August 30, 2012 - Incarnation

The first image is the way I intended this experimental incarnation.  Then
I flipped it around and thought it looked interesting that way as well.  So,
I decided to show both.  This is a mixed media collage piece and I really
enjoyed working on it.  I've been talking about wanting to do something
different for awhile and I'm glad I did.  It's made out of old wallpaper
samples from the seventies and mounted on a canvas I painted.  It was
a thoughtful way to work - cutting out shapes, deciding which ones use
and moving them around the canvas until I felt they could be secured
onto the surface.  I'm pretty happy with it and think I'll do another.

Painting #16
18" x 24"
Mixed Media on canvas

August 16, 2012 - Raccoon

This week I did something a little different.  I did this one as a drawing on a
piece of raw birch.  I had planned on painting into it, but decided I liked the
way it looked on plain, unfinished wood.  I thought of doing a raccoon because
I dreamt of them a couple weeks ago.  It wasn't the most pleasant dream
actually- they were nipping at me to get at some food I was trying to give them
but when I woke up I the first thing I thought of were raccoons.  I know they
can be somewhat aggressive at times but I still think they're cute.  I think
they're most appealing when a family of them climbs down a tree at night
to forage for food.  I've seen this a couple times and they'll be climbing down-
usually one mother and four or five kids, and when they realize they've been
seen they'll freeze.  This is when you can really check them out because you
can see the wheels in their heads turning and probably thinking "go back up
or continue going down?"  In both cases, they stopped, then decided that going
down was their best option so they started moving again towards their mission.

Painting #15
12" x 16"
graphite on birch

August 2, 2012 - Flamingo

I'm just back from being out of town and can't believe it's August already.
I've barely gone swimming this year yet and once more, the days are
getting shorter and the end of summer looms on the not so distant horizon.
How can this be again?  I'm constantly surprised at how rapidly time passes.
I try really hard to stay in the moment, but yet find myself flashing into the
future.  I can't help it.  At my job, I'm scheduling things that are taking
place in March 2013 and my head is already in the fall.  Our school starts in
3 weeks in fact.  I used to talk about this a lot during my daily drawing
project but it's still a subject that resurfaces constantly.  I guess it's a question
of balance:  Enjoy every moment of each day and keep the future in mind.

Painting #14
16" x 20"
mixed media

July 19, 2012 - Crane at Dusk

As I'm writing this post, I'm watching a little temperature icon located at the top of my toolbar drop
slowly as the afternoon passes.  It's hot today in downtown Los Angeles.  At noon it was 91 degrees,
now it says its only 85.  I know this is nothing compared to what's been going on back east but when
you spend your days in an air conditioned office in a sweater and then step outside for lunch- it can
take you by surprise.  It feels nice though to go out in the heat after sitting at a desk.  It's like a
warm embrace.  The hottest I ever saw it get here was 115 degrees.  It was so hot on campus that
day that when you'd step out, it was hard to breathe.  Even the birds looked parched that day so we
put out a saucer of water for them on the windowsill.

This nothing to do with this painting except for the fact that as I sat staring at this post, thinking
about what to write I realized I've noticed that temperature icon more today than I usually do.  I'm
Not sure why that is- maybe because it's reading higher than usual.  In any case, I like this painting.
I like the magic dots and it's dusky quality.   This one was a good example of picturing
something in my mind's eye before painting it.  Sometimes one visualizes a painting prior to
beginning, sometimes one has an idea that changes or sometimes one goes to the surface without
a clue what to do.  This one turned out just as I envisioned it which was nice.

Painting #13
12" x 16"
mixed media

July 5, 2012 - Ostrich

Happy Day after the 4th of July!  I hope everyone had a great holiday.

Painting #12
11" x 14"
mixed media

June 21, 2012 - Clouds

It's a minor miracle that I finished this one on time.  Over the past few weeks I got really
busy and kind of stymied about what to paint next.  And actually, this one really isn't even a
painting- it's  pastel on canvas.  I like the way it turned out but my procrastination level hit an
all-time high with this one. I did it at the last minute and didn't put as much time into it as I
would have liked.  I probably shouldn't admit that, but sometimes I say too much.  In my
last post I spoke about wanting to move in a more imaginative direction but when faced
with what that would be I found myself stuck.  I feel like I'm on the cusp of some kind of
turning point in my art but haven't formulated what that's going to be yet.  It's like I can feel
it, but can't see it.  In the meantime, I've been thinking of doing a cloud study so that's what
this is.

Painting #11
18" x 24"
pastel on canvas

 

June 7, 2012 - Night Sky

I really enjoyed working on this one.  I liked it because I did it from imagination and memory rather
than looking at an image. While I enjoy doing representational works derived from photos, it
was refreshing to do something different.  It put the fun back into it for me.  This one is based on my
recollection of how on a clear night where I grew up, the night sky would teem with stars.  It doesn't look like this where I live now by the beach.  Too much marine layer and too many city lights.  The
nights simply aren't as dark here- artificial lighting is everywhere.  For instance, if the shades are open in my bedroom- I can literally read in bed with no lights on.  Artificial lighting is not necessarily good for us- it messes with our circadian rhythms.  Sometimes you'll hear a bird chirping at 3am-they're confused because the streetlights are so bright that it could be morning.  When I go home to  visit my parents, I'm struck by how dark and how quiet it is.  The only light comes from the moon, and the only noise you hear are the sounds of nature, which are soft and subtle instead of street noise in the city. I have to say though don't really mind street noise- I'm so used to it that
I find it strangely soothing.

After finishing this one, a friend and I set all 10 paintings out the other night and looked at them together as a group.   It was an interesting thing to do.  Even though I consider this one quite
different than the others because of the way I did it, it still looked like my work.  I'm wondering if this piece may be a turning point in this series for me.  I've been wanting to move into a more imaginative direction so maybe this piece is a bridge to that.  I have no idea what my next piece will be, but I kind of like that- it feels like freedom.
 
Painting #10
18" x 24"
acrylic on canvas