"Superman"

12 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

My day's work - you know I had fun with this one.

A little larger of a view can be seen here.

"In the Wings"

5 x 7"

oil on masonite

sold

Back to my observations in San Francisco - I had dinner with a good friend in a very cool little French restaurant on Grant Avenue called Cafe de la Presse.

Recently someone asked me what I really yearn to paint and I think the answer would be the life inside of restaurants. Everything from the diners to the waitstaff to the cooks. There's something about the warmth of the interiors I particularly love as well as the handsome vision of a waiter.

"Broadside"

9 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

Happy Thursday everyone. I've had the pleasure of a quiet day with no plans or obligations other than to paint and make supper. This new piece is now added to my personal favorites - mostly because of the placement of the painting and the woman but there are those little, special strokes of color that please me. Hardly visible unless you see it in person, but a little larger of a view can be seen here.

A Couple of Updates

I have a few updates for you - one is a new feature on my website. I added a new page titled "My Paintings". You'll see an index of paintings broken down into subject matter and a cool, new feature where paintings are grouped according to the city. All of the pieces showcased were done from 2005 to present day and most have been sold. I think you'll enjoy browsing these new pages - it gives you an interesting, over-all view.

Another update is about my little artbooks. I'm working on the new Volume Four, should have copies coming to me on or around April 5th. Also waiting on copies of the other three volumes. My plan is to have all ready to sell by the second week in April.

As always, thanks for the visit and enjoy your Sunday.

Click here to see the new page on my website.

"Woman To Woman"

16 x 8"

oil on masonite

sold

I let a perfect spring day pass by today - I really did want to paint. That's a good thing. There'll be plenty of those days ahead.

This is somewhat of a backed-up view of museum visitors and I like that. I found the women, as a group, more interesting than singling out anyone in particular. The room filled with French artworks is in the Legion of Honor, in San Francisco.

Click here if you'd like a larger view and purchase info.

"The Bitz"

5 x 7"

oil on masonite

sold

This has been somewhat of a pet day. Jack got a good check-up at the vet, two different friends are going through tough times with their dogs, and of course the ongoing news of tainted pet food. This new piece also marks my 200th daily painting - and I wanted it to be special and a little more personal. And on this bright, beautiful, spring day, my cat, Bitz, posed for her moment in the sun.

Warm Up of the Day

This is Abbey, my friend's devoted companion.

"Help Is That Way"

5 x 7"

oil on masonite

sold

I'm back on track folks - and I woke up this morning happy that I'd be able to paint all day. Aside from working at the shop a little bit, I took a day trip to Asheville, to deliver five new pieces to the 16 Patton Gallery - really enjoyed the drive and time to myself. Long drives are a pleasure to me. I listen to music and think of new things to paint and I always am happy to come home. Aside from all that, spring has sprung here in Atlanta and that means working in the garden. But today I'm back at work, in the studio, with the windows wide open and it feels good.

Also back on track with the San Francisco sights - this is one of my favorite subjects - the window shopper.

A quick note about the artbooks - I've got one more to paint to make up a new Volume Four and I'm expecting new copies of the others any day now. All four books should be available for purchase by April 1st.

painting away....

Me take a day off? I admit. I'm a paintaholic. But I'm enjoying something I don't normally do - and that's satisfying. Enjoy your Sunday.

"Happy Feet"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

The creative juices started up this morning - nothing like a fresh perspective. This view was from the second story balcony at the HIgh Museum, looking onto the jazz band and a few happy feet.

Let's Talk About Blocks

I've had a week of painting frustrations - starting something and not being able to finish. In three years, that's hardly ever happened to me. I spend hours pouring over thousands of photographs and soon they all look the same. I've hit a block.

It's hard to imagine, in a world of images and objects that nothing inspires. I want to paint everything, but a block can take over and cause me to see nothing. More like nothing I haven't seen before. Or painted before. That's impossible. So I begin to realize it's probably the momentum I've lost. After the show in February, I got sick, my dog had surgery and I got sick again. I fell off that prolific treadmill.

So..... last night I forced myself to get out in the real world. Seek out some inspiration. I went to the High Museum, listened to a kickin' jazz band and looked at art. And people looking at art. I even took part in a drawing session in one of the galleries - a live model was doing 10 minute poses. The images you see are from that event - and I have to say, it felt great to just draw. And I think it's what I needed. To step away from the studio and the computer and get involved in something else. Hopefully I'll get right back on that treadmill and those creative juices will start flowing again. It happens.

Anyone who wants to share how they work through these blocks - please share with all of us. It's helpful, to all of us.

"Summertime"

Three 7 x 7" paintings

oil on masonite

all 3 have sold

I painted these three pieces with the intentions of creating a grouping, but still wanting each to stand alone. Summer images are great fun to paint - the color of water, the stronger skin tones - it takes you right to the spot.

