Reese's: 5th Completed Commission Piece

Reese's
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

At last, the Print Pack commission is finally complete. Reese's makes number five. Now all I've got to do is send off a jpeg to Spalding, then wait to hear from the client that everything is acceptable. Hopefully a check will soon follow, along with a proposal for additional paintings in the future.

I also recently received an email from the person responsible for acquiring art for the new executive offices of Mead Johnson Nutrtitionals in Chicago. He wanted to know if I would be interested in providing some artwork for that project. We're scheduled to talk after the holidays, so I'll have to keep you all posted on how that goes. If what we've discussed to date turns out as planned, it could be a fun project. To be continued . . . .

Christmas was nice. Karen and I spent the day with my folks. Lots of good food, and stimulating conversation. Then later that evening home to watch, It's A Wonderful Life, and finally off to sleep with visions of . . . . I'm not sure at this point how, or with whom we'll spend New Years Eve, but that aside Karen and I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year!

I'll see you back here in 2009.

Happy Holidays 2008

Wow! Another year has come and gone. Unreal. Seeing as it is that time of year again, Happy Holidays. I'd also like to add a special message to this post, a word of appreciation to all of you who have taken the time to write comments throughout this past year. Thank you. I'm bad about responding to them I know, but I'd like everybody to understand that they are very much appreciated. I hope everyone has a great holiday season, and to you all, my best wishes for wonderful 2009!

Corporate Commission in Progress: Reese's

Reese's
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

I usually wait until I get a little further along with a painting before I post an in progress image, but I haven't been painting much recently, and figured I'd better get something up. I hate to let more than a week go by between posts. Since I've done so little on this particular painting I may ultimately have two progress posts. My excuse was a wedding. Our nephew Jason Meyerson was married this past weekend, and we've been occupied with get-togethers, and ceremony for a good part of last week. The wedding went very smoothly, and everyone there had a great time. Jason was really happy, and his bride Alyson looked very beautiful. Jason and Alyson are are sweet couple, and I know they will be extremely happy together. They have that, "made for each other", quality. In addition to the wedding I've also been busy getting Karen's new 24" iMac (an early present to herself) set up. I'm so envious. And if this wasn't enough, I also spent some time getting the house looking "chrismassee". Now it's time to get back to work finishing up the commission, and moving on to more personal paintings.

Lay's: 4th Completed Commission Piece

Lay's
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. This is number four of the five commissioned paintings for Print Pack. All that leaves is a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, and then that's it. It will be good to get back to gallery work again. I just hope there is still an audience out there that can buy art. My gallery sales have been in a slump lately. Karen's sales, on the other hand, have actually increased since the economic "meltdown" began, so I remain cautiously optimistic. My main thrust on completion of this last commissioned painting, will be to get new work out there. I've enjoyed working on these larger pieces, and am excited about continuing in this scale with other subject matter. Once the Reese's is done, I'll get busy with new photography, and hopefully come up with some fresh, and interesting ideas.

Corporate Commission in Progress: Lay's

Lay's
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

I've just completed the first pass on the fourth commissioned painting. My plan is to finish up this, and the last piece by the end of December. I'd really like to get back to gallery work, and ebay. I think I can do it.

There have been rumors of adding more items to this commission. This would give the execs the ability to replace selected paintings in order to highlight specific clients during board meetings. Not a bad idea actually. If this does turn out to be the case, I still think I'll work on other non-commissioned pieces prior to returning to the corporate gig.

Had a good holiday. My brother came in from NYC, and spent a few days with us. While he was here, we went to the King Tut exhibit at the Atlanta Civic Center. That was very cool. I'm a huge fan of Egyptian art. The next day was spent at the Terracotta Warriors exhibit at the High Museum of Art. As amazing as the warriors were, I think the most awe inspiring things I saw at the museum that day were one of Leonardo Da Vinci's notebooks, and Johannes Vermeer's, "The Astronomer". These two completely blew me away.

