Happy Trails

It's time - I've got to get my bags packed and ready to go. The anxiety level is rising, it always does until I settle into my seat on the plane. The rest I have no control over. I've got a good three full days of photography time, hoping the sun is bright and serendipity plays a part in being at the right place at the right time. Then again, I'll be in San Francisco. How could it not be great?

Happy trails, my friends - I'll be back next week.

"California Street"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

The steep streets of San Francisco are pretty mindblowing to me. I do know, I'd never rent a car. I just don't have the guts for that. And I can't say that I love painting cars either, but they're part of any big city and they do give you a sense of the depth and angles of the streets, especially in the city of San Francisco.

"Silver Street"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

I have San Francisco on the brain. I can't wait to get there. As I was rolling through the thousands of pictures I took last spring, I spotted these right-after-the-storm shots I took, around the really hilly neighborhoods, around Lombard Street in particular. What struck me was the dark stormy sky in the distance and that fantastic silvery reflection on the wet streets. An artist friend describes San Francisco as "wonderful, squinty, California light" and I know exactly what she means.

My upcoming show

I haven't vanished off the earth - I've been in the final stages of getting this show put together. The painting part is easy, it's the varnishing, the framing, the packaging and the shipping from the east coast to the west coast that's the hard part. I wish I could say I have "people" who do all that for me - truth is my studio is turned upside-down and my dining room is a packaging center that looks like a bomb hit it. The glamorous world of an artist.

Now I get to relax a little and get ready for my trip to San Francisco. Besides the big event on Saturday night, the opening of my show, I'll be taking photographs around the city for four days. I'm hoping I can do a really great series of daily paintings from this trip, so look for that to start around the 6th of February.

Meanwhile, I'm back to the paints today and hope to get a few done before I go.

Click here if you'd like to see the paintings that will be included in the show.

More of my little Artbooks

I have copies available of my little 'painting-a-day' artbooks. There's a link to each volume on the sidebar, which will take you to a page that showcases the paintings in each book and a link to the eBay page for a quick purchase. Thank you.

"Golden Gate Bridge"

9 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

I took this painting back from a gallery to make room for new work - I like my selection to stay fresh and current. It is a view from Vista Point, on the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge - the day was a typical spring day in San Francisco, a mixture of storm clouds and breaks of sunshine that lit the distance hills south of the city. An added note: this painting was removed from a frame and the edges are slightly marked, but those blemishes will be covered up by the lip of your frame.

"A Banner Day"

8 x 10"

oil on masonite

sold

I watched a lot of people approach Jasper John's "Flag" - icons generally draw everyone in. Kids especially. Me? I'm not so much a fan of Pop Art, but I will say John's painting is really impressive, in person. From the Museum of Modern Art, in New York.

Click here if you'd like a larger view.

"The Sentinel"

12 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

I do paint a lot of this subject - people inside of art museums - and I want to give you some insight on that. I love being in a museum looking at artworks. It's good for the soul, always. So I particularly enjoy painting the scenes I witness. Although some may see redundance - I can tell you, in person, there's more to it.

With some, I am so interested in the painting within my painting - most of the time, I choose my favorite works. And when reproducing those paintings, my mind wanders to what the artist was thinking. With some pieces, I focus more on the figures - how they relate to the artwork that they were viewing. And with some, the artwork is secondary, the figures were just there, but the area or lighting or brushstrokes are my main focus. And this painting is just that to me. I love the strong physique of the guard, the horizontal lines and the brushwork staying just loose enough for my liking. Taken from the Art Institute of Chicago.

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

"Drawn To The Song Of The Lark"

9 x 12"

oil on masonite

sold

I got in a full day of painting today - I love that. This is a piece done for my upcoming show - I really love this one. It's frustrating to know that the photo image doesn't do it justice, as with many paintings. The rich golds in the frame and the painting, next to the aqua blues and warm browns really feels right to me.

