Synthesis . 24x36 . 2011

1. natural light

2. artificial interior light

3. artificial and uv light combined

4. uv light only (blacklight)

5. no light (glow in the dark)

Ingredients: acrylic, phosphorescent pigments, crushed glass, varnish, water & light

I envy the room this painting will live in. Not because of the painting itself (although I think it's awesome) but because the *room* is awesome. It's a sunroom, with a fireplace and an attached deck, and giant windows that overlook a full wall of the prettiest, greenest trees I've ever seen. I can't imagine what it must be like to live there. I don't really think I'd leave that room much. Seriously, it's like my dream room.

The colors in this piece are intended to reflect that. It changes from olive and teal to orange and blue just by walking past it. 

^Viewed from the left.

^Viewed from the right.

I'm very excited to see what it will become in a room that's so alive with light and movement. I've intended it to reflect and change as the sun moves across the sky each day, mirroring the outside world as Amanda and Robert enjoy life from the inside. In natural daylight the painting already leans very green, and I'm sure this will be enhanced by reflecting the color of the outside trees. At night the tones warm up to darker golds.

The painting itself was made for the sun and trees. Just as the trees change colors all year, so will the painting. The daytime should be a direct reflection of what color is outside, in the sky and all around their home.

I love working with the seasons. Adding yearly transits and seasonal cycles to interact with my art makes me feel like I am part of something so much greater. I use our very sun to paint with.

:)

The Shire . 24x36 inches . 2011

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

1. morning (natural light)

2. noon (natural light)

3. late afternoon (natural light)

4. evening (interior artificial light)

5. Midsummer's Eve party is beginning! (interior and UV black light combined)

6. Gandalf's firework show (UV light only)

7. Time to sleep and dream (no light / glow in the dark)

Ingredients: acrylic, sand, phosphorescent pigments, crushed glass, glass beads, water & light on canvas

I'm showing you 3 different natural lighting pictures so you can really see how it changes when the sun moves across the sky during the day. :)

When my friend Beth texted me to ask if I'd be willing to do a painting based on the Shire, I said yes immediately, despite "landscapes" not being something I normally paint. I knew exactly what it would look like the moment I saw her text. The final painting isn't much different from the sketch I jotted down minutes after telling her I would do it.

The sky changes colors! Of course it does. It's THE SHIRE.

^Viewed from the left.

^Viewed from the right.

The stained glass windows of the hobbit hole change colors too. :) Check out picture #4 up top.

Every hobbit hole needs a fancy door.

Fireflies. They stay twinkling even after the fireworks have gone out. :)

Beth wanted a painting of her favorite place, something that inspired her and gave her a calm, peaceful mindset in which she could write. (She's a writer!) The Shire is her favorite place, I think, and I like to pretend that it exists somewhere out there. She and I both share Hawaii as a profoundly inspiring (real life) place, so I felt I knew a bit where she was coming from. I read The Hobbit while making this painting, and it influenced every step I took. As I experienced Bilbo's journey, I kept asking myself what *I* would want to return home to after such an ordeal.

Man that book is awesome. Have you read it? Of course you have. I hadn't, technically, it felt like I had, I knew the story, it had been repeated to me endlessly by Colin and our friends over the last 10 years and I knew all about the Shire, of course, that was something that always really resonated with me. But obviously The Hobbit is a whole different (smaller, cuter) beast than Lord of the Rings and I was wrong to think I knew everything I needed to know about Bilbo and him going There and Back Again and omg how many ponies had to die in the making of that story?

Anyway. Fantastic book. The only bad part about it was that it ended. Well, I guess, except for the three other (giant) books that come after it. Anyway.

Just so we're clear, this is not Bilbo's house. This is Beth's house.

