yaks

Tales From The Field: “The Yak”

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1-yakHappy New Year! I’m going to change things up on the blog for the coming year, my tenth as a blogger. I’ve been lucky enough to do a lot of traveling over the years to a variety of destinations. And do I have stories? I certainly do. So the first Friday of each month will be “Tales from the Field”, which will include Mongolia, of course, but also Kenya, Canada, Europe and the US. Then I plan to do a post on whatever I’ve got cooking in the studio or on location, followed the next week with one of useful tips and information on painting and drawing. The fourth Friday will be a “gallimauphry” post, a great medieval term for “this and that”… announcements, special offers, whatever has caught my fancy. There may be posts in between for news that just can’t wait.

To start off Tales from the Field, here’s the story of my encounter with a yak in the northern mountains of Mongolia….

I was on my way to Jalman Meadows, a Nomadic Journeys ger camp located in the Han Hentii Strictly Protected Area at the northern reaches of the Tuul Gol (River), which wends its way down through Ulaanbaatar and on west.

We had left the pavement behind and were traveling on earth roads through the beautiful late summer countryside, passing local herders and their livestock, along with their white gers, the quintessential Mongolian landscape. Driving along a slope overlooking a valley we came upon (top photo) these two young men and a couple of yaks, both of which appeared to be gelded yak/cow crosses, which are stronger for work than pure yaks. The intact bulls have their horns removed because otherwise they would be too dangerous to handle.

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They were keeping a careful eye on their charges.

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But clearly experienced in moving these big beasts along. The horses were as phlegmatic about it as they always are.

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We stopped while they crossed the road in front of us. I was sitting in the front seat of the Land Cruiser on the left side, the car being right-hand drive, and shooting photos through the windshield, but was able to have the window down next to me.

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The boys and their charges moved off down towards the valley floor and we drove on.

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There was a summer rain storm coming in and the light was spectacular at times. While we were stopped the riders and yaks caught up with us.

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Got more photos of them passing us, although this one was a little blurry, it was the best composed. Then things changed in a hurry…

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The bigger of the two yaks suddenly turned towards the car.

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And started to charge towards it, aimed right at the passenger door. The boy had been smiling, but became quite serious. I wasn’t going anywhere.

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Now he needed to really get his horse moving to catch up. I remember thinking that there was going to be collision with the car door and I would be looking right at those horns from a very, very short distance.

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But he got the yak turning away and started to grin again. At this point he was about 15′ from the car. I and the driver exhaled. There had been no time for him to start the engine and no place to drive to anyway. Best to just stay put, stay quiet and not move. So I just kept, rather fatalistically, I suppose, taking pictures out the open window.

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The yak was now turned away from the car and going in the right direction.

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And the rider herded him towards the other boy and his charge.

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Our yak encounter over, the herders moved their charges on down the valley with a pretty good story to tell when they got home.

jalman-meadows

And we drove on to our destination, Jalman Meadows, set high on a bluff overlooking the river and the mountains. You can see photos of my stay there on a previous blog post here.

The WildArt Mongolia Expedition, Part 15: And Back To Ulaanbaatar

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On our way back south to Bayanhongor from Ganchen Lama Khiid, we saw lots of yaks.
On our way back south to Bayanhongor from Ganchen Lama Khiid, we saw lots of yaks.

The last day of the 2014 WildArt Mongolia Expedition had finally arrived. One more night in the countryside and then back to Ulaanbaatar. The day took an unexpected turn that led to a perfect final evening….

