'Top of the Food Chain' 8x10" oil/canvas

One of the benefactors of the mangrove 'swamps' are the sharks roaming the oceans, seas and tributaries. These animals are simply beautiful   to watch and are actually quite shy.

The cold blues really fits the specter of these animals as they migrate the water. This is a symphony of cold color, so rare a situation that looks and is natural for a painting. Of course the reds and yellows of colors are progressively missing in the water as they are filtered out the deeper one goes, leaving the deep, rich blues and progressively muted; first reds and then yellows.

Oil on canvas 8 x 10 inches.

Floridian Scenery 8 x 10" oil/canvas

This is a brackish water area in Dana, Florida - north of Miami. These mangrove thickets are the hatcheries for fish, birds, reptiles, and all manner of wildlife and game. They are always just broiling with activity at all times and of course the water reflects the great colors of the sky down here. 

Because these mangrove areas are brackish, the color of the water and the colors of the sky differ in the foreground. The water is murky - full of sediment; a soup of algae, small organisms, fish, insects, reptiles and *stuff*. The water just does not reflect in all areas the color of the sky. It's really a fun challenge to create the impression of this great creator of water life.

Juried Exhibition - redux

ArtView 2008 Juried Exhibition

The piece that I submitted to the ArtView 2008 Juried Exhibition was again a number of my paper bag series - and again "Skyscraper" was on display November 11, 2008, at Constitution Hall in Washington D.C. I'm doomed to have this piece as my "15 minutes" of display. So, my goal is to create something more notable. Worthy.

I've been busy lately, painting, drawing and traveling. Washington D.C. is definitely a destination for the arts.

Brevard Art Museum’s 2008 Juried Exhibition

The piece that I submitted to the Brevard Art Museum’s 2008 Juried Exhibition was one of my paper bag series - it is named "Skyscraper" and will be on display from July 18 to September 12, 2008, at the Brevard museum in Melbourne, Florida. So ya'll jump on a plane and visit. :-) The quality of the artists and the art is really amazing. There is truly creative art being created on the Space Coast. I feel really honored to be displayed in this show.

This is a subtle little painting, measuring 12" x 12", an oil painting on canvas. It is painted all in browns, except the bag label in red - barely visible - seemingly as if done as monochromatic, yet we know that brown is inclusive of all reflective color.

At one level this painting represents a simple container, the skyscraper is a container as well.

Live Drawing to Painting

I really enjoy drawing live, on the spot drawings, and I've recently experimented with turning them into paintings. After all, whatever challenged or attracted me to the subject in the first place just might be worthy of further investigation. Maybe.

My daughter, Madison plays -now - college softball. If you have some knowledge of the game, then you understand that a large part of our formative years were spent in High school ball and the rest of the year travel ball, which would take us throughout three States and many, many weekends. It's actually a great game - and somewhere along the way I started drawing the games. Way difficult on any number of levels, but every once in a while something decent turned up on my drawing pad. Included is the original drawing and also the resulting oil on masonite painting. 6 x 6

I noticed that when you click on the painting for a larger view - you get a larger view - waaay larger, almost to the molecular level - lol.

Painting in the Round

Well she did it again... my wife that is, she purchased for me a series of six round canvases from three inches up to 12 inches. I'm staring to go through catalogs in order to foreshadow the next shape coming my way.

I started with this one, the ten inch round. There just seems to me to be some real opportunities to look and paint something a little different. After all our vision is somewhat circular if you include peripheral vision. Focus is usually specific to a point in front - but - division of focus by thirds isn't as firm a rule in a circular canvas.

Simple and It Works

I like things that are simple and that work. But, as a painter you might gain from my happy accident. I was over talking with a friend, not too long ago and he is a furniture re-finisher. Really great work, but it’s also messy as any an occupation as I’ve witnessed. He uses a mixture that includes diesel (fuel) and stand oil and always another oil such as walnut, depending on the color of the wood and the effect. He uses this mixture as a finish to the wood. It really brings out the grain in a way that is simply amazing. Oh, but the mess. Well, he uses this “SimpleGreen” stuff in a green bottle that really seemed to clean the area and whatever he used it on of grease and oil.

Painting is what I do - clean-up is pretty much a chore that follows painting, and not the least of which is cleaning my brushes. I don’t use many brushes, but I really like finishing off quickly. It works really well. I wipe off as much paint as reasonable, then use SimpleGreen to take the oil out of my brushes, finally I still use an oil soap that replaces some of the elasticity of my natural hair brushes, but works just as well with synthetics. Works for me.


Really - I, nor anyone I know have any affiliation whatsoever with this product.

Wow

"Congratulations! Your work has been selected for the Brevard Art Museum’s 2008 Juried Exhibition to be on display from July 18 – September 12, 2008"...

I submitted three paintings about a month ago and yesterday I recieved an email accepting one of them. I'm pretty jazzed about the whole thing. My wife suggested that I make the effort - thank you. 

It really has been a interesting experience. First there is CaFÉ Call for Entries web site in order to directly upload high-resolution digital images of artwork for jury presentation. I needed the assistance of my good friend, Keven Roberts, who owns Intimate Images photography, here in Melbourne, Fl for the high-rez digital photos. After that it was straight forward process to enter.

I've had great fun in the art community and this will put me into contact with a whole group of people that support the arts.

I'm pretty excited.

New Painting - New Comparison

Florida Wetlands - 6 x 6
This is a painting of the Florida wetlands as the title states. I really enjoy the long vistas and the wildlife that packs these areas - not that you might notice from the "long view" such as this painting represents. These areas are the very nurseries for a great number of species that toward the top of the natural hierarchy are represented by fish, birds - yes insects, all manner of plants, reptiles, and alligators.

I thought that I would compare a digital picture with minor adjustments with a digital scan.
Digital Photo

Scan

Even though I took some care - there is a substantial difference between the two. And I am ignoring the differences in the monitor that you may be using.
So, you can get an idea of a painting on the web, mush the same as looking in a book - even a high quality one, but it is best to see the actual painting.

Luckily, there is a location that has agreed to display some of my paintings - it is:

"From The Heart"
1428 Highland Ave.
Melbourne, Florida, 32935
Opening Fall of 2008, if you are in the area, please drop by and take a look.

Really Small Painting...

Row House III 3"x 3" Oil/canvas
This is a very small painting that happened by a happy accident. I have wanted to paint a number of small paintings in order to keep me painting consistantly. I am thinking six inches by six and above. I was given package of six canvas supports that are three inches x three inches. Well, for whipping out small compositions - these canvases are really fun. I displayed the painting, about the size of the the actual six x six, because I really like the painterly look of the brush work. I was actually counting brush strokes on this one... Actually that was not very difficult for me to count.

Florida Tech Panther Statue

Fla. Tech Panther statue in Melbourne,FLA.
This is a 6 inch X 6 inch oil painting that I did recently. A very highly shined marble base and angular panther statue against a background of Florida vegetation. I like the color combinations of this painting. I took some liberties with the panther color itself in order to contrast it and the background - my apologies to the sculptor.

I'm Cheap

Palette

I must be cheap as I save the paint that I use from one painting to tint the canvas of another painting - or two, or three. When I finish painting, I scrape the paint from my palette into a container and add turps in order to keep it useable. The sum of my colors are a neutral grey which I use to tint the canvas of subsequent canvases. Hey, I don't like a white  support - Just doesn't work for me. Neutral grey is OK for me at most times, others I like another color in the background. I'm a divided Artist.