Sta.sh
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
Issue 1/Issue 2/Issue 3/Issue 4/Issue 5/Issue 6/Issue 7/Issue 8/Issue 9/Issue 10
Love for the Underappreciated
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 talented photographer has some seriously underappreciated works in her gallery!
She has a wonderful array of gorgeous equine photos, so be sure to stop by and check them out!:thumb142111774: :thumb145529960: :thumb151334345:
This gallery has some beautiful photos and delicate artwork in it! Definitely a classic example of quality over quantity.
You won't be disappointed!
This artist has a good variety of stylized, reasitic and equine photography in her lovely gallery. She really deserves more watchers and faves, so stop by!
Featured Digital Equine Artist
This amazing artist has a stunning gallery filled with gorgeous horse and fantasy art! If you haven't already seen her incredible artwork, now's the time!
Featured Traditional Equine Artist
Even though I'm not the biggest fan of anthro art, I have to admit, this talented artist has some tasteful and beautiful artwork in her amazing gallery!
Featured Equine Photographer
I really enjoyed looking through this amazing photographer's gallery – she really knows how to capture the natural beauty of horses!
A trip to her page is well worth it. 
Featured Equine Photomanipulator
This talented artist has a really interesting gallery with some exciting and seamlessly blended manips. Her work is gorgeous, so be sure to stop by if you haven't already done so!
An Interview With...
Every issue of H.A, I will be interviewing one of your favourite equine artists! This issue, it is
Malin has secured herself as one of dA's finest equine artists, thanks to her beautiful style, use of colour and enchanting backgrounds. Even though she's still relatively new to the site, her art has brough joy to all those that watch her! She has a knack for designing beautiful characters, and we can only expect her art to go from strength to strength. Go and watch her now if you haven't already done so – you won't regret it! 
Hello and thank you for joining us! Could you tell us a little about yourself? Hello! My name is Malin and I am 21 years old. I currently live in England with my fiancé, but originally I'm from Finland. I came here over three years ago to study art, but after the courses finished, I decided to keep it art as a hobby only and progress onto Computer Games Design at the local University instead.
Cool. How long have you been drawing horses for?I've been drawing horses on and off since I was around 10. My sister always drew such amazing horses, and I wanted to aswell. It was only last year that I really started getting into drawing horses again, much thanks to the digital softwares available at my college.
Wow, really? Can you tell us why you enjoy drawing them so much?I've always admired horses for their pure strength and beauty, their elegance and grace. They have to be one of the most magnificent creatures of all!
Do you have a particular way of drawing horses? Not really. I look at a lot of references first, then start building up a sketchy line-art, erasing and adding bits where I see fit. Then I add flat colours and shapes, and get rid of the lines as soon as possible again.
Interesting. Can you share with us what your very favourite piece in your gallery is? 
A tough choice really. I don't have any particular favourite as such, but this one is definately one of which I'm the most happy with! It turned out pretty much how I intended (which is rare!) and for once, the colours went well together aswell (a very important factor for me).
Looks amazing! Do you have an OC? Can you tell us a little about him/her?
I don't have many OC's yet - I never really get around to draw much personal work nowadays! But Chrysanth is, so far, my main one. She's a little copper-red Arabian lady, with a fiery temper and a curious nature.
Awesome! Is there any particular part of equine anatomy that you find difficult to draw?Ooh, too many! I don't particularly like ears or muzzles, at least not close-up (from a distant I hope no-one will notice how odd they look!), and I'm not too keen on the neck/shoulder part either. At least not when it comes to shading it! I like drawing hooves though, even though they are almost always of different sizes...
Good to know we all have trouble, then! So what would be your favourite part of drawing? I do like drawing manes/tails, which is why they are oftenly blowing in the wind in my pictures! And after hating drawing backgrounds for a while, I have to say I've really started to appreciate how they can complete the picture and add so much more emotion and depth to it. So yeah, backgrounds and skies have become favourites too.
And where do you get your inspiration from? Inspiration is everywhere! It's in the music I listen to, the films I watch, the games I play, and most certainly in other people's art aswell. I just have to browse through the galleries on here to find too many ideas and be inspired to draw too many things at once!
That's interesting. Is there any particular medium you would like to try? I don't draw with pen on paper half as much as I used to, now that I've got the luxury of the digital version. But I would definately want to go back and work more on those skills more.
You've been an inspiration to a number of budding equine artists out there – can you share some tips to those just starting out?I'm sure everyone's tired of hearing it by now, but practise is the key to perfection. Look at a lot of photos (don't be afraid of using references) and practise drawing from them. Don't throw away any sketches, no matter how terrible you think they look. After a hundred more tries, you can look back and realise how much you've learnt and improved.
Thank you for your time. Any last pieces of advice you can give to your fellow equine artists?Be patient and don't be afraid to try new things and challenge yourself! Every time you learn something new, you grow a little bit as an artist. You will be more prepared for new challenges, and your work will show a deeper variety in many ways.
Equine Fiction
Comic
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!
"Practice of Finding" is a lovely comic by
that is really well illustrated and interesting to follow. Here are the first couple of pages to get you started! 
Themed Features
February's theme: Fanart.
February's colour: Brown.
February's breed: Halflinger.
Photography Corner
Showcasing some of the finest and most majestic images of equines from talented photographers and photo-manipulators 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? 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: Design a Mystic horse for her story. Read about it here: [link]
Closing Date: February 8th 2010
Theme: "Wildfire Herd on Broadway". Read about it here: [link]
Closing date: February 28th 2010
Theme: "Brick Ranch Winter Show". Read about it here: [link]
Closing date: March 18th 2010
Theme: Adoptables. Read about it here: [link]
Closing date: March 31st 2010
Help Desk
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.
to this issue is the "Group" section, where I'll feature one of the many exciting equine groups around dA. Want your group featured in a future issue? Just drop me a note! Featured Stock Account
This is an awesome stock account with hundreds of really helpful horse photos in various poses! You'll spend ages browsing through this great gallery.
Featured Group
This is a great group for any of you new equine artists out there who are looking for some support and help when it comes to drawing horses. So, if you're a beginner, this is the group for you!
Letters
I recently got a note from
who is looking for someone to red-line this sketch for her:
If anyone out there thinks they can help, please do drop her a note! Thanks guys!
I feel so left out I never get featured
nevermind
Have you seen my comic yet? I've made 13 pages!
brillianty done michelle, i love reading this!<3
I have a contest, is it possible for u to show it on your next monthly journal?
Wow, thank you so much! This means so much to me. 8D I was having quite the day too, haha. Logging on to find my inbox overflowing with new comments and favourites really lifted my spirits!
And howlinghorse totally deserved that feature too.
Love it!