We stopped at one last herder's ger and, along with a very nice Land Cruiser, there was also this equally nice Mongol horse, ready to ride.
We stopped at one last herder’s ger and, along with a very nice Land Cruiser, there was also this equally nice Mongol horse, ready to ride.
The big sightseeing stop for the day...what can only be called a temple dedicated to the Mongol race horses.
The big sightseeing stop for the day…what can only be called a temple dedicated to the Mongol race horses, located near the Aimag center of Arvakheer. As we drove up to it I realized that we had camped a few hundred yards behind it on our outward bound trip, not knowing what it was. I had assumed it was some kind of Buddhist installation and, in fact, that was one facet if this amazing site.
The main structure is this semi-circle
The main structure is this semi-circle, surrounded by stupas and flanked by statues of what I assume are famous race horses. I really want to go back here for at least a half-day sometime just to hang around, sketch and do some watercolors.
Not exactly what I expected to see...
Not exactly what I expected to see at a place dedicated to horses.
Statues of famous race horses.
Beautifully sculpted statues of famous race horses.
In one corner was this pole with khadag suspended from it.
In one corner was this pole with khadag suspended from it.
In the front to one side was this pole with khadag
The center pole.
Behind the "temple" was this extraordinary sight- a fence utterly covered with khadag and, on the ground, hundreds of horses skulls. On the plain in the background is where we had camped.
Behind the “temple” was this extraordinary sight- a fence completely covered with khadag and, on the ground, hundreds of horses skulls. On the plain in the background is where we had camped.
A large and very colorful wedding party showed up while we were there. Here are two of men...lookin' good.
A large and very colorful wedding party showed up while we were there. Here are two of men…lookin’ good.
We traveled on north and came upon an extensive wetland complex in fabulous light, complete with yaks, horses and endangered whooper swans.
We traveled on north and came upon an extensive wetland complex in fabulous light, complete with yaks, horses and endangered whooper swans.
Concerned about
Concerned about it being very cold this last night out, the drivers told us that they had called the Nomadic Journeys ger camp in the area, Delger, and had arranged for us to stay there in gers instead of camping in our tents. As the light faded to night, we made a long run through sandy areas with no directional signs, arriving at the camp after dark but to a warm welcome.
The next morning
The next morning we could see the lovely spot the camp was in. It turned out that this was the day the camp would be packed away for the year. Whew. The previous evening we had all gathered in the cozy, warm kitchen ger along with our host, camp manager Ariunbold, eating noodles, drinking vodka and having a great final dinner together.
One of the camp dogs. I was told they are there to keep wolves away.
One of the camp dogs. I was told they are there to keep wolves away.
We said our good-byes and began the final leg of the Expedition, passing this attractive row of shops.
We said our good-byes and began the final leg of the Expedition, passing this attractive row of shops.
A last photo op...horses crossing a river!
A last photo op…horses crossing a river!
And the final stop, now not far from Ulaanbaatar, to see this statue of a shaman, facing south and festooned with khadag.
And the final stop, now not far from Ulaanbaatar, to see this statue of a shaman, facing south and festooned with khadag.
Ulaanbaatar ahead
Ulaanbaatar ahead in the sunshine. I liked coming into town behind this truckload of horses. The countryside and the city.

And so ended the 2014 WildArt Mongolia Expedition. We met every goal that I had set for both habitats and endangered species. We are the only western artists now to have gone to Takhiin Tal, the first takhi release site, where we saw both takhi and khulan, and Sharga/Darvi  where we saw over thirty saiga antelope. We met the scientists working to conserve these  species and saw snow leopard habitat, complete with ibex. We forded flooded rivers, camped under Gobi skies, visited and hiked an important sacred mountain, attended a local naadam, stumbled upon an ambler horse race, explored a very special monastery, and painted and sketched as we went.

Now there will be a special group exhibition of paintings from the Expedition, featuring myself, Tugsoyun Sodnom and Oidoviin Magvandorj. It will be at the Union of Mongolian Artists Gallery in Ulaanbaatar from June 27 to July 8. There will be an opening reception on the 27th.

I want to say a very special “Thank You!” to Nomadic Journeys and their staff, who made the Expedition possible and contributed greatly to its success. bayarlalaa

———

I head back to Mongolia on May 28 for eight weeks. There will be another WildArt Mongolia Expedition, this time to the northeastern mountains and the famous steppe grasslands to try to see and photograph six species of cranes, three of them endangered and also Mongolian gazelles. So stay tuned!

 

New Painting Debut! “Zun Odor (Summer Day)”

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And here it is the "real" finish again for comparison.

I was coming down out of the mountains north of Tsetserleg with my guide and driver while on a one week camping trip last August and off in the distance we saw a large herd of yaks. Of course we stopped so I could get some photos. The three herders who were with them spotted us and came riding over. I asked the guide to ask them if I could take their pictures and they said yes. I knew while I was snapping the shutter that I was going to get multiple paintings out of this chance encounter, typical of travel in Mongolia.

Here’s a step-by-step of my newest painting “Zun Odor (Summer Day)”:

The three yak herders, Arkhangai Aimag, chatting with Puugii, my driver
The idea of the painting (and a good painting has only one) was the casual way the herder had laid his leg across the neck of the horse, who seemed to be totally unconcerned. The Mongols' relationship with their horses is really something special, going back, as it does, over 1000 years. They know each other pretty well at this point. The composition was allowed to resemble some I've seen of American cowboys and cattle, only in this case it's malchin (herders) and sarlag (yaks).
This is after the first pass of laying in color on the herder, horse and landscape. It lets me see how the shapes of the yaks are working. This was the most animals, by far, that I've ever put in a painting, so it became a pretty intense juggling act, making sure that all the parts worked together.
One to two passes of color overall. I'm also using my reference to make decisions about what colors the yaks will be. I wanted the right amount of variety, but not to the point where it drew attention away from the herder and his horse.
Continuing on, working over the whole canvas.
The finished painting. I thought. But I decided that I needed some fresh, knowledgeable eyeballs on it, so I emailed a jpg to two colleagues who, among other things, pointed out that the yaks in the background were not in correct scale. And they were right. They also thought the grey yak's head on the right was odd and I found that, after going back to my reference, that I agreed with them about that too. Back to the easel. One of the reasons I have the working process that I do is to provide the flexibility to make whatever changes or corrections are necessary at any point, even when I think I'm done and have signed the piece. I have no compunctions whatsoever about wiping out or scraping down any part at any time if it's not right.
"Zun Odor" (Summer Day) 30x40" oil (price on request)- the "real" finish again. Notice how the yak on the right at the herder's waist changed color twice.

