On my way to work in the morning, I stop to admire this view. Actually it's mandatory, there's a four-way stop right there, but it's a great place to pause and see what the day will bring. This particular morning was deciding whether fog or sunshine would win the day (fog was ahead for awhile, about ten minutes after this we were totally socked in, but it burned off by ...
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This last year has involved many transitions and lots of traveling for me. I love to travel, it nourishes my art practice and soul, stimulating the creative parts of my mind. Recent travel has not been for pleasure but family business, and for the first time in my life I am nearing the status of commuter. That being said I still find many moments in the process of moving, of ...
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Here's the new kid in the studio, another "little" piece (24"x80") titled "Hometown." It combines images from my hometown, though it could be practically anywhere in the United States. I'm thinking more and more about work that addresses the repetition in our lives, the efforts of living day-to-day and still trying to achieve what is meaningful to us. Trying to remember the big goals while stuck in our routines of ...
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12x36", oil on canvas At the swimming pool the other day, someone mentioned in passing that I wasn’t really a swimmer. I know, this sounds particularly harsh, and she wasn't being intentionally cruel or anything. It was more in the context of “here’s something you’d understand if you were a real swimmer.” Nonetheless it’s been on my mind a bit. Don’t get me wrong; I know what she meant by ...
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I am very pleased to say that two pieces of mine were accepted at the Arts at the Port juried show in Anacortes, Washington this year. The artwork I saw as I was dropping off work was amazing; I'm in very good company up there. The festival itself is this upcoming weekend, August 2, 3, and 4, with lots of artists and craftspeople showing off their wares. Here's a link to ...
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This is one of those images I've wanted to paint for years now. It's the view from the ferry looking at Seattle's skyline. I finally was there with perfect light and color. It wasn't foggy, the wind wasn't blowing 70 miles an hour, and the light was that energized light between day and dusk--perfect. I spent a lot of time on this under-painting because the skyline should a.) look like ...
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Here are two images showing a bit of the process for this piece, beginning with the finished product. This first photo is not the best one possible as I was too cold and lazy to take it outside to photograph, the best place to take photos of artwork (it's about 40 degrees out there and I've become a weather wimp since I moved North. The second photo shows step one: ...
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When we think of landscape, I think our minds automatically jump to images of the romantic era--great sweeping vistas, ideal views, the simple calm beauties of the pastoral, the great impressive fervor of the romantic sublime. But the translation of landscape has changed as much as our relationship to place has changed. We are no longer removed, no longer remote from these places. We know so much more about the ...
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Here's another piece in my recent series, where I'm exploring thinner layers of color over an underpainting of sepia tones. It's giving my work a looser, more gestural look as well as building up layers of light. As with "Odyssey", I began this piece with burnt sienna mixed with a glaze, then wiped out the highlights to begin feeling the composition. Subsequent layers deepen the dark tones and add highlights to ...
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This piece marks a solid change for me, in the fact that is is made up of many transparent layers and gestural brushstrokes instead of the thicker, more solid layers I generally use. It brings the excitement of my experimental drawings into my oil paintings, something I've been working towards for years. "Odyssey" used techniques from my watercolor and drawing background, resulting in a fresh approach. I usually begin my oils ...
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