I have always admired Jules Breton's painting "The Song of the Lark". I spend years framing the print before I saw it in real life. And wow. To quote a description, "It is said that the artist, Jules Breton, was walking in the fields of France early one morning when suddenly there burst forth the joyous song of a lark singing high in the air. As he looked about him, trying to discover the bird, he soon found it by following the rapt gaze of a peasant girl who had stopped to look and listen. As you know, an English lark sings while flying high in the air instead of in the treetops as other birds do. Its song, too, is longer and far more beautiful than that of our lark, and has been the subject of many poems."

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

"Bookies"

8 x 16"

oil on masonite

sold

I mentioned that I was working on a larger piece with the same woman as in the small painting "Rummaging" - thought you'd like to see it as well. It was done for my upcoming gallery show. It may be hard to see, but I had a lot of fun with the book covers in the foreground.

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

"Curb Appeal"

16 x 8"

oil on masonite

I'm finally getting around to taking some photographs of the work I've been doing for my upcoming show. Here's one I really love. I cannot tell you how much fun I had painting these people - all so unique. My view was from the rooftop of a tour bus, this was a group of people at a crosswalk a couple of blocks south of Wall Street. It was a glary, bright, sunny morning - giving me those great shadows and color. Hope you enjoy this one.

Click here if you'd like more info.

"Waterworld"

7 x 7"

oil on masonite

sold

It was a nice change, to paint a different scene than the usual. It made me think about the beach and the ocean blues as I was painting this small piece - a result of my recent visit to the Georgia Aquarium. It was also nice to capture a father and son moment.

my "painting a day" artbooks

I wanted to give you an update on my "painting a day" artbooks. I had reordered the volume 1, 2 and 3 but Cohen-Rese Gallery asked if those could be available for my February show. I expect more to arrive on or around January 16th and please use the links on the sidebar to check on the current status of those books.

I actually took the day off today - the first one since Christmas Eve, believe it or not - and I took some new photographs at the Georgia Aquarium. Perhaps I'll have some new paintings from my visit - I'm about to take a look at what I captured. I hope to get a new daily piece posted Friday night.

My palette

I'm occasionally asked which oils I use and what my palette is made up of. It's best described in these photos of a fresh palette and a very used one. Typically I squirt out between 40 and 50 colors - maybe about 5 ranges of each prominent color. I use a lot of greens and oranges to mix with - seldom do I use them for the dominant colors in a painting, but they're so vital.

During the past several years, I've tried a lot of brands. Eventually, you find which brand has the best burnt umber (that doesn't dry up before the next day) or the best cadmium red or cobalt blue. Once I find my favorites, that behave the way I want them to, I stick with them.

I think the most important things to nail, in painting, are basic drawing skills and the ability to mix colors. The more you do, the more natural and fast it comes. Anything to speed things up is a good thing. One great tip for those frugal artists - I use 16" pizza pans for my pallettes. They're around five bucks, from Walmart.

I know you're not seeing too many paintings these days - the fact is, I'm painting every day for a solo show which opens the first of February. A lot of which I haven't even had time to photograph yet. So check back - I'll have more to show you very soon.

Paint on, my friends.

"Rummaging"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

I've been working on a painting, a bit larger, which includes this woman. I loved painting her. So much so, I put down the other piece and painted her again. I think it's the way her profile is so beautifully placed in front of the cool grey, or the light just barely hitting her hair and her hand. It's also nice to loosen up a bit more - the way I love to paint.

A quick note - I'm working hard on gallery paintings for my February show, so I thought I'd extend the auction to ten days, rather than seven. Also keeping in mind the auction will end before my favorite show comes on because I know I'm not the only 24 fan out there.

"Early Retirement"

6 x 6"

oil on masonite

sold

As I was squirting out a new palette of oils, I realized just how many tubes were close-to if not empty. I guess it's time to hit the art store - a rather happy way to start off a new year.

It is, indeed, refreshing to paint objects after a long stretch of doing mostly figurative pieces. The majority of the time, I paint from where I've been - forgetting to appreciate those simple things that surround me.