No Hands Bridge and a friend and Blogger thoughts

My arm felt pretty good and I dashed out the door with a 9 x 12 Senso Canvas and headed down to the Confluence of the American River. Its a 10 minute drive only because the road is so windy down the 49 HWay. I set up an a very uneven rocky terrain and I was immediately impressed at how fast the river was rushing downstream. This area is extremely dangerous and it unfortunately has claimed many lives across the years. The water is coming from the Sierra Mountains and is unbelievably cold. Thus, I really wanted to make this small painting about the ice river and the bridge would just be in the background.

Since I have been reading Richard Schmid's Alla Prima, I decided to start at a point of high contrast and sharpness of edge. So I proceeded to lay in the reflection of light and the projecting rock in the center right of the painting and work out. This method is so different in how I normally proceed. I usually start with the sky and proceed downward. I was rattled after 15 minutess as I had no clue if this would work. After 30 minutes I had a strong urge to pack and leave but I am not a quitter and I stuck with it matching all my values against the highest contrast and edge. All of a sudden I heard a voice say..." Is that you Frank?".

The voice came from Craig Stevens who I had met through " Gurney Journey" and he had come to the Confluence to paint too. Wow! I quickly was charmed by his friendly manner and we plan to paint together sometime in the near future. He has posted his 8 x 10 on his blog. http://craigstephens.blogspot.com/

Anyway, I stuck with it and was squinting alot. Squinting really helped me to see simple shapes and value and determine which edges should be lost and which edges should be accented. Eventually I got the method to his madness, so to speak, and I was comparing all my decision of paint matching to my initial start.

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So what have I learned after 4 months of blogging?

1. Its a great way to connect to other artists in a global community.

2. It keeps me on my toes and staying active producing paintings and submitting it for the world to see.

3. Posting comments on other blogs is a great way to become active in the work of others in a positive way.

4. Becoming a "follower" to a blog that I like will connect me to like minded artists. Which is way cool. So if you like my blog become a follower and drive like minded artists to your Blog!

5. Case in point. I was at "Gurney Journey" and was intrigued by a comment by Craig Stevens. I clicked on his name which sent me to his profile at which point I discovered that he is an art teacher here in Auburn! How about them apples!

The Chiropractor

Well, I finally made my way to a Chiropractor today for the first time in my Life. It is really weird to hear your bones crack. I felt that Dr. Kusel could help me. It seems most of my problems stem from the same repetitive motion of painting in a fixed position. I am supposed to apply ice...but hyper Frank has already forgot for how long.

Years ago, I illustrated in colored pencil, a pamphlet on visiting a Chiropractor. It was a fun job as the client sent me to a Chiropractic office and models were hired to simulate treatment. Copies of the pamphlet are still around. You may have seen them.

ThankYou for your concern.....

Post Alert

Dear Reader,

I have been experiencing severe carpal tunnel on my painting wrist. I am typing with my left hand now. I will be seeing a chiropractor tomorrow as I have been unable to lift a brush this week.

I will be posting images...but with limited typing until I get my right arm and wrist to heal.

blessings

Frank

Altered States

Well, I think I am back to "normal" again. I was talking to my bud FX yesterday because I was so happy to be able to re-fi and get a rate of 4.875 fixed for 30 years ( like I'm gonna live that much longer....hmmmm ) . He interrupted me and said..man Frank, You sure unloaded a lot of Art Angst with that last post!". Ok FX. I am sorry about my self indulgence...but don't you think I got a good rate? I almost bought into the doom and gloom that nobody is able to get a loan these days. Yeah Yeah Yeah...stick to Art Frank.

Which leads me to the " Cup We All Race For"........ like a low interest rate Frank? Well maybe.

This painting was done by John Peto 1854 - 1907 . He actually painted on the side and sold his "ART" at a local drugstore. He was in actuality a Coronet Player. He was discovered in 1947.

But this painting is " precious" to me. What is he trying to say? What does the cup signify? What picture was torn from the surface? Why is he mentioning the word " Race". A race involves competition and Darwinian survival. I like pictures that get me to think. I am a hybrid between a classic art method ( Lukits ) and " Concept is King " (at Art Center ). So I have a broad range of tastes and I at least try to understand what the artist is trying to do before I dismiss it out of hand. I just love the fact that Peto used regular wood planks as the frame and integrated it into the final presentation.