Oreo's: 3rd Completed Commission Piece

Oreo's
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

These commissioned paintings have me longing for the time when I could complete a piece in a few days. I really miss that sense of instant gratification. Oreo's has taken the better part of two weeks, and after much struggle I feel it's finally done. As usual it seems there is more I could with it, but I think the extra work would be lost to most viewers. Spalding Nix, my liaison with the client, took the first two completed paintings in Monday morning to company headquarters. There was to be an unveiling of the artwork completed to date by all of the commissioned artists. I wanted them to understand that the paintings had not been varnished, and that I would need them back for that final step. I also wanted to impress upon him that the paintings would look better after the varnish had been applied. I'm nervous enough about how these will be received by the client. Wednesday Spalding came by to return the paintings. He said they were a hit, and that there had been talk about new work they would like to commission. Cool. Spalding also had good things to say about the latest painting above, which was a relief to hear. So, now it's on to number four. A bag of Lays potato chips.

Corporate Commission in Progress: Oreo's

Oreo's
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

This is the sixth day of work on the third of five corporate commissioned paintings. I have to say this one has really been kicking my butt. I knew that I'd have problem with the embossing on the cookies, but I underestimated by just how much. The wrinkles, and the text on the package are also posing their own distinct challenge. A significant weakness of mine is expecting too much from a painting in progress, way too soon. This happens nearly every time I begin a new piece. If the image doesn't quickly begin to emerge exactly as I think it should, I tend to really beat myself up over it. I'm my own harshest critic. Fortunately as the painting evolves through subsequent passes, and starts to come together, my mood begins to lift. In the end I usually allow myself to feel good about it. 

Coke: 2nd Completed Commission Piece

Coke
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

Coke is finally done, and it lived up to the "challenge" I anticipated it would be. About a thousand droplets were left out, but I think modified as it is, it still works pretty good. As difficult as this painting was, I did enjoy the process. It got a little tedious towards the end, but all in all it was a good experience. I learned a lot with this one. I also feel that I'm beginning to loose my anxiety about painting larger pieces. In fact it's becoming kind of addictive. My next painting is ready begin, and it will present its own set of problems. Oreo cookies in metallic packaging. The embossing on the cookies will be one of the big challenges on this one. I'll put up an in progress image sometime during the process.

Some Good News & Some Bad News

I think I'll begin with the good news. I got a blurb in the current issue of Southwest Art Magazine. The plug was on the Art Values page. My cyber colleague Chris Stott, and artists Nancy Bea Miller and Lucinda Kasser were also were included on the page. The theme was food inspired paintings. Carol Marine, another cyber friend, and fabulous artist, is featured in this issue on page 79. It's really fun to see your work in a publication!



. . . and now the bad news. My first, and longest running gallery is closing it's doors. Twinhouse will cease to exist November 1st. It had been a long, and fruitful relationship. Karen and I stopped by last week to pick up our remaining paintings, and say farewell. Susan Gibbs and Tiffany Hay were both there, and it was a pretty somber moment. Susan, the owner, had a laundry list of good reasons to move on, so it was understandble. Nonetheless it's sad to see it end. Twinhouse was one, if not the, nicest spaces in the city.

There is a positive side note to the story. There were three other galleries in the city that Karen and I had pondered approaching in the event that Twinhouse were to close. Each of those galleries contacted us the instant the news about Twinhouse reached the grapevine. That was very encouraging. Karen is still weighing the pros and cons, but it looks at this point like I'll be moving to Anne Irwin Gallery. I think it will be a good match.

Commission Update: I should be completing the Coke Bottle today. Tomorrow at the latest. I think it has turned out pretty good. I've been looking at it for so long now, I can't see it objectively. Karen is very enthusiastic about it, so that makes me feel a bit more optomistic. I'll post it in the next few days.

