pond

24″x24″

acrylic on wood

sold

DNA Lighthouse

48″x36

mixed media on wood

falling light

2.5″x6″

acrylic on wood

sold

appalaclian egg

24″x36″

acrylic on wood

sold

Descent

24″x5.5″

mixed media on wood

sold

bear

8″x8″

acrylic on wood

part of a donation for Eliada home for Children (seven 8″x8″ squares)

Bowing Home

12″x12″  mixed media on wood

sold

pelican nebulae

36″x36″

acrylic on wood

sold

Spectrum

48″x12″ acrylic/graphite on wood

Show at Rosetta’s Kitchen

Gestation

14″x12″  acrylic/graphite on wood

sold

Lactarius Indigo

7 1/2″ x 5 1/2 “

acrylic on wood

I love hunting for edible mushrooms and on an excursion a few years ago i found a fairy ring of these in a circle around a tree.   They are one of the only blue mushrooms and when you cut it open it is white inside and slowly it turns a beautiful royal blue.  If you cook it with eggs it gives you green eggs .   I haven’t found another since then.  They seem to be a more rare mushroom to find, but they radiate a magic.

On Center

5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″

acrylic on wood

Several Works

several works from left to right:

Cycles 12″ x 16″ mixed media  on wood   sold

Hummingbird life   6″ x 24″  mixed media on wood sold

Four Birds  18″ x 12 ”  mixed media on wood sold

Magic Hat

3″x4″

acrylic on wood

sold

New Ground

2″ x 5 “

acrylic on wood

singing to the light

3 1/2 x 4 1/2

acrylic on wood

sold

happy schroom

2 1/2″ x 3 1/2″

acrylic on wood

New Show at Rosetta’s Kitchen

I will be putting up my artwork at one of ashevilles sweetest food joints, rosettas kitchen.   They have some of the best vegetarian food ever and im excited to have my work in their space.  It should be up for a month or two so come and check it out!   had

I participated in the LAFF festival last weekend (lexington avenue fun festival).  Its an awsome festival full of amazing art of all types.   i will post some pics when i get a chance.

Painting on wood vs canvas

When i started to paint more regularly a few years ago i gravitated quickly toward using wood to paint on instead of canvas.   I have not had much experience with canvas but i seemed to fight with the texture.   Some of my favorite artists were using wood to paint on and getting very interesting effects by being able to create very smooth surfaces that could be sanded down and treated more vigorously than canvas.  I tried it out and haven’t looked back yet.   Though lately i have been considering the ethical concerns of using wood instead of canvas.

I mainly use birch paneling which is about 1/4″ inch thick.   I make the frames first which are sometimes different thickness (how far they come away from the wall)  Ive enjoyed making chunky frames that come out 3 or 4 inches away from the wall.  Its and interesting effect and gives a different dimension to the painting.  I’ll post some pictures when i get a chance of the process of making them.   Once the frames are cut i glue the corners and use a nail gun to put the whole thing together.   I then glue and again nail (very small nails) the birch panel onto the frame.  Usually the panel is cut a little larger than the frame so i can then route the edges to get a hopefully smooth finish.   I’ve been getting much better with the process and preciseness of woodworking and truly enjoy making them.    I remind myself during the making of them that it is as much a part of making art as the laying down and pushing of paint.   Its all about process and staying in the moment.   Im putting my energy into every part of the painting,  and i think it often gets overlooked that making the actual frames and surface for painting is as important as the painting itself.    Its like taking care to have healthy  dirt so that plants have a nourishing place to grow.

Below

5 1/2″ x 5 1/2 ” acrylic on wood

sold

A Painting a Day

The “painting a day movement” was an idea of artist Duane Keiser.   He started to create small post card size works of art and sold them for an affordable price.   It seems to have caught on in a major way and searches on “a painting a day” and “daily paintings” will bring up enough art and websites for one to be lost in online galleries for large gobs of time.

Ive recently become very taken by the idea of creating a small work of art each day.   Ive read some who practice this way of painting call it “sketching” for larger works of art.  To me the small pieces speak for themselves.   They feel very intimate and full of life.  Very zen.    When i look at Duane’s tiny paintings i can feel that he cares about what he is seeing and experiencing as he paints.

I think these little works can be as captivating and full of spiritual and emotional resonance as a bigger painting.    I dont want to spend time trying to paint something that i would rather be painting on a larger size.   Im trying to embrace the smallness and fill it with life.   It becomes a way someone who would like an original painting to be able to afford it if they are not wealthy enough to walk into a gallery and buy art.   All in all i think it is a very healthy movement and i am going to be commiting myself to creating art each day (or most days!)

Friends

5″x6″ acrylic on wood

Gravity

8″x8″ acrylic on wood

Known Gnome

8″x8″ acrylic on wood

sold

Dragonfly Emergence

5 1/2″ x 5  1/2 ”  acrylic on wood

sold

Radiance

8″x8″ acrylic on wood

sold

Smurf

5 1/2″x 5 1/2″ acrylic on wood

sold

Depths

8″x8″ acrylic on wood

sold

Remover of Obstacles

6″x8″ acrylic on wood

sold

Life and Painting: a new blog

I’ve created this blog with the intention of sharing my work with the world and eventually setting up a way to purchase them online which will hopefully be done soon. I’ll be setting up an etsy account and perhaps using ebay as well for those who’s life would be inspired by owning original artwork. I’ve started to explore the “a painting a day” phenomenon and have become very intersted in doing something similar (more on this later). I thought that i wouldn’t like working on small paintings at first but i really am enjoying it and love creating these mini worlds, characters, animals and whatever seems intersting to me.

Through this blog i want to explore my own processes and how art can truly make oneself and the world healthier and happier. Different ideas for topics have been crusing through my thoughts and im excited that a blog can also feel like a work of art, a medium for exploring ones perceptions and conciousness of ones self and the universe.

I look forward to expressing my thoughts and experiences more clearly through the act of writing.

its a beautiful rainy afternoon here in Asheville

Planet Strawberry

8″x8″ acrylic on wood

sold

Light Cascade

8″x8″ acrylic on wood

sold

window box

8″x10″ x3″ acrylic on wood

sold

captain shroomy

8″x8″ acrylic on wood panel