Beth, I've stocked it up with ale and pies, a few cakes, some tobacco, and plenty of wood to get you through the first leg of your stay, but you'll likely need to fill it back up before you move to Vancouver. There's plenty of rooms though, you won't ever be without pies and visitors. May this painting bring the Shire to you and serve as the perfect writer's retreat no matter where you live. :)

Sacred Space . 30x40 inches . 2011

1. natural light (bright, clean, direct daylight)

2. natural light (warmer sunset daylight)

3. interior light (direct artificial lights, warm toned)

4. mixed interior and uv black light

5. uv light only (with a blacklight)

6. no light (glow in the dark)

Ingredients: acrylic, candle wax, beach sand, phosphorescent pigments, varnish, water & light on canvas.

Perhaps you've seen this design before. (If not, you're gonna have to search it out in my portfolio.) The original, Thin Space, was my first professionally sold painting, completed in 2006, a little over 5 years ago. I've played with the design on request a little bit here and there, though this is the first time I've recreated it on the exact same size canvas. 

It's funny (to me) how people react to it. Everyone in my life seems to have a profound relationship with Thin Space, for whatever reason, probably because it was the painting I announced my career with. As an artist, my relationship with it has evolved much in the same way my techniques and inspirations have evolved. They are definitely no longer the same. It's not just that I cannot create a piece exactly as it was, although I can't. I don't even use the same materials. There's no possible way to get the paint to dry exactly as it did on a previous painting. More importantly, I wouldn't choose to. My art now is a reflection of my life now, just as it was then. Who I am, and the person I've become is reflected directly in what I create.

This painting is not in competition with Thin Space. This is who I am now. I made it to be what I see now. I reworked a few things I wanted changed, of course, but mostly it's that my exploration of the concept is fundamentally different. Today, I see Thin Space as mother-of-pearl, and almost futuristic looking. Shiny, glassy, new. I have moved beyond what I liked five years ago. They both represent different phases of me. I wouldn't expect anyone to say that I, myself, was better 5 years ago, or better now. I'm just different. (Actually, I do think I'm better today than 5 years ago, but that's another blog post.)

Either way, I think I'm going to retire this design for now. Maybe in another 5 years I'll make it again, to see how I've changed. I like using this painting as a benchmark for my progress. It seems fitting. Thin Spaces are a constant in all my paintings, though the titles may change. I paint This Spaces. That's what I do. 

As viewed from the left.

As viewed from the right. See how the color changes?

Whatever your opinions are about this piece, I see it as better, because I see myself as better. It's not about the painting. It's about who I've become. I will be different in 5 years, I promise. It's a good thing. 

"You cannot step into the same river twice." -Heraclitus

Watching Over . 24x30 inches . 2011

 1. natural light

2. artificial light

3. artificial and black light

4. blacklight only

5. darkness

When my collector Tina and I first discussed the making of this painting, she asked me to make it as Light Reactive as possible, using lots of glass and phosphorescent pigments. Done and done.

The moon shifts from violet to blue-green, depending on the time of day. The ocean waves shift from gold to white to green.

It's one of those pieces that can't be fully appreciated through the lens of a camera since it changes so distinctly as you walk past it. Two people standing on either side of the painting will think it's a different color.

I love making stuff. :)

Moon over water paintings are possibly my favorite pieces to do. It's not just that I find the concept and end result to be peaceful, but the very act of creating it and experiencing its progress puts me in a calm state of mind. (Something I often need anyway, especially when I have lots of work to do.)

Tina's father passed away a few months ago, just before I began work on this painting. Everyone called him Kick. I wrote his name underneath the moon, and I hope that this artwork will honor him and serve as a beacon of peace and serenity for Tina and her family. 

Morning and Evening Series

I started these many, many moons ago and had to put them aside during most of the last year due to time constraints with my Studio C Show, Japan, and Joey.