Words painted into a picture has always been around. But the 1900's saw an explosion of Art where the WORD dominated the painted field. Ed Ruscha made a name juxtaposing enigmatic word structures and a background image. Is he talking about taxes? Or the mountain climbing fee?





Of course the surrealists loved to bend nature and challenge the onlooker with altered states. This is a painting by Rene Magritte. Advertising Agencies have regularly used his concepts and art in selling consumer goods.

What strikes me about all 3 paintings is that Peto was producing during a time when technical skill and draughtsmanship were very much valued and he died around the time when the Armory Show would set the Art World Ablaze with new concepts and a "New Man" and a "New Art".

I Remember

As is my new custom, I looked at Gurney Journey this morning and saw Jim's post about plaster casts. It was enlightening to learn that plaster anatomical casts were called " ecorche". But it was'nt until I scrolled down and saw a plaster cast that my Art Teacher had given me that my past flashed before me this morning. Just like the opening scene from the Italian Movie " Cinema Paradiso" I went back in time and I could smell linseed oil fumes in the air, it was an intoxicant to a young boy of ten.

There have been three principle Men who have shaped me. My father, who loved art, Sam Hyde Harris and Theodore Lukits.




I spent every Saturday for 10 years , beginning when I was ten, learning from Theodore N. Lukits. He built his studio attached to his main house in Los Angeles off of Wilshire Blvd and started the "Lukits Academy". I was schooled in a " Neo Atelier " style atmosphere and mindset. " Neo" in the sense that we did learn from plaster casts but we were taught to go out in Nature and learn from her Moods and to study conditions of Light. The students were taught initially in black and white graphite tonal drawings and then when Ted felt the student ready, he would move on to Still Life Color. His approach was special attention to value and structure. The student was to capture and study the " air between objects". He kept me in black and white for 7 years!




Ted would wax eloquent about Bougereau and Sargent as the greatest examples of Western Art. At a very early age my heroes were Brangwyn, Lord Leighton, WaterHouse, Abbey, Chase, Cecilia Beaux, Anders Zorn , Klimpt, Mucha , Sorolla, Arthur Rackham , Heinreich Kley. Lukits was a virtual talking Art History book. Names that have emerged from obscurity now were household names to me in the 70's.


I became an instant nerd in various ways. While my peers were submerged in Zap Comics, Andy Warhol , Jasper Johns, Wayne Thiebaud et al, I was a young man walking in the 19 th century. I was taught to hate Modern Art. It was subversive and anti-God. It was not legitimate.

Lukits was accomplished as an anatomist ( he had dissected cadavers ) . He assisted Dean CornWell on his L.A. Public Library Murals. Many of the sketches from Cornwell were lying around in his Studio for the students to see. Lukits gained a reputation as an accomplished portrait painter of Hollywood Movie Stars during the late 20's , 30's and 40's. His most famous portrait was of Delores Del Rio.

In many ways he was a second father to me. And would keep me and my Dad after class teaching us about the " Truth" until 11 oclock at night . Many of you have probably never heard of Theodore Lukits. I believe he would be better known today if he did not have a reputation for being a raving anti-semite and white supremecist. He was very much out in the open about his theories. His classes were run with a mixture of culture , politics and Art. It was not unusual to see students come and go who could not handle his diatribes on Race and Art. To him, they were eternally linked.

It has taken me years to recover from all the indoctrination that Ted fed into my young mind. I was convinced that I had talent because I had a percentage of "White" Blood in me. But there is one common phenomena about teen years ...Rebellion. And I rebelled against his teachings and went to Art Center College of Design. It was akin to changing Religions...being born again.




******* The comment below is from Jeremy Elder of "Master of None" Blog http://jeremy-lee-elder.blogspot.com/

The portrait you posted of his wife hangs in my wife's uncle's house. It is so amazing. Every time I am at his house I stare at that painting (and the rest of the family chuckles because I do it every time).

What are the odds of someone in the blogosphere connecting with you and having a personnel link to your past? God is amazing. This is blowing my mind today!!!!!!!!



