PAINTING DEMO

Over the weekend I spent some time at The Riversea Gallery in Astoria. Oregon doing a painting demonstration. To be honest, I just set up my easel in front of a wall of my paintings and nervously mixed paint and dabbed a little here and there on a piece that was already about 3/4 done. I never paint in public and just can't concentrate on the painting process with people looking over my shoulder. So, I spent most of this 'demo' talking with curious people about the painting process which I thoroughly enjoyed. I had a surprise visit from an old friend and his wife who was on vacation from Canada. All in all -a great day!

SPARKLING DELIGHT

48x60" oil on linen SOLD

I've been at this one for too long but I finally got it where I want it. I apologize for a poor quality photo. This looks better in real life (they always say that don't they?) The light in my studio is not optimum for photos of large pieces and the pics always have a slight dimming around the edge. Maybe I should invest in better lights...nahh! Once a Scotsman, always a Scotsman!

BATHING BEAUTIES

48x60" oil on cradled wood panel

I finished this one over a week ago and am just now getting it online. It's BIG! We got lucky and had some REALLY hot weather a few weeks back so I was able to get on the beach and shoot some great photos of people doing what they do on super sunny days at the beach. I was shooting into the sun for the most part and trying to catch motion and some bokeh. This painting  is actually pretty close to how it looked and felt. I always feel a little uncomfortable taking pictures of strangers on the beach but I didn't get too many glares.

CITY FANTASY

36x48" oil on cradled wood panel

Still trying to catch rainy city scenes. This was delivered to the RIVERSEA GALLERY a few days ago.
To update the post below, I made it through both rounds of jurying at the Portland Art Museum rental sales gallery. So I am now officially a member of the gallery and besides being in the June show on the 21st, I will be permanently represented there. That's a nice feather in my cap!

SURF DANCE

36x48 oil on linen

I delivered this and 7 other seascape/ figural paintings to the RIVERSEA GALLERY in Astoria Or. They look great hanging in the gallery if I do say so myself!
Today I am taking 5 paintings to the Portland Art Museum in Portland Or. to be in the June show.  The five selected are 5 of the cityscape/figural pieces below. To be selected and juried into that show means I will be represented by the art museum in their rental sales gallery from now on.  Yeah... I'm proud of this. Buttons popping off my vest!

TIME TO GO

48x48" oil on linen

getting ready for summer

The 2 in the background are a couple of beach scenes I'm working on. Hoping to get a few out there in galleries for the summer season. A sharp contrast from the rainy night scene in the foreground.

RAINY NIGHT

22x24" oil on canvas SOLD

The last one from the city series. Finished this earlier this week.

WINDOW SHOPPING

24x18" oil on cradled panel

Another from the city streets series I was doing the last few weeks. Heavy impasto, palette knife and sgraffito define this approach. I have one more which I'll post tomorrow .....maybe... if I remember. That brings me to a subject I should say something about. I have begun to feel like a slave to the blog thing in the last several months. In the beginning, I tried hard to make a stab at posting new work every day for a couple years- and, I'll admit, it was mostly to try to sell daily paintings as I'd seen so many other painters doing. But that is a hard thing to keep up unless you ONLY paint small 6x6"-6x8" works. I don't produce a little daily painting  everyday so  it is impossible to post every day unless I show works in progress. I'm not that enthused about shooting a photo at the end of every day and loading it onto the computer just to keep the blog 'new'. I don't think anyone is all that interested in seeing my 'in progress' shots anyhow. So, I've been concentrating on  full sized paintings again which is what I did for most of my painting career until the daily painting thing got hold of me.
So- if I neglect to post, it's not that I'm not working, it's only because I'm freeing myself from the 'Have To' feeling associated with small daily paintings. Unlike some daily painters, I have not made enough money from sales of tiny daily works to justify spending all my time on them. So there you have it... my grumpy rant for today. Hope it was entertaining or at least enlightening.

URBAN LANDSCAPE

18x24" oil on cradled panel SOLD

Another from the series I've been working on. These are a style that crosses a few borders. First of all, they are all done with the knife as opposed to brushes, I suppose you could call it impressionistic in that I'm trying to just suggest things. But I feel they are bordering on abstract in that it wouldn't take much to push them over the edge into little more than colors shapes that fit together in a harmonious relationship. I'm walking on the edge of things here. I hope I don't trip and fall!

SHAME ON ME

CHINA TOWN  18x24" oil on panel

RAIN DAZZLE 31x47" oil on canvas SOLD

I've been neglecting the blog again. But I HAVE been painting! I decided to lay off the boats for a while and concentrate on something entirely different. People! Looking to catch movement, I'm blurring the lines a bit more in these. I'm also blurring the lines between realism and abstract. More spontaneity - less thinking. Coloring outside the lines again. Feels good!

SIMPLE SILENCE

Acrylic on canvas 30"x32" SOLD

Here's how the one from last month came out.(See Below)

Whirlwind Romance

                                                      

                                                             48"x52" oil on canvas SOLD

I finished this one to go along with a theme of cityscapes I've been working on. I used a photo by a fellow artist/photographer-Justin Kington for reference and I stuck pretty close to his composition. I took a few liberties but almost caught the same feeling evoked in his original shot. Thanks Justin!  Below is a quick shot taken in the studio (through a mirror) to show the size. Yes, that old guy in the shot is me for reference.

PROTECTED

This is a larger one. Very impressionist style. There was so much bokeh since it was shot into the sun that I decided to try to catch that effect. I like it even if it's not my style.

new work

Working on this  and I thought I'd show some 'in progress' shots. It's 32x30" acrylic on canvas. I was trying to tone down this one since I've done so many hyper-colorful boats.   These somber colors may be easy on the eyes but when the weather outside is gray I hate to create in 'grayscale'. Help! I need color!