Corporate Commission in Progress: Coke

Coke
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

Well I've been busy working on the second commissioned piece for about six days now. At this point I'm getting close to completing the first pass. I knew when I began this particular composition that the condensation was going to be a challenge. And . . . that has proven to be the case. I've been basically blocking in the position of the larger droplets, leaving the smaller ones to be added in later. When they are all in place, I'll get busy adding in the detail to each drop. Each drop. What was I thinking?! If I can get through this without going blind, it could turn out looking pretty cool.

Chevy Grille

Chevy Grille
oil on canvas
8'' x 8"

In these troubled times I think it's wise to allow oneself a bit of comfort now and then. Something to ease the pain. This week I indulged myself by painting the front end of a 57 Chevy. Five days of pure creative joy. I was in no hurry to finish this one, and savored each minute. Automobiles can be a hard sell, so I don't do them very often. They're a bit like chocolate, a guilty pleasure I allow myself sporadically.

Motts (below) was enthusiastically approved, and I have been given the green light to begin the second painting for the boardroom. I have to admit this new one's got me spooked. If it works out it will probably be my most complex piece to date. A bottle of Coke covered with droplets of condensation. I'm really freaking out. Starting it today. Wish me luck.

To bid on Chevy Grille, click here.

Motts: 1st Completed Commission Piece

Motts
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

I felt that I could have continued to work on this, but Karen assured me that it was a finished painting. It is often difficult to know when a painting is truly complete. There were areas that I felt I could refine a bit more, but when I really thought about it, I came to the realization that no one would see the extra work except me. So, here's number one. I'll send an email off tomorrow to the liaison working this project, and with fingers crossed, hope for a positive response. Then it's on to number two. Although, I may squeeze an ebay painting in first. I've got another 55 Chevy I'm anxious to do, and would prefer not to have to wait until this project is complete. I'll decide tomorrow.

Corporate Commission in Progress: Motts

Motts
oil on canvas
30'' x 30"

I haven't updated my blog in quite a while, so I thought it would be a good idea to show what I've been up to. This is the first of five 30 x 30 oil paintings I'm doing for a corporate commission. I've been involved with this project for a number of weeks now, working primarily on photography. If you follow my blog you will remember that the first two paintings were rejected. I was assured that this was not a result of their quality, but rather a decision to emphasize different products.

Following numerous committee meetings on the subject, the client has now chosen five products they feel good about. They wanted to show a variety of packaging types, and these single serving apple sauce cups illustrate one of those. So, last week they gave me the thumbs-up, and when I completed my final ebay painting, I started work on this.

At this point I have about four days into the painting, with probably another three to four to go. Working large is still new to me, and so this is slow going. It's good being forced out of my comfort zone, and I'm hoping this experience will send me in a new direction. By that I mean large. All of my galleries at one time or another have asked for larger pieces. I've done a few larger paintings to date, maybe this project will give me the confidence to go there more often.

Stacked Cups

3 Stacked Cups
oil on 1/8'' gesso board
6'' x 6"

A bit of ceramic to finish off the week. I really like the contrast between the soft folds of the linen table cloth, and the hard, creamy, reflective surface of the coffee cups. I've been painting these china cups for years now, trying to capture that wonderful translucence of the fired material. I haven't nailed it yet, but I think I get a little closer each time I attempt it.

I just got the word today that my latest round of compositions for the corporate commission have been approved. A mixed blessing I think. Now I have to actually paint them. I always get nervous when I start on an oversized piece. Hopefully I can get past the apprehension, and have some fun with these. Wish me luck!

To bid on the Stacked Cups click here.

