enjoy drawing them so much?
I used to go riding a lot when I was younger with my sister, so we were horse crazy. I guess it just made sense for me to draw them.

Do you have a particular way of drawing horses?
I draw circles, then connect the circles until it starts to resemble a horse. It takes a while though, especially to get the proportions right.  

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

I don't know why but I have always been proud of this one. For once, everything turned out how I wanted it too!

Looks amazing!  Do you have an OC (original character)? Can you tell us a little about him/her?

Yus I do! His name is Apache and he is a goofball who likes causing mischief ^_^ I love Appaloosas and Native American history so I combined the two! He was originally called Prince though.

Awesome! Is there any particular part of equine anatomy that you find difficult to draw?
Hmm, I think it depends on the pose, certain angles make parts harder to draw, like the neck or hooves. I struggle giving emotion to my art, which is why most of my pictures have horses with very blank expressions. Oh, and hair, getting it flow right is a pain!

Good to know we all have trouble, then! So what would be your favourite part of drawing?
I like the part when it all comes together, I spend a lot of time on each aspect, so after a while I get bored. There is a point though, where you look at it and get really excited with how its turning out. I do love shading though!

Where do you get your inspiration from?
Anything! I spend a lot of time browsing DA so any interesting picture or concept always makes me want to draw.

And what do you use to make your art?
Ahh, my trusty Graphire4 tablet and photoshop CS3. ^_^

You’ve been an inspiration to a number of budding equine artists out there – can you share some tips to those just starting out?
Keep it simple, master the basics first and practice anything you struggle with and don't rush!

  Thank you for your time. Any last pieces of advice you can give to your fellow equine artists?
Never give up, and don't be afraid to use references.</sub>
</i>

Equine Fiction</u>

Comic</u>

_{There are many wonderful horse-related comics and fanfiction around dA, so if you have one, please let me know and I’ll feature it here!}</sub>

“Until We Meet Again” is a bright, charming story by that follows the life of a curious filly named Dixie. Even though there are only two pages so far, this will be worth watching as this young artist’s style develops!


Themed Features</u>

_{January’s theme: Snow.}</i>


_{January’s colour: Purple.}</i>


_{January’s breed: Shetland Pony.}</i>
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Photography Corner</u>

_{Showcasing some of the finest and most majestic images of equines from talented photographers and photo-manipulators around the world.}</sub>




Contests</u>

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? Then drop me a note with a link to your journal, a brief description and a date for the deadline and I’ll feature it in the next issue!


Theme: Improvement Contest. Read about it here: [link]
Closing date: March 1st


Theme: Lyrical. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: Check with deviant


Theme: Design a character. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: April 11th

Help Desk</u>

_{Helpful Resources</u>}

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.

_{Featured Stock Account}</sub></u>



This wonderful stock account has helped many artists (including myself!) when it comes to drawing or photomanips. All of the photos are crystal clear with decent download sizes, and there’s a good variation of unusual and stationary poses in their gallery. This account is definitely one I highly recommend!