"Oriental Pearl"

5 x 7"

oil on masonite

sold

After I spent a couple of hours in the museum, I started to crave Chinese food. Good Chinese food. So I took Rachel Ray's suggestion and found the Oriental Pearl, tucked away in Chinatown. It was quiet and elegant and perfect.

This painting is one of my occasional homages to Wayne Thiebaud, one of my favorite living artists.

"Wing Tip"

12 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

I hope you like the title I decided on - my big brother actually suggested it and I immediately loved it. It also sold quickly and I thank all of you who asked about it.

The scene is from the Legion of Honor, in San Francisco, where this magnificent painting, "Love and the Maiden", by John Rodham Spencer Stanhope.

Thanks to everyone who suggested a title and helped me identify the painting and the artist.

Click here if you'd like a larger view.

"Backpackin'"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

I mostly love the painterly, loose brushstrokes of this piece and how the wall behind the young woman on the bench cuts the view in half. There's interesting dimension from the bottom left to the top right, which makes for a good composition. This young lady was taking a load off inside the Legion of Honor Museum.

"Ladies' Man"

9 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

Inside the National Portrait Gallery hangs a large, striking painting of Bill Clinton - people really do gravitate to it more so than others. Perhaps it's the size, perhaps it's who we are most familiar with. I think it is one of the most "presidential" portraits in the collection, with the head-to-toe, larger-than-life figure, the royal blues and touch of red.

Click here if you'd like a larger view.

"Guidance"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

I have this tendency to zero in on people - I can't get enough of painting someone's clothing or the light on their hair. Even when I'm taking photographs, I forget to back up and get a broader view. So this new painting is different that way. And getting a large area inside of a 6 inch square is challenging, even more so. The guide and her patrons were inside the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco.

"Big Hair"

8 x 10"

oil on masonite

sold

Here is another painting I manage to complete - no warming up today - I just jumped right in. These two young women were intrigued with Andy Warhol's "Gold Marilyn Monroe", which hangs in the MOMA in New York.

Click here if you'd like a larger view.

"Bent Out of Shape"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

Picking up where I left off - I spent the next three or so hours in the Legion of Honor Museum, a somewhat small collection, but so worth it. This gentleman was admiring a modern sculpture, I wish I knew the artist but all I know is the Picasso in the background. I enjoy these figurative paintings both for the art and I get to play with the texture and folds and colors of clothing on a person. I'm always interested in getting that weight of the coat or flow of the skirt. I also like the relationship of the man with the bent and rigid form of the sculpture.

"Oh Susanna"

9 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

I'm not firm on the title - it was the first thing that popped into my head. And let me explain that....

The painting the woman was studying is "Susanna and the Elders" by Thomas Hart Benton, which hangs in the DeYoung Museum. It is one of my top favorites in that museum - one, because it's Benton's, whom I've admired since I was about 10 - and two, because of the subject.

The story is from the Book of Daniel - in short, Susanna was sentenced to death, falsely accused of adultery by the town's two elders, who were also the judges in such matters. The two men lusted for her and after witnessing her bathing nude (on her own property), they blackmailed her by giving her the choice of having sex with them or stand accused of meeting another man in secret. She refused, stood trial and would have been executed if not for Daniel challenging the elder's stories and proving Susanna's innocence. Benton's painting was found very offensive in 1938. Too erotic. Two interesting points - one of the 'elders' is a self-portrait of the artist and this was the first time an exhibited painting included pubic hair on a female.

When I was 15, I convinced my high school principal to let me paint an "American History" mural in the hallway. It was about 50 feet long and about 2 feet high and it was my personal homage to Thomas Hart Benton. All of the figures were elongated and exaggerated and the colors were vibrant. It was my first mural.

Click here if you'd like a larger view and purchase info.

Warm Up of the Day

This is Bob - an artist in his own right. He's a carpenter. I am in awe over how I can describe or sketch something of what I want and Bob can not only visualize it finished but he knows every step it takes to make it happen. Much like an artist does. Bob built my studio, something I'll always be grateful for.

"Muffin"

5 x 7"

oil on masonite

sold

This painting started out as a warm up of the day - I was enjoying a loose, free-hand study of this little girl - and it turned out to be, what I think, is a nice, painterly piece worthy of putting on auction. It was a nice, candid moment when I spotted the youngster sitting in the sun, working on a breakfast muffin before going into the Legion of Honor Museum.

Warm Up of the Day

Thursdays and Mondays are work days for me - at my shop that is. At least I got to enjoy a quick warm-up. These ladies were walking into the sunshine, around Broadway and Wall Street in Lower Manhattan. It's a combination of a Sharpie (God Bless the Sharpie) and oil on watercolor paper.