Creativity, depth and feeling are the heart and soul of my work. It’s so much more than just a painting on a feather. ~ Janet LeRoy

Savage Spirit is pleased to present the beautiful hand painted feathers by artist Janet LeRoy. A long time friend of store owner, Cathya Savage-Haas, Janet pours her heart and soul into her artwork.

Janet LeRoy was born in Denver, Colorado and always loved the great outdoors and all kinds of animals. She also loved to draw and experimented with several different art forms from leather carving to flower arranging before discovering feather painting. She started out by painting simple designs on plain white turkey feathers but soon she discovered wild turkey, macaw and peafowl feathers that made her “canvas” more interesting. Using acrylics and the finest brushes she could find, Janet began to paint her animals with very fine detail, paying special attention to the eyes, which in her opinion, give the animal it’s spirit. Her feathers are then mounted on deerskin and smaller feathers from various birds such as pheasant, guinea, emu, rooster and parrot are attached to the arrangement.

On her larger, framed works of art, Janet also adds gemstones and crystals with special meanings, such as love and power. The matting on these pieces is hand carved to match the shape of the feather and arrangement. For this, she enlisted the help of her husband, Steve, using a mat cutter that he invented himself. A custom frame completes the work.

Another option are Janet’s “Spirit Feathers”. Spirit feathers are individually hand-painted feathers depicting one animal or symbol and painted on a single turkey or Macaw feather. Each feather includes a card explaining the representation of the animal totem or symbol and packaged in a clear bag. These feathers have been sprayed with an acrylic mat finish to protect them and include a leather tie and wrap on the quill so that the feather can be hung by itself, with other artwork, tied to a hat or whatever you would like to do with it.

Janet has recently returned to her roots in leatherwork, creating handcrafted leather purses and bags which she then paints and decorates with natural gemstones.

Janet and Steve have been traveling the west, selling their work at art shows and festivals since 1992, winning numerous awards along the way. Janet and Steve now live in Hotchkiss, Colorado with a menagerie of animals, including horses, dogs, turkeys and a Scarlet Macaw named, Calypso.

Janet will be the featured artist at Savage Spirit! for the Moab Art Walk on April 13th and her work is always available in Moab at Savage Spirit!, 87 N Main.

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