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I was bitter towards Ted Lukits for many years. I would never mention his name. In fact, when I got a call from a former student that Ted had died and that he wanted me to come to the Funeral...I refused to go. Such was my bitterness.

But I have learned to forgive him. Its taken many years of self therapy and perspective and Jesus. He was a product of his Austrian Pride. I threw out the baby with the bath water, but his bath water really soiled the baby. But today, we have reassessed great thinkers and artists who held similar beliefs. One that comes to mind is the existentialist Heideggar who wrote the opus " Being and Time ". Many people forgive his Nazi past and focus on his concepts . Even Francis Scaeffer, a Christian Philosopher, quotes Heideggar. In fact today at Berkeley, Prof. Dreyfuss , who is Jewish, in the Philosophy dept says Heidegger is the greatest thinker that bridges Religion and Philosophy. And yet, if Dreyfus lived in Heideggers day, he would have been sent to an oven!





I have learned to understand him yet not EXCUSE him. He taught me many good things. One was " Faith in God and Confidence in Your abilities" . That has served me well. The other is " Know the Truth and the Truth Shall set you free"......yes I am free!





To see his work go here....http://www.theodorelukits.org/

The Believer

24 x 30 oil


This painting is called the Believer. Its from the bible scene where Thomas won't believe Jesus is still alive unless he can personally touch his side where a Roman lance had pierced him. Anyone who needs to have proof, and trusts that seeing is believing, has been given the name " Doubting Thomas". I wanted to give the rest of the story because he believed after this sacred encounter. I thus named my painting...The Believer.


This is one of 90 + paintings that will be on exhibit in Dallas, Texas at Galleria Pierra. The show opened Friday night and will run through March 29th.

Featured artists include the inspiring Thomas Blackshear, Mick McGinty ( Twice a Week ) , Silvina Day, Chris Hopkins, Michael Dudash, Daniel Gerhardt , Tim Solliday and many more.

It is an honor to be included in this traveling show which will be in Paris , France in the Fall.


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Plein Air Painters of America , Lodi 2007

Kevin MacPherson.s finished demo







Scott Burdick paints a portrait with water based oils




Don Demers




Ken Auster




Mac paints while my art bud Silvio Sylvestri watches with glee





George Stickland




The Man...Ray Roberts




Joe Paquet




Jean LeGassick




Ken Backhaus . Notice how Mr. Backhaus has properly identified the value and color of the grass and truck......the man has chops!

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We were fortunate enough to be in the vacinity of A Paint Out which included the top names in the Plein Air World. These gallant and brave artists assembled and displayed their virtuosity at a winery in Lodi California, renowned for their Pinot's.

The artists were all scattered across a sprawling vineyard and luckily they were all within walking distance. Some chose tractors, some grapevines others chose barns and houses. It was fascinating to see what attracted these plein air Rock Stars. The brightest star of the event, in my opinion was Kevin MacPherson ....only because he attempted a painting where the light was fleeting and extremely challenging. His finished painting was stunning and he carried a lively conversation with his gallery of onlookers the entire time. No small feat!

I was very impressed with the host of painters. It not easy painting along with your peers and adding to that.... the pressure of onlookers asking questions and carrying on. As you can see...these are pros and they all did quite well.

These events are great if you want to learn from these accomplished artists and watch how they lay in a composition. It can be like attending a golf tournament. Each artist has his gallery of fans asking about paint, brushes, technique etc.

I was able to talk with Ray Roberts as I found out that he too graduated Art Center College of Design and we had a good laugh talking about our past instructors. I am sure I distracted him.

The PAPA website is full of info. along with samples of members work. If their next paint out is near you, I highly recommend seeing all these artists at one time!

Here is the link for PAPA.

http://www.p-a-p-a.com/

Ewok Movie

Here is a matte painting done for the Ewok Movie. The painting in this example is shown with the live action on the left side ledge.

I am having really bad carpal tunnel today...I am keeping my typing to a minimum......

Jacob sleeps Again

I liked the pose so much that I repainted the scene for myself. The painting below was for LifeWay.