11 Cherry Goblets

11 Cherry Goblets
oil on 3/8'' gesso board
6'' x 6"

I didn't intend to flood my site with little silver goblets this week, but I had already begun this piece when I added my entry to the White Rabbit group painting (see below). Hopefully it is different enough to avoid looking redundant. I just wanted to add some more cherries into this weeks paintings.
I also wanted to direct your attention to a new blog recently created by my friend Karin Jurick. It's entitled Different Strokes from Different Folks. Each week Karin selects a single photograph, paints it herself, then encourages other artists to create their own version of that image. The site has only been up for two weeks, and the response has been nothing less than staggering. 52 artists participated in the first weeks challenge, and 68 responded in the second week. It's really interesting to see how different artists interpret a specific image. You should check the site out, and possibly take on the challenge your self.
To bid on 11 Cherry Goblets click here.

Fifties Toaster

Toaster
oil on 1/8'' gesso board
6'' x 6"

I went a little crazy a while back, and bought a bunch of vintage toasters on ebay. These old appliances have a very distinctive, and familiar look, that many of us born before 1970 will remember. I believe these will fit in nicely with my proclivity for reflective subjects. This is my first attempt. I love how the bakelite, and chrome work together. I'm looking forward to doing many more of these in the future. I "think" big these days, and think it could be really cool to do one of these at 40 x 40. When, and if, I can get the corporate commission out of the way, some of these "big" dreams may start to actually materialize. To bid on this painting click here.

Cherry Linen No.2

Cherry Linen No.2
oil on 1/8'' gesso board
6'' x 6"

Karen just got some good news. One of her galleries, Dean Day, is located in Houston Texas. She spoke with the owner today, and fortunately they suffered virtually no damage because of Ike. There is a lot of broken glass, and debris everywhere, but they were untouched. It appears they even have power, and internet access. It was nice to hear that they were okay, and that the art was undamaged.
I've got a couple of cherry paintings this week. It's getting near the end of the season, and wanted to take advantage of the current supply. I'll put up the second later this week. To bid on this painting click here.

Hamilton Beach No. 6

Milkshake Mixer No.6
oil on 1/8'' gesso board
6'' x 6"

With the exception of the White Rabbit group painting (below), I spent the better part of last week working on photography for the, on again, off again corporate commission. Presently, it's back on, and hopefully the compositions I worked up this week will find a home in the boardroom. If things go as planned, I should actually start painting on this project very soon. In the meantime, I've got five new pieces for ebay this week. First off is my favorite appliance. The classic Hamilton Beach Milkshake Mixer. This is model 30 as seen from behind. I wanted to incorporate the cooling vents, and on/off switch which look very cool to me. I also love the mounting plate with that huge screw in the middle. To bid on the auction click here.

4 Artists - 1 Subject

Candy Goblet by Me


White Rabbits by M. Collier


Wonderland by Jelaine Faunce


Multiplication by Otto Lange

Back in July Jelaine Faunce contacted me about a project she was considering. She thought it would be interesting to select a subject, then have four artists, with a similar style of painting create their unique version of that subject. She and I would make up half of the group, M. Collier and Otto Lange would comprise the other half. If you click on each image it will take you to the artists website or blog. Jelaine describes the entire project in more detail here. White Rabbit candy, a confection from the land of the rising sun was chosen as the subject. Above is the result of our efforts. Each painting is six inches by six inches. The four paintings are offered at action as a group. You can participate in the bidding by clicking here.

Dumbo?

Dumbo
oil on pre-primed hardboard panel
6'' x 6"

Dumbo is the last of my outside paintings for this week. I have to say this was without doubt the most fun of this series. Karen and I were driving to Gallery Street to pick up a couple of her new giclee's, and on the way we passed one of those nomadic carnivals that set up in parking lots. I made a mental note to return the next morning, and do some photography. When I got there the delapidated state of most of the rides deflated my hopes for getting any good material. Then I came across the little elephant ride, and cheered up. The elephants were in great shape, with a high gloss finish, and bright colors. In the end I wound up taking a lot of photos of the entire set up, but these little guys were the hit of the party. I think that one of these could eventually wind up as a much larger painting sometime in the future. It would be a hoot to paint one of these really big. If you interested in bidding on this painting, you can access the auction by clicking here.