subscribe
Check out the new oil painting series --->

Posts Tagged ‘little people’

Books and Art – Kickstarter Campaign

On May 9, 2012   /   Blog   /   Leave a comment

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to see some more tiny people. It’s been a year since I completed my last painting Undaunted Courage, and I’ve spent the time since working on my animal silhouette series. I’m happy with the way things are going, but I miss the figures, I really do.

So, how bout it? Wanna see me get back to people – the drawings and oil paintings? This week I launched my campaign to start a new oil series about literature. I figured since I ended on books, why not start back up with the same theme? Instead of painting random people, though, my new pieces will be focused on some of the most famous characters in all of literature.

  • Dracula
  • Jane Eyre
  • Holden Caulfield
  • Sherlock Holmes
  • Captain Ahab
  • Don Quixote
  • Atticus Finch

There are really too many to count, and I hope I get to paint a lot of them. BUT, I need some help. I can’t get back to painting unless my funding goal is reached. That’s the great thing about Kickstarter.com. After you help out by pledging, you get something as a reward. There are different levels, from just a few dollars, up to high amounts that get you things like original artwork.

So, if you’ve enjoyed my artwork in the past and have the time and means to chip in, please do so. Like I said before, I can’t do this project unless I reach the goal. I’m ready to get my sketches going again and break out the turps and oils!

Back to Top

Undaunted Courage

On August 22, 2011   /   Blog   /   Leave a comment
Undaunted Courage
36″ x 48″
oil on linen
Well, I currently live in Charlottesville, Virginia. Cindy got accepted to the University of Virginia law school, and now I am enjoying the beautiful vistas of the Appalachians. I just finished setting up my new studio, very similar to my old one (in the dining room now as opposed to the living room). This is quite an inspiring place, especially after visiting Jefferson’s Monticello.
This new painting was commissioned just before we left. It is the largest painting I have worked on since college so it was a bit of a challenge following the previous small scale painting. I haven’t worked this fast in a while, but I am pleased with the result. The four figures in the painting are all of my wife, and this is a follow up to my previous Cliffhangers piece.
Back to Top

Promiscuous Bunch

On April 10, 2011   /   Blog   /   2 Comments

Promiscuous Bunch
22″ x 28″
oil on linen

With all of the new activity going in my life, I haven’t had the opportunity to work or post.  However, I figured now would be a good time to show my new painting, although this painting was completed last September.  It is up at the Wally Workman Gallery, framed and hung.

Back to Top

Drawing – Dash of Cinnamon

On August 17, 2010   /   Blog   /   3 Comments
Dash of Cinnamon
18″ x 24″
graphite and chalk on toned paper
Back to Top

Playing with Scale

On August 13, 2010   /   Blog   /   Leave a comment
Because I exaggerate scale so much in my work, I spend a lot of time adjusting objects in order to make them look “real”.  There are a few problems with working on such a small area in real life in order to transform it into a large environment.  One is that I can’t always sit in front of the scene and draw it as if it were a landscape because of hard to reach viewpoints.  Also, if I move my eye or, in most cases, the camera just a few inches in any direction, it’s like moving a few feet or more in the scene.  When that happens it drastically affects the perspective and scale.

Here is one moment early on in the development of Dash of Cinnamon:

In this photo, you can see I have a set of drawings.  There is actually just one drawing, but I’ve altered it in five different ways.  The finished watercolor is at the bottom right.  I included it just as a way to refresh my eyes and have a final image in mind.  The original scanned drawing is at the top left.
It may feel like a hidden pictures game in a Highlights magazine, but I’ve subtly enlarged objects in each of the cascaded images.  I can play around with scale using photoshop until it looks right.  The objects I messed with were the coffee can, the coffee pot, the spoon, and the tupperware containers on the shelf.  In the end, I think I ended up getting closest to the image at the upper right.
How did I know what to change and when it looked right?  Well, based on the first drawing, I knew the coffee pot was too far away since it was supposed to be the focus for the painting.  The coffee can, on the other hand, was too dominating.  In the final piece I cropped it and balanced it out by bringing the right side closer.  I used those two areas as a jumping off point.  This is just one stage of a long process.  You start with a broad generalized idea, and just beat it to death with a critical eye.
After this stage, I did the same scale adjustment to the figures.
Back to Top

Dash of Cinnamon

On August 9, 2010   /   Blog   /   1 Comment
Dash of Cinnamon
30″ x 40″
oil on linen
I had been looking to do a follow up painting to the drawing of Sean in the sugar jar for a long time.  I came up with Dash of Cinnamon.  In this scene, Sean has escaped from the jar and has decided to treat himself to whatever else he can find.  He discovers yet another treat.
This is the first time, since some of my earlier self-portrait drawings, that I have included multiple figures of the same person.  You can read into it what you want, but my intention is for the figures to represent the different impulses we have.  In this case, two of the Sean’s have already grabbed what they want and run off.  The other two, stunned, are left behind and alone.
Back to Top

Cliffhangers Drawing

On June 16, 2010   /   Blog   /   Leave a comment
I thought I should follow up the last post with the preliminary drawing. The warm toned paper helped with visualizing the colors of the final painting.
Back to Top

Progression Shots – Cliffhangers

On June 15, 2010   /   Blog   /   1 Comment
 
 
 
Here is another set of progression shots for my painting “Cliffhangers.”
Back to Top

Progression Shots – Bones Will Crumble

On May 26, 2010   /   Blog   /   1 Comment
 
 
 
I have become addicted to taking progress shots for my work. The ability to go back and see how I tackled problems is invaluable. I can also see at what points I “lost” something good because I worked it too much or vice versa; when I overcame a nagging area that just wasn’t working.
Here are just a few of the photos I took at the end of each day. This was definitely a fun one to paint.
Back to Top

Bones Will Crumble

On April 28, 2010   /   Blog   /   2 Comments
Bones Will Crumble
30″ x 30″
oil on linen
This is the new painting I was trying not to “lick.” When I first moved to Philadelphia, I was fascinated with radiators because I had never really seen them before. We don’t have them in Texas. Ours was in good condition but you could tell it had been around for quite a while. Layers of paint had been built up and were flaking off. It seemed like the machine was struggling to stay useful. The crumbling facade, the white paint, dust, all reminded me of ancient ruins.
Back to Top
Page 1 of 3123

Recent Blog Posts

  • Books and Art – Kickstarter Campaign Books and Art – Kickstarter Campaign
    I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to see some more tiny people. It’s...
  • Bear Bear
    Here is my newest painting, two bears catching their dinner in a waterfall. Since I moved to...
  • Longhorn Longhorn
    I received a request from an old friend to paint longhorns so that’s exactly what...
  • Pug Pug
      This is the second dog I’ve painted in my animal series. Pugs, like dachshunds,...

Latest Tweets

Favorite Artists

Compliments

You amaze me, I love to see what’s next!!!!

Follow & Share

Write Me

Your message was successfully sent.
Thank You!