Yellow Frock

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This was an exercise in relinquishing control.  Sometimes you just need a reminder . . .

After an Afternoon Rain

oil on panel, 9" x 12"

Another urban study here.  

The Unfolding Flower

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

A painting of a rose in closeup as it unfolds its petals.  I've done this before but thought I'd try it again because of its abstract quality.  Plus, I was jonesing to paint in reds, a color I find challenging to get right.  

Hip Hop Hooray!

oil on panel, 14" x 11"

This was a fun painting to do of a hip hop dancer.  I'm building quite a collection of dancer paintings, it seems.  I must like painting dancers!   Update 4/10/2025:  I had Jacob Dhein do a critique of this painting and I subsequently worked on it a bit more.  Now it's done.

Flippers

oil on panel, 12" x 9"

 This painting presented an interesting conundrum.  I originally painted it in landscape format, which would have rotated this image 90 degrees counterclockwise.  However, I found it a bit disconcerting to paint it in that format, so I flipped it to portrait format, which is the way you are seeing it.  I had painted another pair of swimmers in 2023, called "Floaters," and this one is the next incarnation visiting this theme.  I find these narrative two paintings quite amusing.  Updated 4/9/2025:  I decided I like it better in landscape format, which is how I originally meant it to be.  Works just fine this way.

Polina

oil on panel, 18" x 14"

This is a painting of the Russian ballerina Polina Seminova, who I used as the subject of a painting workshop conducted by Jacob Dhein on the figure in motion.  I may do more to it after the last layer of paint dries.  Lots of paint on this one.  Updated 4/14/2025:  Made some changes, adding a few more color notes here and there.

Fun 'n Games

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This started as an experiment (don't they all?) in abstraction that took on a life of its own.  So, there you go.  

Inner City Blues

oil on panel, 18" x 18"

This urban night scene might be done; I'm not sure yet.  I tried to keep it simple and focus on the depth of field in it.  These urban scenes are fun to do, so I'll be doing more of them.

Black Beauties

 

oil on panel, 12" x 9"

I get the urge to paint flowers every year at this time.  Ah, springtime!

Little House on the Prairie

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

An abstracted landscape that ended up more abstract than landscape.  Fine with me.

Bourbon Street Bar

acrylic on panel, 24" x 12"

A story of intrigue centered around the entrance to a bar.

Prodi

 

oil on panel, 10" x 10"

This is a portrait of my friend Ron's beloved border collie, who passed away in December not long after my own Lola died.  Prodi was Ron's first border collie, to be followed by many more.  He loves the breed.  Prodi was special, though.  He had a fondness for fish and befriended a yellow one in Ron's koi pond named Smokey.  I've painted Smokey before and suggested him here but this painting is all about Ron's beautiful boy.

Poisson Ange

oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Another little fish painting to add to my series of little fish paintings.  What can I say, they're fun!

Here's Lookin' at You

 

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

Here's another painting of my little angel Lola, who passed away in early December last year.  I'm building up a series on her.  What an amazing little being she was.

Emerald City

oil on canvas, 12" x 36"

With all I've got going on right now, it's a miracle I've done any painting at all.  I might spend more time on this one later, but for now, I'm finished with it.  This is a scene I pass frequently on my way into San Francisco.  It's a view from the freeway looking east after passing through the bridge toll.  I love those curved streetlights.

Cornish Cows

oil on panel, 18" x 24"

This painting was a distraction that served a purpose. That's all I have to say about it.

Cerisehead with Black Bird

 

oil on canvasboard, 14" x 11"

I thought I was done with these bird girl portraits, but I guess not.  Here's another one that wanted to come through, so I went with it.  This will be included in the upcoming show, if it dries in time.

The Overpass

acrylic on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This is an abstracted landscape sketch, an aerial view of a freeway I did way back in 2020 that I'm pulling out of the archives for possible inclusion in an upcoming exhibit in SF whose theme is Portraits of the City.  I thought it apropos to this theme, and on second viewing, I like it.  Sometimes, painting + time = pleasure.

