About Our Freestyle 2008 Poster

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We are delighted to present our Freestyle 2008 poster, created especially for us by Gretchen Almy.

Gretchen has generously donated her original artwork, which will be sold at auction on October 5 for the benefit of the Bear Spot Foundation for Equine Facilititated Psychotherapy. Don't miss this exciting event!

A mixture of photography, digital art (drawn or painted into the computer via a tablet) and graphic design, this wonderful piece of work captures the essence of Freestyle 2008!

About Gretchen Almy

Gretchen has been creating equine and canine portraits for about 10 years. Being an avid rider and lover of horses and the equine form since the age of five, she has always been drawn to animals in her artwork. She has been chosen as the official artist of the 2008 Fidelity Investments Jumper Classic, of the New England Dressage Association's Fall Festival, and of the Norfolk Hunt Horse Show.

More of her work can be seen on her Fine Art & Oils blog. Gretchen is also a gifted photographer; see a selection of her photos on her photography blog.

Gretchen's Work Process

"Digital Color Renditions" is the way Gretchen describes her new medium for portraiture. Each piece is created using the same process as her pencil portraits. They start with a photograph, but instead of drawing on a piece of paper she draws on a tablet (like a computerized sketchbook). Each piece is hand-drawn on the tablet using the photo for reference. It is then printed out using the latest archival ink jet methods.

After years of using the tablet professionally for product design, it was a natural medium for her initial greeting card designs. After seeing one of her card designs, a client asked if their portrait could be created in this medium—hence the creation of "Digital Color Renditions."

Read more about this intriguing process on her blog.