November 25, 2010

William Landay

Writer William Landay recently wrote a blog entry about my work after discovering it on the web. Check it out, I think he does a very good job of capturing my motives as an artist.

November 10, 2010

1¢ Gumballs


1¢ Gumballs
40" x 30" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold (Collection of J.Crew)

This has been a familiar theme of mine for the last several years. There's something to behold with these large scale bubble gum machines. There's no way you can tell while looking at the 2.5" thumbnail on your computer screen, but this painting is large. The vibrant blue of the machine and the mutli-colored gumballs pull me in.

I can distinctly remember how quickly gum would lose its flavor when I was a kid. But still, seeing a vending machine was always exciting and worth every penny. I guess the best thing about recreating them in paintings is that it helps the flavor last much, much longer in my memory.

Empty Bottles


Five Empty Bottles
20" x 30" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold


Three Empty Bottles
20" x 30" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold (Collection of J.Crew)

November 1, 2010

Uppercase Magazine

This past August I did an interview for Uppercase Magazine, and the issue (#7) is now available. The magazine features creative professionals from many different backgrounds, and you are bound to learn something new and be impressed and inspired by the image-rich layout and design. It's more like a book than a magazine. And I was excited to participate.

I'm keeping rather busy working on numerous paintings, many of which will be in my June 2011 solo show at the Elliott Fouts Gallery.

A note to anyone interested in the paintings: please contact the gallery — efgallery@sbcglobal.net — to get on their mailing list if you want to see the paintings first. I won't be sharing them until early spring on this blog. However, you can look forward to some in-progress/studio documentation of the pieces in their unfinished stages.

I hope you have a great November!

October 9, 2010

9:00, 2:00, 5:00 & American Arts Quarterly


9:00, 2:00, 5:00
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold

I'm pleased and honored to share a review of my solo exhibition this past June by American Arts Quarterly. Click here if you are so inclined to give it a read.

September 30, 2010

Three Vintage Fans & American Art Collector Magazine


Three Vintage Fans
30" x 48" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold

The painting above is one of three that I'll have participating in the upcoming Still Life exhibition in October at the Elliott Fouts Gallery. The show will feature paintings from many artists that I'm familiar with, including; Teresa N. Fischer, Craig Stephens, Katherine Lemke Waste, Derek Gores, Paul Coventry-Brown, Sally Tharp, Philippe Gandiol, Donald Bradford, Daryl Gortner, Neil Hollingsworth, Alvin Richard, Shawn Kenney and Otto Lange.

The show is being promoted in the October 2010 issue of American Art Collector magazine. Click on the bottom image to read the article.



September 25, 2010

Type A, Type B & Popular Etiquette

I was having a conversation with Cynthia, an art consultant at the Elliott Fouts Gallery, about one of my paintings. Apparently someone was looking at one of my unruly stacks of books and said they'd constantly be compelled to organize the books, straighten them out and make a tidy pile.

I like hearing about how different people interpret my paintings. And the idea occurred to me then to honor different personality types and how they relate to each other and can be integrated in to the same relationship, or paintings, in this case.


Type A, Type B
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold


Type B, Type A
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold
• This painting will be part of the October 2010 Still Life show at the EFG

A good friend of mine brought me an old paperback re-print of a Victorian era Popular Etiquette Book. Leafing through it, I have to say that although there are definitely missing virtues in today's world, Victorian's really made things uncomfortable for themselves with the litany of rigid rules and guidelines to follow.


Popular Etiquette
16" x 20" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold
• This painting will be part of the October 2010 Still Life show at the EFG


Popular Etiquette — Detail

August 11, 2010

40 & Under



The 40 & Under show is up at the Elliott Fouts Gallery and runs until September 3. If you're in the Sacramento area, be sure to check it out. There are some great artists participating and I'm honored to be sharing the gallery space with them.

I've been trying to balance working in the studio and enjoying the summer. Every other week we're out visiting family, going to weddings, the lake, the park or pool all day long... every year that's a serious challenge for me as I'm always excited and anxious to keep things burning along on the easel. Breaks are needed of course, it's the frequency that drives me a bit nuts.

August 1, 2010

It's what's inside that counts.


It's what's inside that counts.
30" x 24" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold

This is the third piece of three that will be showing in the group show 40 & Under at the Elliott Fouts Gallery from August 7 - September 3, 2010.

