Staying Sane Gets Harder

Spring is wandering around aimlessly. It has shown up for a day or two and then wanders off again. It will eventually get here...I hope. 

The US continues down the path trodden by Banana Republics and authoritarian regimes, making day to day life a little greyer,, but for some, a nightmare. Between the dismantling of federal government services, the hunting down of immigrants, the deportation of college students, the targeting of the judiciary, the alienation of allies, the mishandling of the Ukraine war, the existential threats leveled at Greenland and Canada...well, the list goes on, but I am ashamed of my country...

Thankfully, I have my retreat into the making of art and my hopes that that repulsive orange blob will be called home by his maker, sooner rather than later.

This is a big painting of the lagoons at Presque Isle that I finished a while back. I'm liking it. 

This is a study of Darah that I really like. The best one of her that I have done.

I've worked with a couple of couples to try my hand at multiple figure compositions. Way harder than you can imagine...or at least way harder than I imagined. But I think these two turned out OK..............

Buy Canadian.

 

America Lost

So, the year begins with an absolute idiot as a head of state. I cannot express how repulsive a human being this piece of shit is. It is sad that almost half of the US is so stupid that they voted for him. So things are not likely to get better soon and so the escape is art. To try to create beauty in a country that has embraced ugliness, stupidity, greed and racist nationalism all in the name of patriotism. So, I will be be busy.

The above work is Edinburgh, Scotland

The above piece is a piece called Ad Infinitum. It was in the Tikkanen Competition. Inspired a bit by Jasper Johns and DeMuth.

This is an early study of a  couple of models who were remarkable for a variety of reasons, the biggest being the contrast in skin tones which made for a significant challenge photographing them as well as painting them.

Still playing around with the "Movement" series of paintings.

 

A Perfect Autumn Day on the Lagoons

This weekend was the perfect October weekend in Erie, Pennsylvania. This required a kayak trip on the lagoons. The first picture I took because the water was glass-calm and the reflection was quite remarkable.

The second picture had the post full Hunter's Moon hanging above a copse of trees.

The third picture was of some alien swamp creatures rising to the surface to pay homage to the solar disc.

The fourth picture was of some underwater foliage undulating in the current and my paddle reflected on the left hand side.

The fifth image has nothing to do with the lagoons, but rather a naiad rising out of the water off the beach.

The sixth picture is that naiad's twin sister, a dryad.

 

And so, we begin again...

Back from Scotland and the wedding of my nephew. A lovely trip, but now it is back to school.

Busy Summer painting. These two images are the result of some kayaking on the lagoons and hanging around the beach. Developing the "Architectonic" approach to some more organic subjects and seeing how it plays out. Results were kind of interesting

I also had a show at 1020 Holland Collective. 70 figure paintings. It went OK I guess. I have some new models that I am working with, so we'll see if it results in anything interesting.

 

Two New Things

Two recent works. One is based on the mechanical objects that I saw in Colorado and vegetation in the lagoons at the peninsula. More of one than the other and so many don't seem to notice.

A painting done for a show on the upcoming eclipse that may actually happen in Erie if the clouds do not screw it up. In Erie, in April, that is likely to be the case, but we can hope.

Just had some spare time.

 

Antidote to Trump

Some figure paintings of late where I was playing around much more consciously with light and drapery. If I have to live in a world with something as vile as Donald Trump, I at least have the escape of painting beauty. I hope you have something.

 

Still Alive, For Now

Still playing with the technique of deconstructing/reconstructing images. Started off applying it to architecture a couple of years ago. Now expanding to applying it to different subject matter. So this first image is the city of Copenhagen. The image was created from hundreds of pictures taken of Copenhagen from the summer.

This image was put together from pictures taken of steam locomotives and abandoned mining equipment in Colorado from a trip the previous Spring.

Now applying the system to images taken from the lagoons at Presque Isle. Waterlilies, pads and various aquatic plants. Seeing how well organic forms translate in this style.                                                  

This last one is applying the technique to a figure. In this case my model who is the dancer.

So we'll keep playing with this idea for a while I think. I'm liking the results.