Streetlights in Twilight

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

Here's a little urban painting sketch that I did in November of 2022 that somehow slipped through the cracks.  Anyway, it is going to be part of this upcoming show of my work in mid-February, along with some other urban scenes, portraits and figurative pieces.

Metal Uke on Green Chair

 

oil on aluminum panel, 16" x 12"

This was actually the first painting I did upon returning to my current studio after a couple years' absence.  It is going to be included as one of the few, if not the sole still life in my first ever exhibit in mid-February in San Francisco.  More details about that to follow.  I sold my beloved uke to the owner of a music store in Taos, New Mexico in 2018.  I hope it found a good home.  I have no idea what fate met that green leather chair, which belonged to my partner Roy.  I loved that chair, so I hope it, too, found a good home.

Sunset Study

 

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

This is just a quick little cloud study over an estuary.  I'm in a flurry of activity finishing, varnishing and framing paintings for my first ever exhibit in mid-February.  I've been painting for 20 years and it's well past time I parted with a few of them.  Gonna try to squeeze in some more little ones as time permits.

A New Leash on Life

 

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

This painting of Lola and her leash (her only leash, 17 1/2 years strong) was done alla prima, and things were going swimmingly until I noticed all these vertical scratch-like marks all over the panel.  To my shagrin, the thing had delaminated on me, the second time this has happened.  WTF!  Arghhh!  I signed it anyway.  I may do a bit of detail work yet on it, but overall, I'm happy with it.  I've chosen to regard those vertical marks as part of its charm.

Private Moment

oil on panel, 24" x 12"

This is a portrait of Chloe Misseldine, a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre.  I was drawn in by the dramatic lighting of her tutu, plus the backlit areas of her upper body, and also the tired posture perhaps revealing the aftermath of strenuous dancing.

Cloudy Landscape Study

 

oil on canvasboard, 8" x 8"

A palette knife landscape study of clouds.  It's been a hard week, having lost my fur baby of 17+ years a week ago last Friday.  She was my constant companion for nearly all of that time.  I've been grieving ever since.  Forced myself to work in the studio for a wee bit yesterday, when I did this study, and was able to work longer in there today on a new painting.  

Stagnation Station of a Nation

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

This is a visual depiction of how I feel about the result of our preposterous election here in the U.S.  Over the next few years, nothing good is going to happen, no progress is going to be made, and no one is going anywhere, aside from the super rich with their oblivious adventurism, as they remain blissfully ignorant of the part they play in our country's downfall.

Brownhead with White Bird

 

oil on panel, 14" x 11"

I've done a number of female portraits featuring little birds.  Unlike the previous paintings which were all done on canvasboard, this one was done on a cradled panel.  It is my first attempt to elevate this subject matter.  Hopefully, more to come.

Floral Abstract of 11-23-2024

oil on canvasboard, 8" x 8"

Here's another little abstracted floral painting done with a palette knife.  I like doing these freeform compositions in between more planned ones.  It loosens me up and sometimes gives me ideas.

 

Seated Nude

 

oil on panel, 20" x 20"

This is the more or less final version of a painting I've been working on that I've gotten guidance with from a great painter, Jacob Dhein.  I had seven sessions with it, each one clocking in at about two hours.  So, about 14 hours spent on this painting, which is more than I usually spend on any single painting.  I was trying to incorporate more abstract elements and I am happy with the result.

Letting Off Steam

 

oil on panel, 12" x 12"

This industrial urban scene intrigued me for its colors and overall composition.

At the Kasbah

 

oil on canvasboard, 8" x 8"

Just a little palette knife landscape study in between larger paintings that are conuming my attention lately.

Floral Abstract of 10-10-2024

oil on canvasboard, 8" x 8"

Here's another in my series of floral abstract studies done with a palette knife.  This one recalls for me a memory of seeing bougainvillea against a white stucco garden wall.