Painting in Progress: First Pass - Dumbo

24 x 24 oil on hardboard panel

As promised here is an in progress look at a painting I'm currently working on. I rarely post images of my work at this point in the process, because I'm usually not very happy with the painting at this stage. This is a fleshed out version of a similar painting I did at 6 x 6 some time ago, and always wanted to do again in a larger format. I came across this ride at one of those nomadic carnival's that pop up in shopping center parking lots. The little elephant was very reflective and in pretty good shape compared to most of the other rides. He also just looked so colorful and happy. I don't know how much appeal this subject will have with collectors, but I decided to do it anyway.

At the completion of the first pass, my under-paintings are always a bit muddy, and tend to be mostly in the mid-tone range. It usually takes two to three passes to "get it right". I was intending to send this to Elliot Fouts Gallery for a group show he's having in October. My problem is, he is planning to put an ad in American Art Collector showcasing the art of the participants, and the deadline is August 7. As slow as I paint, I'm not positive I can get this done by that date. Hopefully it will be done in time.

Miniature: Tomato

2 x 3 oil on hardboard panel

. . . and last but not least to finish off my week of miniatures, a gorgeous vine ripened tomato. This was selected from a bag of tomato's given to us by a good friend from his garden.

I've also just completed the first pass on a larger painting I've been working on. It's a 24 x 24 inch version of a six by six I did about a year ago. Every thing is blocked in, all in mid-tones. The first pass is always tough for me. The second and third layers, I have to say, are much more satisfying.

I'm also always convinced that I'm going to screw up a piece like this somehow before it's done, so I rarely post "in progress" images to my blog. I figured this time I'd take a chance, and put up the first stage. I've been putting off this particular composition for some time now, because I wasn't sure of it's mass appeal. I finally made the decision to go ahead, and just do it. For no other reason than I wanted to. This kind of attitude has come back to bite me in the arse in the past, but I figured what the hell. I'll post the image tomorrow.

If you'd like to bid/buy the Tomato, you can find it's listing by clicking here.

Miniature: Glass Sphere

2 x 3 oil on hardboard panel

Tonight it's a little crystal ball. These small paintings are a bit of a challenge, but I have to say, a little freeing too. I'm enjoying creating them. If you'd like to bid/buy this painting, you can find the auction by clicking here.

Miniature: Percolator

2 x 3 oil on hardboard panel

Wednesday's listing is one of my vintage percolators. Two more to go, then I think I may post an in progress image of the larger piece I'm currently working on. I haven't decided. If you'd like to bid/buy this painting, you can access the auction by clicking here.

Miniature: Pool Balls

2 x 3 oil on hardboard panel

My second entry into miniature paintings this week is four pool balls. I hope this experiment works out, because my mind is really clicking away conjuring up new subject matter for these small paintings. If you'd like to bid/buy this painting, you can access the auction by clicking here.

Miniature: Cherry

2 x 3 oil on hardboard panel

I'm borrowing an idea from Duane Keiser this week, and depending upon how successful it is, may continue to utilize it in the future. Duane's been doing a series of paintings he refers to as "oddment's" for sometime now, and I thought it was a great idea. I make a lot of my own panels from larger sheets of stock, and always have a bunch of pieces left over. These were too small to do anything with, I believed, then I discovered that Duane was using his "odd" pieces for very small paintings. So, I'm going to see if I can make use of my remnants as well. I've got five little paintings ready for this week, and we'll see how it goes. It was a nice break from the larger piece I'm currently working on, but now, it's time to get back to it. I'll be listing these small pieces a little differently than my usual 6 x 6 inch paintings. These small works will follow an auction style format, but with a smaller reserve, and the option to buy them outright for $150. To access the auction for this painting, you can bid/buy by clicking here.

Crystal Sphere

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

To cap off the week, a self portrait of sorts. This is my hand holding one of my little crystal sphere's. I'm pretty pleased with how this one turned out. It's an image I've been hanging on to for a long time, and felt it was the right moment to finally paint it. I'll be starting a larger gallery painting tomorrow. It's pretty big (for me), so I'll be out of the loop for a while. Depending on how things go, I may post some in progress images along the way. If you'd like to bid on this painting you can take part in the auction by clicking here.

Converse Hi-Tops

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

I've been wearing Converse "Chuck Taylor All Star's" for well over thirty years. As soon as one pair wears out, it's out to find another one. One day I was working up some new still life compositions using a new chair that Karen had just purchased. I decided to put my shoes on the seat, and found them to be a worthy subject. If you'd like to bid on this painting, you can access the auction by clicking here.

Goblet

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

Tonight I've got one of my little silver goblets, sitting on the wrapping paper it came packaged in. They have the perfect shape for getting the reflection of the entire room. I have three of these goblets, the other two are visible on the right-hand side opposite the window. If you'd like to bid on this painting, you can take part in the auction by clicking here.

Milk and Cookies

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

Next up this week is a bottle of milk with a few chocolate chip cookies. Those ole timey milk jugs had such a great, iconic shape. I've had this jug for quite a while, and painted it numerous times, but I never get tired of it. If you'd like to bid on this piece, you can access the auction by clicking here.

