"Flip Flop Flip"

8 x 8"
oil on masonite
sold

The next best thing to a shadow is a reflection. From the beach on Hilton Head Island.

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"100 Faces, No. 32"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

"100 Faces, No. 31"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Painted on a bronze ground.

"100 Faces, No. 30"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Tried this one on a blue.

"100 Faces, No. 29"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

I've been experimenting with varieties of ground colors all week - this guy was painted on a yellow with a tint of green.

"Hands of Time"

8 x 11"
oil on masonite

Brand new and probably one of my all-time personal favorites. Oh boy, oh boy.

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"100 Faces, No. 28"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

I l-u-r-v-e painting on red.

"The Honeymooners"

9 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

My ode to the end of a long, hot summer - although Mother Nature is still playing tricks on Atlanta. From the beach on Hilton Head Island.

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"100 Faces, No. 27"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Painting with no color is something I've not done before - truly a new experience and a lot tougher than I thought.

"100 Faces, No. 26"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

"Child Rearing"

5 x 9"
oil on masonite
sold

A youngster resting on a bench in the Art Institute of Chicago.

"100 Faces, No. 25"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

After I got about 3/4 done on this painting, I turned off the reference photo and proceeded - something I frequently do when I'm at a point of boredom. It's a good habit - I do think it improves your intuition.

"Blond Ambition"

5 x 7"
oil on masonite
sold

I took the same colors as the portrait - just love those yummy, handsome reds and olives together.

From the lobby in the Art Institute of Chicago.

"100 Faces, No. 24"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

I am so thrilled with this painting - the marriage of olive greens with deep reds and blacks. After I finished this, I jumped right into using those tones with two other small pieces - seeing if I could resist adding more, which was tough. I can't plan and paint. As soon as I concentrate on color wheels, I get too rigid. Best to leave it all up to intuition.

added note....... the article in Southwest Art Magazine, which is in their October issue, is online as well. A big thank-you to the editors and writer for the featured article about my work. Makes me very proud.

"100 Faces, No. 23"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

There are a few things with respect to painting I'm sure of - whether you're working from life or a photo, paint what you see and not what you know. When I started this series of faces, I didn't consider myself a decent portrait artist - so I approached it, much like I do in any subject, as a landscape of colors and shades. Yes it's a man, yes it's a nose - but not much different than hills and valleys. There's depth, dips, protrusions, highlights. You just map it out like any other subject or scene. I try hard not to start with the greatest intention of 'likeness' - I just work with areas and count on the end result - a leap of faith every time.

I've said this before, but I'm sure that my brain follows the general mood of a subject or scene - not so much consciously, it just seems to happen. If a face is somewhat soft or delicate, my painting turns out soft or delicate. In this case, the face is harsh, rough, aged. I ended up with greys mixed with colder reds - took an old, worn out brush and scrubbed the background around the head. Very cool result.

I'm very sure that if you paint, you should constantly challenge yourself with different subject matter. Down the road, you'll feel a lot more confident with larger, more realized paintings. My best analogy is cooking - the more recipes you try, the more natural it comes to you when you decide to use pork instead of chicken.

Back to work....

"Short Visit"

9 x 12"
oil on masonite
sold

A new painting up for grabs, a young couple closing in on Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's 'At the Moulin Rouge', one of my personal favorite paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago.

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"High Chair"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

I had just finished a really complex painting, a scene that includes twenty people - one of those where I didn't think I could pull it off. It just takes patience and I think it's a winner. You'll see that piece in a few weeks - it'll be included in Howard/Mandville Gallery's Small Works Show. Needless to say, after that one, I felt the need to loosen up with a quick, simpler scene - a lifeguard on Hilton Head Island - a job where the uneventful is a good thing.

"100 Faces, No. 22"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

I am just loving this project....

"Come Rain or Shine"

14 x 9"
oil on masonite
sold

This painting sold before I had the chance to post it on my website - which is why I'm currently doing the happy dance.

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"100 Faces, No. 21"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

Painted on the bold red you see in this guy's shirt, which I left untouched.

"100 Faces, No. 20"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

"Pool Room"

6 x 6"
oil on masonite
sold

Ode to the swimming pool. Without it, I'd really hate summer and probably have moved back up north by now. Today, we bid farewell - until next year. Alas.

My good friend enjoying plenty of room to float.

"100 Faces, No. 19"

I thought you might like to see the progression of this new face - which I painted on a chocolate-like ground color. It took roughly an hour to complete. I also made a short YouTube movie.

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

"100 Faces, No. 18"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

I'm back at it. And a request - I'd appreciate not getting comments about these individuals I'm painting, out of respect - but I do welcome all comments about the painting itself. Thanks.

"100 Faces, No. 17"

4 x 4"
oil on masonite
sold

After I had finished this painting, my guy, my best critic, commented it had a Lucian Freud feel to it - which made me beam with pride. Freud is the master of figurative painting, in my opinion - and a huge influence on my desire to paint with oils and understand the complex colors of skin tones.

My favorite accomplishment with painting seems to be how I handled the edges. It's usually what makes or breaks the overall finished piece - and it can happen in the last few strokes. I find myself being too tight through the process most of the time, losing interest in what is before me, even after hours of work. Maybe it's the desire to finish up and move on - that's when I seem to let go and allow the unpredictable to happen - let the paint move where it wants to. If it was early on that my edges were wavy and passing in and out of the main subject, I'd probably work on tidying it up. Close to the end, I'm inclined to leave it as is. And that's what I end up loving about a painting the most.

close-up of edge-melding

Look at Carol Marine's work - which is an excellent example of not overworking the edges - melding the surrounding colors/areas with loose brush strokes. I just love that.

Anyways...... I'm back in the hut, after a nice, unplanned road trip, ready to get busy with my paints with refreshed inspiration. That is, after I get in some end-of-summer pool time. Ode to September. I thought it never would get here.

Enjoy your holiday ~