Here are some detail close-ups so you can get a better look at my brushwork:

The herder
His rain slicker and sash
Boot, stirrup and tack
The horse's head
One of the yaks

New Painting Debut! “Checking You Out”- Mongolian Yak, Step-by-Step

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Checking You Out 12x12" oil (price on request)

(This is a re-post since for some unknown reason it was posted as a Page, not a post when I originally did it last Friday)

While I first went to Mongolia for the wildlife, after a trip or two I started to notice the domestic animals, what the Mongols call The Five Snouts: horses, sheep, goats, camels, and cattle, which include “real” cattle and also yaks.

Mongol yaks are found in the northern part of the country, up in the mountains. Like the other “snouts”, they provide a number of products and functions, including being trained for riding. There will be a painting of that at some point, which I saw in the Hangai Mountains in 2010.

Sometimes they are crossed with cattle to create a hybrid called a “khainag”, which are stronger than the pure yaks and more easily trained to pull carts. But they don’t really look the same. The heads are a somewhat different shape and the coat can be much shorter.

The pure yaks make me smile whenever I see them. The cow yak in the painting is one that I saw this past August at Gun-Galuut Nature Reserve.

Here’s a step-by step of “Checking You Out”:

The reference photo. Not great light, but I liked her head with its fuzzy topknot and white muzzle; I also wanted to work on doing a 3/4 view.
I decided that a square format would work well and started on a tinted canvas with a brush drawing, both in raw sienna
The next step is to get color all over the canvas and establish the relative values of her head, going darker; I'm always correcting the drawing as needed as I paint
I now have my darkest dark areas in a cool tone and will come in lighter and warmer over it. The muzzle's been moved a little and the eyes re-stated also.
Everything is now set up for the final push as I will refine shapes, tweak edges and work on value contrast
Once again....Checking You Out 12x12" oil (price on request)

Mongolia Monday- Next Trip Coming Up Soon!

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I’m now one month from departure for my next trip to Mongolia. I don’t have a specific itinerary yet, and probably won’t until I arrive, but here’s some of the things I hope to do and see this time around:

A nice little serving of buuz

-I’m one of the administrators for a Facebook fan page called “Buuz”, which are dearly beloved steamed meat dumplings. Mongols make and eat zillions of them for Tsagaan Sar, the Mongol New Year. When you ask a Mongol living in another country what they miss most, “buuz” is often the answer. We have over 700 fans now! And it turns out that the person who started the page, an Italian guy who is married to a Mongol woman, is going to be in Mongolia the same time as me. So we’ve announced a get-together for “Buuz People” in Ulaanbaatar on July 13 at the (no fooling) Grand Khan Irish Pub. Who knows who will show up, but it should be fun.

Yaks, Gun-Galuut July 2009

-It appears that the first weekend of August that there will be a Yak Festival somewhere in the Khangai Mountains west of Ulaanbaatar. Now, how could I miss that?

Horse race finish, National Naadam July 2009

-I would like to get to a number of Naadam horse races, both the national one and at least one or two local ones to get more painting reference. I also want to get a lot more photos of the herders and their horses.

Closeup of Chinngis Khan statue east of Ulaanbaatar July 2009

-There’s not much left of the ancient Mongol capital of Kharkhorin. It was sacked by a Ming Dynasty army and then most of the remaining stone was used to construct Erdene Zuu Monastery. I would like to visit both.

Tahki mare with two foals, Hustai National Park Sept. 2008

-For wildlife watching this trip, I want to go back to Hustai National Park and see the takhi in the summertime. I didn’t have time to go there last year. And I plan to return to Baga Gazriin Chuluu Nature Reserve and Ikh Nartiin Chuluu Nature Reserve for argali, ibex and whatever else comes within camera range.

I’m tweaking my equipment for this trip and will cover that in future posts. At the moment, I’ve gotten a new wind and moisture proof fleece jacket from REI that I really like so far and a new Kata daypack for carrying my camera equipment in the field. More on both next week.