Coke No.2

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

I'm currently gathering images for gallery paintings, and in addition to that, I have also been working on another group of ebay paintings. First up, a Coke bottle. The paintings this week will have some familiar subjects, and some new stuff as well. If you'd like to bid on this painting, you can click here.

Edible Week: Black Grapes

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

. . . and finally for edible week, a glass bowl filled with black grapes. I know that I tend to use this phrase too much, but "I love", painting these grapes. There is so much character, color and texture in each of these berries, that every one is like a new subject. This will be the end of the theme oriented paintings for a while, but it was fun, and I may try it again down the road. If you'd like to bid on this painting, click here.

Edible Week: Red Snapper

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

My apologies to any ichthyologists out there if I've mislabeled this creature, but I'm pretty sure this is a Red Snapper. If I'm wrong please let me know. For most of my life the subject of my artwork was always animals, and always in watercolor, so when I decided to do "edible week" I saw it as an opportunity once again, to paint something with eyes. I found this specimen at the local farmers market, and thought it was really beautiful. If you'd like to bid on this painting, you can access the auction by clicking here.

Edible Week: Jelly Cracker

6x6 oil on hardboard panel

White flour and grape jelly twice in one week is a bit much I know, but I used to love eating grape jelly on saltine crackers as a snack. That salty/sweet thing was really satisfying, so I thought for food week I'd do a painting of a treat from the past. Plus I love that jewel like quality of the jelly. To bid on the painting, click here.

Edible Week: Granny Smith's

6x6 oil on hardboard

Tonight I'm traveling way back to my ebay roots. Back to a time before I became so preoccupied with the specifics of things, and produced a more "compositional" type of painting. Utilizing more of the surrounding elements, and not focusing so much on the thing. I'm not dissing what I do now, but I have to admit, from time to time, I get a serious jones to show more of the setting. So, I painted this bowl of apples. I must say, I really enjoyed working on this painting. It offered me a chance to get a little looser, than I usually work, and just have fun with it. If you'd like to bid on this painting, you can take part in the auction by clicking here.

Edible Week: PB&J with Milk

6 x 6 oil on hardboard

Themes have never been a part of my ebay listings in the past, but I thought I'd continue the idea of a theme for one more week. My last group of paintings fell under the heading of glass, and this week the theme will be edible items. I'm starting off the week with a favorite subject, the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. This piece has the added component of a glass of milk. If you'd like to bid on this painting, you can take part in the auction by clicking here.

Win a Mouse!

Before I get back to my artwork (I've got five new ebay pieces I'll be posting starting Monday evening) I wanted to give Steve Worthington one more plug, and let you know about a contest he's got going. Steve has created three new "mid-sized" turtles, but hasn't got names for them. The person who comes up the perfect name for each of these creatures will win a mouse. My purpose here isn't entirely altruistic, because anyone with a blog who promotes the contest, gets his name put into the hat as well. The image below shows all of Steve's mice, and the winner can choose either Sprightly, Nosey or Chubby. As I mentioned in the previous post, I have one (Nosey) already, and it's wonderful. If you'd like to take part in the contest, you can click here for more info. Have fun, and good luck!

From upper right counter-clockwise to lower right: Natty, Nosey, Tidy, Chubby, Sprightly, Tiny

Nosey

9 x 7 oil on hardboard

I was recently approached by Steve Worthington to participate in a project he was putting together to raise funds for animal shelters. Steve is an awesome sculptor, who creates wonderful bronze animals. You should check out his site, and look for his Sumo Toads their fantastic. His idea was to approach a number of artists (I think he was looking for about 20) to paint some of his mice, then those paintings would be assembled into a book, the proceeds of which would be donated to support animal shelters. So far I've seen the contributions of Michael Naples (scroll to post April 3), Carol Marine (scroll to post April 28), Jelaine Faunce and Jeff Hayes, and they are all terrific. The painting above is my contribution. I didn't give it a title, but the name of the mouse is Nosey. When the book is complete, I'll put up another post with all the information pertaining to it. I can't wait to see all of the other paintings. Hope it raises a lot of cash for the critters.

Frank Frazetta 1928 - 2010

Frank Frazetta died a couple of weeks ago, and I wanted to take a moment to acknowledge his passing. I don't need to get too wordy, because anyone who is familiar with his work, and appreciates it, already knows all they need to know. On a personal note I do want to say that when I first discovered his work in the mid sixties, it literally hit me like a ton of bricks, and it's effect has never diminished. His imagination, sense of composition, and mastery of painting technique has been an inspiration to me for forty years. Frazetta's work, in the field of fantasy illustration has been imitated ad nauseum, but in my opinion never equaled.

A few more classic illustrations:

Thanks Frank.

Glass Week: Crystal Ball

6 x 6 oil on hardboard

To finish off glass week, I've got a little crystal ball. I painted this sphere a number of times in the past, but it's been a long time, and I thought it would be a good closer for this theme. If you want to participate in the auction for this painting, you can bid by clicking here.