I've had these gumball machines for years, sitting in the studio. Initially I bought only a small amount of gum because, well, it's intimidating thinking of painting them full. It's a small form of torture for my kids. Gumball machines high on a shelf, being told "you can't eat dad's work". So the gum became stale and dusty.

Until I decided to paint this piece and I needed more gum to fill the small blue machine. I took the machines down from the shelf and since I now had a surplus of gum and a surplus of pennies, I let the kids at it. They kept returning to the studio, within minutes of their last purchase, to let me know that they either dropped their gum or it ran out of flavor. Or that they got two purple ones in a row and were hoping for an orange so, here we go again.

July 17, 2010

Upcoming Group Show - "40 & Under"

I will have three new paintings in the August group show at the Elliott Fouts Gallery. The show, entitled 40 & Under, is showcasing artists who are, well, either 40-years-old or younger. I'm really excited to have some paintings hanging in the show.

Below are two of the three, the third piece I'll share a little closer to August.


Soda Pop Bottles
18" x 14" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold (Collection of J.Crew)


Pencils, Crayons, & Pen
18" x 14" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold

June 15, 2010

Return to the Studio

I had a great time in California. The gallery hosts fantastic receptions with live music and friendly faces all around. The best part, as the artist, is to meet with people who collect your paintings. Cynthia, Michelle and Elliott at the Elliott Fouts Gallery are as thrilled with the results as I am, I'm sure. I really am fortunate to have had a successful first official solo exhibition.

But now my break is over and this morning I was back at it in the studio with headphones in place, paint squeezed out and daunting canvas staring me in the face.

June 10, 2010

Travel


Six Pieces of Luggage
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold


Bartlett Pear & Grapes
12" x 24" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold

I'm packing my bags and heading to Sacramento for the opening reception of my solo show. The reception is on Saturday, June 12 from 6:00pm - 9:00pm. If you cannot make it to the reception, you could always watch the action through a satellite view on Google Maps. ;-)

I'm looking forward to my trip, seeing my paintings again after sending them off over the last several months, and checking out wine country on a sunny warm weekend.


View Larger Map

June 4, 2010

A Video & Slide Show

Here is a short two-and-a-half minute video that I made showcasing a few of 33 paintings that I have currently showing at the Elliott Fouts Gallery (click here for an external link to the video).

If you follow this blog regularly you'll know that this exhibition is something I have been working pretty hard on for the last 6 - 7 months. It really is a great pleasure to see the "June 5" date arrive and having a satisfied feeling with the accomplishment.



Lastly, here is a slide show of all the paintings (click here for an external link to the slide show).

June 2, 2010

Tricycles

I started painting tricycles nearly a decade ago.

Very early on in my fine arts program there was a project where we had to select an object as an idea and work with it over and over, repeating the image in different styles, mediums and formats. A friend had a fantastic ancient tricycle and it just resonated with me. I painted it in a classic realist manner, but peeled away all the surrounding imagery and focused on the tricycle alone in a straight-forward visual language stuck with me and never left.


Tricycle XIV
36" x 30" — Oil/Canvas — 2009
• SOLD


Two Tricycles
20" x 40" — Oil/Canvas — 2009
• SOLD

Books

What I love about books is their versatility. They offer and endless bounty of compositions for me to work with, and they have themes and symbolism in a wide variety of manners.


These Are Our Friends
12" x 24" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Red Book
12" x 24" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Stacks of Books & Espresso Cups
12" x 24" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Origins & Apple
16" x 16" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Vintage Research
20" x 20" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD

May 31, 2010

Chairs


Light Reading
48" x 30" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Luggage, Chair & Shirt
28" x 22" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Chair & Stacked Antique Books
24" x 18" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold


La Chaise Verte II
24" x 18" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• Sold

May 27, 2010

Typewriters & Books

Sometimes I sit and contemplate what I should say about my paintings. Sometimes that's not the right approach. It's good to just let the paintings do the talking themselves every now and then.


Remington Typewriter & Antique Books
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Books, Paper, Pencil & Typewriter
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD

New Paintings - Show Catalog


$10 — 5.5" x 8.5"
• 30 glossy pages with 28 color plates
contact the Elliott Fouts Gallery for shipping details
• also available on eBay

The gallery produced a really fantastic catalog for my upcoming show. Seeing the paintings printed is a different experience than viewing images on the web. It's more tactile and crisp. The gallery will mail them throughout the United States & Canada. Contact them at efgallery@sbcglobal.net or call 1-916-736-1429 for details.