Jacop sleeps . This painting reflects my mood today...its rainy and gray and blustery outside and I just want to rest. But alas...I paint! Yeah !


oil

Ochre Mood

This a a 3 hour painting session from Last Monday at Bobbi Balwin's Painting Atelier. My art bud Silvio salvaged this one for me as I had painted a flower that the model was holding and it really confused my focal point. Goes to show you that less is more. Don't ALWAYS paint everything that you see. Listen to friends you TRUST. Be SELECTIVE and less can be more...unless its the purchasing price of the painting, then you want more ;v)

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Happy Presidents Day. I like this video for all the presidential portraits on display.

Ordaz Drawz

2 minute warm up sketch




I've started a new blog that will have my drawings and sketches of ideas. It will show more process and " How To". It will be less formal than " On Being Frank".

I will also link to other Drawers and artists that are communicating with line.

If you have some favorites, please by all means let us know about them!


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http://frankordazart.blogspot.com

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Let me tell you about East L.A.

my Godfather... Senor Gamboa and his false teeth. He used to entertain the kids at family gatherings by pulling them out and letting them click like castanets.






There is a L. A. band called Ozomatli that starts a song by declaring..." Let me tell you about L. A. ". Well , let me tell you about growing up in East L. A. That is a small part of L.A. where all the poor immigrant Mexicans lived as they commuted to work around the county. I lived on a street called Eastside. It parallels Brooklyn Ave, the main artery. At the end of Eastside Ave is a little Catholic Church.

This colored pencil sketch is of my extended family. In this grouping, all the contradictions and similarities of Latino Culture is present. Wearing the defiant Giant baseball cap is my cousin Louie. To his right is his wife Lupe. Their children are to their right. Louie is a great guy who leans far left in his politics. He identifies with the La Raza , Chicano mindset. He worked for a law firm that lobbied for Latino Activist rights. My cousin is apolitical , but her sympathies lie with her Husband. They are very Americanized and liberal.

Next to Louie is my Grandfather Raul although I was not allowed to call him that as he was my GrandMothers 3rd husband. There was and still is shame about divorce in my families Catholic worldview. He has always been kind to us. He speaks passable english.

Next to Raul is my aunt Maria. There is no such thing as a Latino family without a Tia Maria. She does not speak english but has a heart of Gold. She probably sympathizes with the " Si Se Puede" crowd but in actuality, she just wants to be left alone and care for her family. Her children are all successful and one of her sons was a Marine and owns a printing company and owns a racing team.. She watches Spanish TV and will vote whichever direction the news broadcasts lean. She is aware of pasts discrimination and her memory colors her present life.

Next to him is my favorite uncle. My Tio Felipe. My father has 2 brothers in California. The oldest is Miguel. Who speaks no English. My Dad speaks passable english but is not confident in social situations of his grammar. The next youngest brother is Felipe who is very Americanized and speaks English expertly. My father and uncle Miguel still harbor resentment of how they were treated when they came to America. They have seen enough discrimination that they cannot let it go. They are very Democratic in their political philosophies although they are social conservatives. My uncle Felipe started his own business and by far is the most successful of the bunch. He is a solid conservative and is a Republican. Remember the Christmas Day massacre where a man dressed in a Santa suit killed an entire family? Well, the Patriarch, Jim Ortega was my Tio Felipe's best friend.

Next to him is his daughter Caroline. She is also an artist and married. Her and her husband are part of the new merchant class. They are living in Dubai and making their fortune overseas.

There you have it. A real diverse group. And it is wild at any social gathering. We all love each other . It gets loud...but we have all learned to agree to disagree and pass the menudo!


and for your listening pleasure....OZOMATLI!!!!!!!!!!! and if you must see just one...Rodrigo and Gabriela on the Letterman Show...

I do

oil on linen . This is an Alla Prima portrait of Jana. I started in the late morning and finished around 4 in the afternoon. I see now where I could have pushed the edges more.





I know this is corny, but I designed a Valentines Card for Jana on our first date. I changed the
" Woman" to " Friend " just to make her comfortable.




My writing can be pretty chaotic, so I practiced my script in various ways.


