Horse crazy starts at a young age for most little girls and it was no different for Edmond, Oklahoma native Shelly Presley. The only difference was she found her passion drawing the animal she loved so dearly.

“I grew up showing horses in 4-H with my sisters as a child,” she said. “I pretty much pranced around neighing pretending I was a horse when I wasn’t drawing them. My childhood idol and biggest influence was the Oklahoma artist Orren Mixer. I studied his paintings for hours. They simply amazed me. I was able to meet him several times and see many of his original works in person over the years.”

Showing horses was a family affair for Presley. All three of her sisters grew up competing together then split off into doing what they love.

“My sisters are all still involved with horses to this day,” Presley said. “Tracy is an amazing photographer. Many of her photos are my references. Karen is still involved with quarter horses, but has beautiful warmbloods that I love to paint. She helps me with my horse when he is home. Rhonda gives me good life advice, rides a bit and is my football buddy. My mom of course is our biggest fan.”

THE PROCEDURE

Becoming an artist wasn’t the first thing on her career to-do list. Presley became a Certified Ophthalmic Assistant and has worked full-time with the same surgeon for over 30 years. She took a break from drawing, but her passion eventually made its way back to her.

“I started doing pastel portraits for people on my lunchbreak at work years ago,” she said. “I found it to be stress relieving and it made me happy. I hadn’t drawn in a long time. It felt good to be back doing what I loved.”

When the drawing hobby came back, she also restarted showing horses. Some of her first artwork was donated to get her name and talent out to the public. Since then, she hasn’t been able to stop her hand from creating numerous portraits.

“I started showing horses again about that same time and began donating artwork at local shows like the Redbud Spectacular,” Presley said. “Since those days my hobby has become my passion. I try to paint almost every evening after work and going to the barn. My husband is very proud of me and tolerates all my paintings that are everywhere in our house in various stages of drying. Sometimes I have insomnia and literally paint all night.”

Every artist is unique and has their own routine and process to produce their paintings. Presley’s personal style involves a multitude of layers. She ensures her customers stay up-to-date throughout the steps to get the portrait they have envisioned.

“I paint thinly in oils and in layers, because of this my paintings take less time to dry and I can ship them off to the client,” she said. “This gives my oil paintings a watercolor effect. The only downside is once I start a large painting I usually need to keep going for at least four hours. The paint is only movable for a short amount of time and this is my base layer. I sketch the horse or dog out and always end up changing a few things while I’m painting. When someone contacts me for a painting I have them send several photos through Facebook Messenger and tell me what they have in mind as well as the interior colors of their house. I send updates once I get started so I can change anything before I get too many layers down. I put all of my paintings up on the mantle to dry or my corgi, Butters, will get what I call corgi glitter on them.”

THE PRICING

Custom artwork can be expensive. It takes hard work and plenty of time to get each portrait just right. Presley works to keep her paintings at a competitive and fair price. The price for customers depends on the size they are wanting.

“I have kept my prices on custom portraits the same for years. My most popular sizes are 16×20 for $300 and 18×24 for $400. Customers can message me through Facebook for other size and price options. The pup portrait option is a 9×12 for $125. My favorite sizes for a gallery or show are 24×30 and 30×40. I call these statement pieces. They run from around $800 to $2,000.”

Her artwork can also be found in auctions or live events to benefit youth or non-profit organizations. Being in front of an audience while creating artwork is much different than painting at home, but Presley has come to like this aspect.

“I’ve found I really enjoy painting live in front of people at horse functions or live auction fund raisers that my art is being donated,” said Presley. “I am more than happy to donate my art to several great organizations including the Youth and Amateur Oklahoma Quarter Associations, Nexus Equine Horse Rescue, The West Texas Boys Ranch and Wild Horse Rescue Groups.”

THE SUBJECTS

If someone were to look through Presley’s portfolio, they would find an array of different species of animals. Most customers want portraits of their horses and dogs. She has also had the privilege of having her award-winning artwork hung in public offices.

“I am always honored when someone wants me to paint their dog or horses,” she said. “Horses are easier for me to paint than dogs. The fur and all on dogs can get tricky. I have painted cows, giraffes and goats for people. I find since I show Quarter Horses I mainly paint Quarter Horses and Paint Horses.”

Oklahoma is known for its college football. The Oklahoma University Sooners have produced National Champion teams and Heisman Award winners. Presley has been a big follower and fan of the Sooners for years. She even named her current horse after one of their latest star quarterbacks.

“I am a big football fan. My horse, Luckys Jazz, is also called by his barn name BakerMayfield. I insist on people calling him BakerMayfield not Baker. It needs to be said as one word. He has been painted in every color. I am starting a life size portrait of him. I show the Hunt Seat Equitation on him and he was the 2019 NSBA Reserve World Champion in Green Working Hunter with Ryan Painter.”

Social media has been a great marketing tool for Presley. She mainly uses Facebook and Instagram to spread the word and promote sales. Her presence on those platforms has allowed her to have recognition with customers across the country.

“My art business really expanded with social media,” Presley said. “I have artist friends in many countries now. My artwork has won several awards and been purchased and hung in local businesses including my doctor’s office. I have shipped paintings all over the United States.”

THE INDUSTRY

The horse world is a big family. Everyone competes against one another at shows, but at the end of the day every rider is happy for each other regardless of how their day went. Presley loves this part of her job. She can provide her fellow riders with a portrait of their horse they can cherish forever.

“Karen loaned me her retired hunter, Sneakn Past The Mark, to qualify and show at the AQHA Adequan Select World Championship Show in 2017 in Hunt Seat Equitation,” Presley said. “She and my mom hauled me to the show and we had the best time. The evening before I showed we were at the arena and trainers were walking through with clients. I started following a group of women and their trainer to listen in. Well it didn’t take long for the trainer to notice. He turned around, smiled, motioned me closer and raised his voice so I could hear him. That to me is horse showing. I ended up top ten overall. Being at the horse show is being with family. We all share the love of horses.”

Having a hobby that brings pure joy to others is a bonus. Presley’s artwork is her passion, but she is essentially working to make her customers excited about what she creates. She enjoys every single part of being an artist.

“I love creating,” she said. “This gives me an outlet for my crazy imagination while making people happy. It truly is my passion. I can’t imagine not being able to paint.”

For more information on Shelly Presley’s paintings visit www.shelleypaulson.com and her Facebook and Instagram pages.