A random sampling of some of the pages.

May 25, 2010

Iperborea Catalogo 2010

The book publisher Iperborea in Milan, Italy, is using one of my paintings for the cover of their 2010 catalog. Again, it is an honor to have them select another image of mine, they used one before for the cover of another book. Very nice design, they pulled the vibrant, bright green from the bottle and wrapped it around the entire book.

May 21, 2010

The Show Poster


$25 — 9" x 17"
• click the image to see it larger
contact the Elliott Fouts Gallery for shipping details
• also available on eBay

The gallery has produced a poster for my just-around-the-corner solo exhibition (June 5 - July 2). If you are interested, the posters are $25 and ship rolled. Contact the gallery at efgallery@sbcglobal.net or 1-916-736-1429 for details. The same image is also in the June issue of American Art Collector magazine.

May 20, 2010

A Difference of Opinion


28" x 22" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD

You can say so much with so little. I don't mind the dense, thick imagery in the still life and interior paintings of the masters from centuries past. There is so much to learn and understand in those paintings. For me, living in today's world, I'm experimenting with simpler images, with a simpler narrative. We live in such a media and image crazy culture, so I'm giving a quiet message with my work. There's enough screaming and yelling going on elsewhere. Painting is a respite from it all.

May 10, 2010

Blue, Red, Green - 10:00, 11:00, 12:00


Blue, Red, Green
16" x 24" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


10:00, 11:00, 12:00
20" x 36" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD

Threes. It's something that happened without any real consideration or conscious decisions. Over the last year or so, I started painting horizontal compositions. Perhaps because they are "read" from left to right, as the titles suggest, moving your view across the surface of the painting. Whatever the case is, I like the rhythm it creates.

May 5, 2010

Manual of Psychology & Espresso Cup

Is anyone else aware of how close June is?

I have a couple dozen paintings that I have been looking forward to sharing. I keep the compositions as simple as possible with a heavy emphasis on rectangle, square and triangle designs. I find them so relaxing and easy to absorb. As per usual, I have kept the palette to a minimum, focusing on warm golden tones found in the pages of the books. In many of the upcoming paintings I have added small accents of color in reds, blues and green.


Manual of Psychology & Glass of Water
18" x 18" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD


Espresso Cup & Antique Books
18" x 18" — Oil/Canvas — 2010
• SOLD

May 2, 2010

Fine Art Connoisseur

I am thrilled to announce that I am featured in May/June 2010 issue of Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine's "Three to Watch" section. Find it on news stands or check out the PDF here. It really is an honor to see ones work in the pages of such a fantastic magazine.

Over the next few weeks I will share many of the paintings I have been working on for the last several months for my solo show running from June 5 - July 2 at the Elliott Fouts Gallery, in Sacramento, California.

March 21, 2010

Perez Fine Art Gallery - Spring Exhibition - 1st Place

My painting received 1st place in the recent Spring Exhibition at the Perez Fine Art Gallery. It's a real honor and I appreciate it very much! Check out the on-line gallery to see some of the fine work from artists around the world.


March 3, 2010

Perez Fine Art Gallery - Spring Exhibition

I have a painting in in the 2010 Spring Exhibition at Perez Fine Art Galleries. There is really incredible work in the exhibition and it's an honor to have my work included among them. The piece I have included will also be in my June 2010 show at the Elliott Fouts Gallery.

Take the time to look at the current exhibition. You can vote for your favorite pieces until March 21st.


7:00, 8:00, 9:00
20" x 40" — Oil/Canvas — 2009
• SOLD

February 1, 2010

A Glimpse of the Studio

I've always wanted to document the process of my paintings and share a glimpse of the studio. But these things always seem to turn in to make-work projects that interfere with with the real work in the studio.

My solution is to take simple black and white photos of paintings in progress. You can check out a slide show of the images or you can visit the set of images directly, where you can hover over each image to get a bit more explanation. You can also subscribe to them if you use an RSS reader.



January 1, 2010

Happy New Year

It's the 1st of January, 2010. As a kid, I thought that was an impossibility. 2010, the number alone looks so futuristic.

I've been plugging away in the studio and have many paintings and ideas on the go for my June 2010 solo exhibition. I'll also be participating in two other shows after that, so my calendar is full for the year.

I look forward to sharing all the paintings I'll be doing. I also have plans to share progress photos and snapshots of the studio (like the "class photo" below of all the dusty clocks I've got hanging around).

Happy New Year!