Dear Reader,

I was going to post something different today for Jeremy. Then I remembered that today is the anniversary of that joyous moment when beautiful Jana said “ I do “ . We were married 21 years ago. Our first date was on Valentines day ( it just worked out that way ) and I am still surprised she went out with me after that day. I went overboard trying to impress her. She was so different than all the ladies I had dated in the past and I just had to make her like me. I even serenaded her with my best Sinatra tunes ( she still laughs about my awkward attempt at Cool ) . I pulled out all the stops. I would hand draw all my love letters to her and practiced my penmenship just to sign the letters. She still has them all.

I will buy her favorite wine tonight and renew my vows to her again after dinner. For Richer or Poorer. In Sickness or in Health, Until Death do us part. What God has put together let no man tear asunder. I love You Jana....... The perfect artists wife. I have Sargents painting of the artist painting next to his row boat and his wife just hanging around. Jana says she likes that lifestyle....yes!

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Alla Prima Donna 1.2

A typical Journal entry . Bordeaux , France




Dear Reader,

This blog has satisfied a a need of expression that in the past was buried in my Art Journals. I have 30 sketch/art/thought journals that are collecting dust on my shelves. Some of my entries are so personal that I won't even let my boys read them..." You did what Dad? ". The majority of those books were compiled when I was in my twenties and single. I was still figuring it out. What is Life about and how do I fit in? I was very much an Alla Prima Donna , I lived for the now without the slightest thought of how it would affect me in the future. I have a lot of compassion for Michael Phelps, 22, who was caught inhaling pot through a bong. He probably had no clue how that action would affect his future or career.

I am reading Richard Schmid's " Alla Prima " and have gotten as far as page 71. My immediate thoughts are that this book is definitely not for the beginner. He is very much an Artist's Artist. I do recommend for beginners a good well thought out book by a plein air pro. Kevin D. MacPhearson " Fill Your Oil Paintings with Light and Color" by North Light Books.

Richard describes in complete detail all the mental preparations that should take place before starting a painting. I am really learning from his years of painting how important it is to visualize , as best you can, where you want the painting to go.

What I also found interesting is his philosophy. Take this as an example. " Do not ask yourself, "WHAT do I see?" Rather ask , " What do I see?" . I think in my early years , I would have marveled at that statement. I recognized the Philosophical underpinnings of that statement and I jumped around towards the back of the book to read his parting words of wisdom to see if my intuition was right. Its there that he referenced the Holy Trinity of Trancsendentalists ...Emerson , Whitman and Thoreau. Well, it all made sense. Especially his last statement of the DVD " I want to show off Nature".

In a nut shell, New England Transcendentalism was our own American version of Romanticism with a Brahma twist. These men were also influenced by the German Philosophical School, most notably Emmanual Kant. In a nutshell, Kant said, You can not know a thing in itself. All you can really know is YOUR experience of it.

The other German Romantic Philosopher who influenced these men was Schopenhauer . He mixed Hindu philosophy with his brand of German thought and wrote " The World as Will and Desire" . Everything was an illusion and the only thing that was tangible for our desires was ART. Art was man's Salvation...see where this is going?.....

The " T's" believed in the Religious EMOTION, the love of NATURE, the spirituality of ART, and the value of INDIVIDUALISM. Thoreau's "Walden's Pond" is scripture to this mindset.

My recognizing Schmid's WorldView is not a slam against him. But being aware of a Philosophical style is just as important as recognizing The Hudson Valley School or Impressionism. It helps in my understanding of his points and where we may agree and disagree .

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Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln were born on this day 200 years ago. The Daily Scriptorium on my side bar has an interesting comparison between these two Titans.

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Confluence Bridge and Richard Schmid

Back at the start of January I made a New Years resolution to keep my studio clean. Well...that's just not going to happen from what I can see. What I do plan to do is go out in Nature, most specifically the North Fork of the American River, and paint on a regular basis. After our figure painting session on Monday, Silvio Silvestri and I went down to the Confluence and painted the Concrete Bridge at around 3 : 30. It was already looking like sunset . The colors were indescribable. I was so excited to see all the painting possibilities and the vast array of choices for interesting compositions. I am posting my 9 x 12 . I like bridges. I like that they connect two otherwise disconnected and insurmountable spots. Its a metaphor that intuitively interests me and resonates within me.....which brings me to Richard Schmid.