Morning Series:

 (natural light, mixed uv & artificial light, blacklight, no light)

Evening Series:

(natural light, mixed uv & artificial light, blacklight, no light)

I really do enjoy making things in sets. I have a couple of sets I'm planning for the next collection, although those are intended to be quite large. These are more like mini sets. :)

They're also the last I'll be doing at this size for a long time. I have a bazillion plans and at the moment, I'm out of this size canvas with no intention to order more until I have completed a bunch of other pieces. As of this blog post, one of them is already spoken for, but the Evening Set is still available. Be quick! They go fast.  --Now sold. :)

In other news, our house is finally getting put back together. Bizarrely, I felt as though the month and a half of life with cement floors may have been a blessing of sorts, since I was ultimately able to do four months of work in a month's period of time. I'm nearing the end of all my current commissions. Between the freedom to work over a larger (non-carpeted) space, and not having a car and therefore being trapped here with piles of furniture everywhere, I really focused in on my art, perhaps as a distraction from the chaos. Whatever the motivation, I'm going to try and keep up the pace.

I am, however, happy to have our house back again.

Happy June! I love June. It's always been my most creative month. :)

Rising (An Ode to Japan) . 40x30 inches . 2011

1. natural lighting

2. artificial lighting

3. artificial and UV lighting combined

4. UV lighting only

5. no light

Ingredients: acrylic, beach sand, candle wax, crushed glass, phosphorescent pigments, varnish, water & light on canvas.

Oh, Japan.

You've been on my mind for decades. I always knew that one day we would meet. I've admired your style, your history, your food, your people for so long now. I feel like I know you, yet I haven't actually seen you for myself. I just totally dig you. You're shiny and neat and I want to introduce myself, up close and personal.

Things were so much simpler last month.

It's heartbreaking what you're going through. It's devastating to watch. You're all over the news. People are saying some pretty intense things about you. It's difficult to weed through the hype to find the truth. Some people feel we shouldn't meet just yet. They want us to wait. We've waited my whole life, and they think we should wait longer.

Sometimes it just takes my breath away to imagine what you must be feeling right now. So few of us can really imagine. This is an unbelievably awful thing you're faced with.

I believe in you, Japan. You're ancient and wise and I trust your ability to come through. You're more capable to handle a situation such as this than anyone else.

Although I will be hundreds of miles from the affected areas, my heart is with all of you. It will be an honor to stand with your people and support those who are facing disaster right now. I hope and pray that my presence in your land shows you how much those of us in my country support you. I am not afraid.

One day this will all be a memory, and your Greatness will shine even brighter than before. You will rise up. You will conquer tragedy. You will stand as a beacon of human perseverance and strength.

I'll be seeing you next week. The cherry blossoms are coming. I bet they'll look more beautiful this year than any year before it. Though my personal sadness over the last month cannot compare to yours, I hope this time can be a renewal for us both. Let's hold hands and take one step forward together. We might just rise higher than we ever dreamed.

I love the gritty, sandy, crackly texture. This painting is deceptively colorful. In the sunlight, there's hints of blue and yellow and orange, almost shining straight through the darkness. It sparkles in the light, oh-so-subtly.

I'm proud of this painting.

Though I normally donate 10% of all money made through art to Acres of Love, I'm donating that percentage of Rising to The Red Cross, to help with the disaster in Japan, or wherever else in the world needs help and funding for disaster relief. There's certainly no shortage of countries who need the help. Sometimes it seems as though the planet is just cracking in two, doesn't it? I hope this artwork can serve as my hope and prayer for all those affected by such disasters. It would be impossible to overcome if we weren't all working together.

The final image, glowing in the darkness, is what I believe for the future of Japan. A peaceful sky, a full, rising sun. Light. Hope. Beauty. I have no doubts it will be so.

This is my final painting to be shown in my Studio C Artists Collection. The show is tomorrow night, March 26th, from 6-10pm. One night only! I truly hope you can make it. Many of these paintings have already sold, so there will not be a second opportunity to see (most of) them again.

Make a night of it. Get dinner in LA, and stop by for a bit to have a glass of wine and look at some art. There's beer too! I'd love to talk with you. It's kind of like a party. :) Here's where you should go:

Studio C Artists

6448 Santa Monica Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90038

View Larger Map

There's parking on the street, and a couple of lots nearby.

I'm really excited. It's been an interesting month! I'm looking forward to celebrating all the work I've done, seeing friends, meeting new ones, and then resting briefly before we embark on the biggest trip of our lives. Quite a time to be alive. I'm feeling grateful for every moment.