Painting on Linen

This is the first painting I have ever painted on linen, and I must say it's a great surface to work with. Canvas is much more affordable, but it doesn't take paint nearly as well as linen. Given that I tend not to mix a lot of color, or pile it on as thick as some of my other artist friends, it may be a good choice for me in the future.

A Painting for Fall

This is the first time actually finishing a fall painting during the fall, so I'm pretty excited about that! This is larger than I had been working, 20" x24". So glad to be back in the studio this weekend, it's been too long!

I Have to Repost This

This is meant to be a good luck charm for my Redbirds. Hope all is well out there, I should be posting new work soon, so stay tuned.

What Inspires You?

Here is the first painting I ever sold in a gallery. It's a painting of some local kids playing ball on a field in Mexico. Baseball is something that inspires me, and I try to paint what inspires me rather than what I think people will buy. So what inspires you?

Happy Labor Day!

I'm very grateful for a "fruitful" Labor Day weekend spent with family and friends, with time leftover to paint.

Occasionally I'll paint a smaller plein air painting or quick studio study to test a subject matter, and if successful move to a larger canvas. This one was the exact opposite. I started large, and was not happy with the piece, and put it aside for about 2 years. Recently I started it up again on a smaller canvas and was pleased with the progress, and ultimately the finished piece. It just goes to show how important spontaneity and timing is in art. Although developing certain habits and practices are important, it's important for me to not become too formulaic or predictable in my approach.

Oldie but Goodie

I don't have anything new to show, but here's an older painting that still holds up to my new work. It's a painting of the Wenatchee river in Leavenworth, Washington. I hope to get back in the studio over the long weekend, hopefully I'll have some new work to show!

Good Day for a Hurricane

Being still relatively new to the region, I'm really unsure of what to expect when Irene hits us. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time, as I've always loved a good storm. Here's hoping that everyone makes it through this safely, and that we all have lots of inspiring skies to paint when it passes!

Reclamation Project

Here is a painting I decided to paint over. My wife curses me when I do this, but I'm tired of looking at it. Although I was happy with it when I completed it, my current work is so much better. Plus, it's a giant canvas and I have a great painting in mind for it!

Starving Artist

In an effort to minimize the starving part, I took on a new job. The flip-side of course is less time to paint. The balancing act became too difficult, and a great job opportunity was too hard to pass up. The job is actually more artful than many of my past design jobs, so hopefully it keeps me inspired.

I do look forward to painting outdoors more once it cools down, and still painting whenever possible. Above is a painting I did a few years ago, entitled "Willows on Water".

Yellowstone

Here is a painting that I had considered painting over until I was talked out of it. I had a great painting in mind for it, but I guess I need to start buying more canvases instead of painting over everything!

A Real Art Town

My wife and I had some great adventures on Maryland's eastern shore this weekend, and stayed in the town of Easton. Many towns claim to be "art towns", but Easton is the real deal. Not only do they host a plein air festival every year, but they celebrate art every day with many great art galleries, an art museum and live music pretty much every night. Not to mention fantastic scenery that is truly inspiring. We even stopped in and said hi to my friend, Nancy Tankersly at the South Street Gallery. She is the owner and a fantastic artist in her own right.

Inspiring scenery, a great art community and friendly locals make Easton my new favorite spot in Maryland!

Football!

I'm really happy that the players and owners worked their differences out, and am looking forward to the upcoming season. Although my team, the Denver Broncos are far from their glory days, I love football season because with it comes fall and its colors and cooler weather. Above is a mixed media piece I did a few years back of my childhood hero, John Elway.

Mad dogs and Englishmen

I actually planned to venture out of the studio today and paint en plein air, but then I remembered Noel Coward's quote, "Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the mid-day sun." Although he may not have been referring to plein air painting in the summertime, it seemed wise not to risk it! So I stayed in and painted in my air-conditioned studio.

Great Week for Art!

I am happy to report that people are buying art again! My new friend, "The Urban Kayaker" just bought this piece and one other. He was happy to point out after looking at my body of work that I need to paint more figures. Sounds familiar. I'm on it!

Prairie Drive-In

This painting has found a new home! I painted this one and about four others after a trip to my home state of Montana two summers ago. They are some of my best paintings to date.

Woodland Stables

Here is my newest piece, entitled "Woodland Shack". I painted outdoors in the snow a number of times this past winter, and although nothing ever came of those pieces, they were very helpful to me as I painted this. The colors Mother Nature presents in winter rival those of the fall and summer.

Spring on the Clackamas

I've been hearing a lot lately from artists I respect, amongst them James Whistler, how value and line are of the utmost importance in a painting. Even more so than color, which is obvious in his most famous painting, "Whistler's Mother". Although I don't use black as liberally as he does, I took the wisdom to heart, and have been paying close attention to the values in my paintings. I think it paid off in the one above.

Willow tree

I love the accessibility of watercolors. Few other wet mediums allow for such quick setup and clean-up. That said, few other wet mediums are as confounding as watercolors! I enjoyed working on this one, but it is not at all what I had intended. I added the inking about halfway through, at a point where I was ready to throw it in the trash. Perhaps I should take a class from my friend, Bruce Hanford -- a brilliant watercolorist, and member of the Washington Society of Landscape Painters. Please check out his work if you get a chance.

Peaceful Thursday

Here is a painting I finished today. I'm enjoying painting rundown houses and shacks these days. I had this day to myself, with the wife and kids heading to the coast. Just a quiet house and my easel. Although I think it would drive me crazy if I had it this way all the time, today it was just what I needed.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder

I've been neglecting my blog lately, sorry. Here is a painting I finished recently, entitled "The Red Bench". It's a great spot that I used to jog past when I worked in north Portland. This one hangs in the Ryan Gallery in Lincoln City. I was back in the studio today as a nice Father's day present, as I've been really busy with work and kid's sports lately. Looks like Monday and Tuesday I'll get some time in there as well.