I felt I had hit a wall about a month ago. Jesus said something profound when he said " You shall know them by their fruit". It is a poetic phrase that even a child can understand. If an artist can be judged by the success and outstanding achievements of his students then Richard Schmid can be seen as a great teacher as well as a great Artist. It is with that understanding that I went ahead and purchased his portrait video and his book " Alla Prima". It arrived yesterday and I was so excited that I threw the DVD into my iMac and watched the demo in its entirety.

A couple things jumped out at me. He makes it look easy! He understands head structure so well that a brush stroke can communicate value, color, edge and plane and character all at once. For all the brushwork that makes his work stand out, there is a minimum of blending and " licking" . He gets his color matched right on the palette as quickly as possible and then applies it on the canvas. There is also a childlike abandon as he paints and that attitude is infectious. But this was not the highlight of this video, in my opinion.

Towards the end of the " Discussion " he talks about attitude. It was at this moment , Richard the man, spoke his heart and is worth every penny of this DVD.

He mentions that his Life has been a Series of Attitudes. When he was a teenager he found joy in expression and he had no concept of " ART ". Then into his twenties he thought he was " Hot Stuff" and into his 30's and 40's he said he was all about " Dazzling" and showing off. He would say to himself " Wait until they see this! ". Then after having Children and seeing Death in his late 40's and 50's he said something very profound....Richard Schmid said he REALIZED that he had " Feet of Clay" . WOW!............. God said " Get serious Richard !......... He then started to examine his life. What's important to me? He came to the understanding that he was given a gift. A powerful tool of expression. He was now supposed to use it wisely and nurture it. He then looked outside HIMSELF and saw that he was part of a COMMUNITY of Artists and aware of the Art World. He purposed that his painting would no more be a selfish frivolous act. That his paintings would be meaningful.

Then the crescendo came. The older I get, Richard said, I am seeing MORE in Nature and I VALUE being Alive. I am part of a larger World. Now painting reflects the very best I can do. Now, Richard said, I want to show off Nature.

The man is Wise. Learn from Him I will do...... He will be my Bridge to the place across a wide challenging river......

blessings

Expressions

A day At Pixar Animation Studio




A portrait sketch of the Powerful Glen Kim



A Day at Pixar Animation Studio




Glen Kim with his old Boss Man . I think I can take him down in a wrestling match...okay...maybe not.





The motley crew in the new Pixar Facility




Kyle and his creation




Kyle's sculpted model




Kyle's digital renderings



There were and are alot of people who have helped me along my path of art. I am a big believer in giving back, especially to young people. Last year I took a group of young men, including my son Isaac and nephew Kyle, who is studying at Expressions College, to Pixar Animation Studio in Emeryville Ca. My former assistant , Glen Kim, who is powerfully gifted , has been working at Pixar since Bugs Life. He left me for a better Job! His job is to colorize the animated models and his first success was coloring the Evil Grasshopper.We have stayed in touch and I have taken groups of kids to Pixar in the past through Glen as my contact. It just so happened that the day we were there, WallE was premiering. The lads got to meet Ben Burtt, the voice of WallE.

My Nephew Kyle, 22, seeks to make his claim in the Digital Arts. He is taking classes at Expressions College, also in Emeryville. He tells me that he enjoys it tremendously and I have seen large steps in progress in his development. Classes are taught by industry professionals and the objective of the school is to prepare these students for the electronic industry. Its a whole new approach to advancing in the arts as a laptop and stylus have taken the place of paper and pencil. Across the bay in San Francisco is the Academy of Art University, where I taught, and the traditional arts are taught there. So you have a choice. One of the young men who came with me to Pixar wants to be an animator and he was just accepted at Expressions. Congratulations Dakota! We'll be watching and pulling for you!

to see Expressions College click here http://www.expression.edu/

Humming 1.2

this a photo of my next little miniature painting



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this part won't make sense unless you read the post below the painting


Sunday. I was thinking about my last post and how the strung up Hummingbird affected my immediate family. Same image and three distinct responses. I could lie and say I was painting this because it was a metaphor for the fragility of life and that existance can hang on a string...but that would not be frank. Instead, I received a call today from a friend who has been stricken with skin cancer all over his body. He was shaken to his core and was brought face to face with his mortality. We are like brothers and we went to college together. He is being admitted to a hospital on Tuesday. I was looking at my hummingbird painting as I was talking with him, it just so happened I was in my studio.

