+new painting+ "Terry and Charlie"

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+new painting+ "They Dined Al Fresco

+new painting+ "Henry and Friend Near the Boat"

+new painting+ "In D.C."

+new painting+ "Station Interruption"

+New Tiny Paintings+

"Bathing Ladies"

Here is my latest painting. I am really quite pleased with how it turned out and am going to start a few more pieces using the same process. 

"Jack in Blue"

I just completed this portrait, loosely based on Jack Kerouac.

"Jesters at the Table"

I have been obviously influenced by many of the classic paintings that I have been looking at at the Met every week. I am fully encouraging the bits of art history to come out in my work. 

"Frank"

In this latest portrait I'm working out a few technical and compositional issues, at the same time exploring a new historical theme.

"The Clown Sailor"

The subject for this painting came to me in a dream. Yes, it's a bit bizarre, but it has something about it that makes me really fond of it. I hope that I have more dreams of paintings, this was so much fun to make.

"R + J at the End"

In my last few paintings I'm attempting to achieve very specific emotions.  

"E.H. Lonesome"

This painting is another experiment. I worked with lots of thick paint, and didn't thin it at all, working exclusively with a palette knife. 

"Mr. Arnold"

Here is a new painting, part of my recent figurative series. 

"What Goes on Behind I Can't Bear to See"

I've started a new series of paintings, the premise being that they read like film stills, just one moment out of a procession of moments. I want to give them a cinematic feeling, a combination of the setting, the lighting, and the mood.

"Flushing"

I call this one "Flushing" due to the fact that two of the prominent colors of the painting are blue and orange - the colors of the NY Mets.

"Canary Drive"

Here is what I've been working on the past week. Funny thing, actually, because I sacrificed a recent painting to create this one. That's right, I painted over my self-portrait below. I like this painting much better. It has a chunky style and lots of movement in the paint. I'm using a new technique, where I apply lots of paint, and scrape much of it off in different manners. I'm having a great time experimenting. I was also more liberal with my color choices, normally I limit myself to 3 or 4 colors, but I just let the colors fly on this one.

New Look

I got bored of my blog, so I gave it a makeover! I like this much better. Simple and clean, the best format to compliment my work, I think. So, now that I love how my blog looks, I will be writing more often. Maybe even (and this would be wild) daily.

I visited the Met recently, I've been trying to go once a week, and I can't even tell you how big an impact going regularly has had on my painting. It's such a treasure, every time I go I find something new. I leave refreshed and full of ideas and things to work out on canvas. I'm going to try to get around to the galleries more often as well. Although I think it's much more useful to look at the masters, as opposed to contemporary art. Eh, that's just how I'm feeling right now.

New

These are my latest drawings, I really love the mix of pencil and marker. They are subtle and expressive. They allow me to work intricately and obsessively, which I like, even though they certainly don't appear that complex.

Self-Portrait

Well, here it is. My self-portrait. It was a total experiment, I wanted to make it in a way in which I don't normally work, and see what came out. I think I'll do one every few weeks and try a completely different style each time.

Drawing Series

A Look in the Mirror

I feel I am at a crossroads in a way. I am very happy with my paintings and how I've been working recently, and yet, I feel there is something significant that I am not reaching with my current series. 

I've been doing lots of heavy thinking, reworking my ideas and desires for my paintings. I know I have the problem of attempting to fit every single idea I've ever had about painting into every piece I make. This drives me mad and keeps me perpetually frustrated. 

In order to clear the decks, I guess, I decided to go back to basics. This means for me, a self-portrait. In the past, whenever I was unsure of what to paint, or unsatisfied with my paintings, I would do a self-portrait. It's a centering exercise for me. 

I'm working on it now, actually, and it should be ready soon. I'm sure I will come to a few new conclusions about the direction I want to take my work into, and it's always fun to see how the things I've been thinking about myself lately will come out on canvas. 

And More Tiny Paintings

Today's Tiny Paintings

I'm going with the tiny paintings for a little longer, I think they are terribly fun.

Tiny Paintings

I'm working smaller and smaller lately, partly for serious spacial obstacles. But nonetheless, I'm really enjoying the intimate nature that working on such a small scale creates. Both of these paintings are no bigger than 4" x 4."

My Fascination With Architecture

Everything I've been looking at and painting lately seems to have something to do with architecture. The idea that the structures we occupy have a great influence on us, on our personalities and actions, is very intriguing. The influence of our surroundings and the way in which our identities seem to shift along with a change in our location is easy to see. I imagine that every interior space has a holding of various memories that were formed there.

This is absolutely true for me, as all of my strongest recollections are intrinsically linked to a very specific location. With the paintings that I've done recently, I've created vague interiors, purposefully leaving some visual information out so as to encourage more work on the part of the viewer. The viewer is prompted to search their own memory database to fill in the holes in the piece, creating some sense of either nostalgia, longing, happiness, or sadness from this new composite recollection. It's fun to see what dormant memories are awakened from different paintings.

Painting: Box

I just finished this last night. Well, maybe it's not finished. I'll probably keep working on it. Let's call it a work in progress then. I started it with the intention to create a lot of movement with the drawn lines. I love drawing.

Painting: October 8

This painting is architectural and ordered, I like how spare it is, and how much movement there seems to be. A big thing for my work lately is implying motion, I want the lines to vibrate. The background interacts well with the planes of color. I enjoy paintings that have a lot going on in them, you can find new aspects every time you look at it. That's what I'm going for here.

Painting: October 7

I've always enjoyed stripes, in artwork and on my clothes. I add a stripe or two in my paintings whenever it seems appropriate. I like how stripes can be suggestive of so many different elements.

My Process. Revealed

The way that I work has become increasingly more important to me. I have a very distinct process that I use when I paint. It makes me feel very comfortable, and free at the same time. I have the structure that I desire, and complete freedom within the framework that I have set up.

 

As much as I hate to use the word "formula" it pretty much is one, although my paintings aren't "formulaic." I don't think the process is visible, and that's fine. I just like knowing that it's there. It leaves me free to explore any subject matter that I wish, and all my work still has a consistent style to it. 

I'm looking forward to seeing just how my style will shift and evolve as my work matures. I'm going to push this current system that I have until I get everything out of it that I feel possible, and then I'll move on to a new process that gives me adequate satisfaction. 

Painting: October 5

This little guy is from a new series that I'm working on. I'm working small (8x8) so that I can work fast. I'm having fun experimenting. Another architectural abstract Newton original is born.