I never thought more deeply about my mortality until I hit 50. I don't feel 50 and I definitely don't act 50. I am just too naturally hyper. Thank God I was born before they could administer Rydlyn to me. But as I saw that little hummingbird image as I talked with my bud, I realized a painting can be a springboard to ponder deeper things. Have I cherished this thing called life and been part of the solution or am I part of the problem? Have I used my giftings to glorify myself and enter into status seeking? Have I been my brother's keeper?

I bet that little humming bird never knew that the plant that gave him nourishment would also claim his life. We all have read how ART has claimed the lives of artists who are so consumed with the process that they go over the edge. When I was at Art Center, we had a student that was so despondent with his lack of achievement that he committed suicide. How tragic. But also how selfish and self consumming. I am not one to look at the dark side of things, I am after all a half full kinda guy, but once in awhile I step back and ponder the deeper and more significant things. Its at that moment that I walk up to my wife and boys and give them a big hug and kiss. They look at me startled and say.." What was that for? :...and I just say because........

blessings





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Isaac and David at the De Young Museum, San Francisco


As soon as I finished this small painting in oil , Jana and David walked into my Studio. David blurted out loudly, "Yeoww..Why are you painting a dead humming bird...gross!" Jana diplomatically interjected " I think there are other nice things you could have painted " . Isaac, hearing all the commotion rushed in and pronounced " Cool..I guess you are doing the Tromp l'oeil thing" And he smacked me on the back. Yes...teaching him about Art is paying off!

My cat , Ronnie Ray, loves to hide in the Mexican Sage and while the Hummingbirds are feasting on the nectar he bides his time and while these hyper birds are drunk on nectar he sends them to Birdie Heaven. He has actually killed 2 hummingbirds. He is fast.

I was in the process of pruning back the sage when I noticed that a small hummingbird had tangled itself on a small twiggy branch and had died in a mummified way. I had never seen such a thing before. I gently untangled the poor fellow and was enraptured by the phosphourescent quality of the colors on his neck and back. He is a wondrous creature. They are all over our yard during spring and summer and have a very distinctive song. They enjoy chasing each other and are very territorial.

Soo.... The only way I could get a good look of him to paint was to " string him up" . Sewing string seemed the right choice. I think I will do a couple more to get that red under his neck. What's it like to be a hummingbird?

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No Animals were harmed in the production of this painting ( thanks Mary ) and I am not pimping my cat to do the dirty work.


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oil on 5 x 7 panel

Women in Art

Armadillo Sunrise

I was looking for reference for a new painting and I came across this slide and I scanned it and have now posted it. Back in my LucasFilm days I usually went wild after a long day of painting ( 9 - 6pm ) . I would usually draw at a cafe or go out on the town. I was 24...what else was I supposed to do? But once in awhile someone would coax me to remain still to paint a commission. I painted this Grand Canyon scene after I came back from my Armadillo Tour. I started my driving tour at the Grand Canyon and then proceeded to Bryce Canyon, The Great Sand Dunes, Santa Fe, Estes Park , Devils Tower , Mt. Rushmore , Yellowstone and ended in Lake Tahoe. I never took a real good photo of this painting and it hung at John Gardner's Tennis Ranch in Carmel. I have no idea where the painting is now. Pictured is Tom Gardner. I don't even remember how long it took me but I would pick at it for a couple of hours after working on Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

A couple galleries wanted me to paint more landscapes, but at that time I could not think of nothing more boring. Such was the mindset of my brain at 27. Its an oil painting on canvas. This was the moment my client saw the painting for the first time. You can even see a photo of the Death Star on my wall......this little cold cabin was in Lagunitas Ca. I rented from Gary Platek who was a special effect wizard with latex paint in a water tank creating the illusions of storms.

60" x 60"


Favorite artist right now...the Superstar Pierre Raby ... see his blog on the sidebar

Favorite Musician right now...Phil Wickham



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