Holiday Season

This is a little favorite of mine. Wayfarer, 11"x 14" oil on panel. I watched this man rub some coins together at a train station in Washington D.C. He hid in a little nook while people hustled by not even noticing him. The moment made me reflect and it turned into this small painting.

My hope is that holiday season help us all be a little kinder.

Childhood Hero: Walter Payton

As a child I looked up to no one more then Walter Payton. He played football with an intensity that no one could match. He out worked, out played and out hustled everyone every time he stepped on the field. Most people would think it immature to admire a sports so much, however what I think stood out about him was his work ethic. I try to approach painting with that focus and I try to work as hard as possible. Oil sketch on canvas, 18"x 24".

# 82 (actually 56)

This commission could be titled The Conversation. This guy makes the best facial expressions and his hands were nonstop the entire time we were chatting. I would highly encourage anyone to have a chat with this guy, it is a conversation you are not likely to forget.

# 55 Girlfriend- Fiance

Here is a little oil sketch I did of my girlfriend two months ago, since then I proposed and we are now engaged. The big day is December 27th 2012. I am one lucky guy!!!   

#54 Charlie

Little Charlie is one enthusiast little guy. One day he has his football uniform on ready for the gridiron, the next day he has on a headband and a basketball ready to play some hoops, and the next day he has on his swim shorts to follow the path of Michael Phelps. Sometimes it happens all in the same day. This is at the annual 4th of July pool party, a little watermelon and his Duckie. 24"x 24", oil on canvas.

Thesis Show/ Studio Sale Tomorrow night!

Here are two oil sketches I recently finished. The top on is 24"x 36" oil on canvas and the smaller one is 8"x 12" on panel. I wanted to try two different approaches of the same subject. I ended up with similar result after two totally different journeys. Both of these will be at the studio sale tomorrow night. Hope to see you there.

Lightsaber

This is the first piece completed for my Thesis, titled Lightsaber. Oil on canvas, 48"x 72".

Final Piece for a Thesis Show...

Someone emailed me asking me to put up images of a painting in process. Lately I have been trying different techniques. This is just one way to approach a painting.

On day #1, I started right in the center of the painting with a light sketch and then thicker paint on top of it.

Just like many painters I am using computers and technology to do the paintings I am interested in.

Day# 2, I moved from the central figure to the food on the table.

This was what I had done after the first weekend. Three solid days of painting.

I am not sure at what point this picture was taken. The painting is just about done now. It is a painting of my family eating Sunday dinner and is inspired by, La Cena by Antonio Lopez Garcia, and Norman Rockwell's Freedom From Want. Oil on Canvas, 72"x 72".

Studio Sale will happen soon...

This is a little painting I did after returning from France in 2009. This man was the only street performer that was not asking for money. He was playing to a large crowd outside the Musee d'Orsay. Not for the money, but for the Company will be part of a studio sale I will be having at the end of August. Oil on panel, 11"x 14".

Small Attempt

This is a small oil sketch(8"x 16"). I tried a different approach to push the concept of process in a different direction.

#53 Scarlet's little brother Eli

This little guy is brilliant. It is amazing to me what potential a child has when he/she has great parents who love and care about them. I hope to one day be a parent and when that day comes, I will aspire to be like this guy's folks.

#52 Ruby and her "Cupcake"

Oil on canvas, 24"x 24". While I was painting this, the morning building maintenance man came in at about 4:30 in the morning and said, "Hmmm... I bet you bring a lot of joy to a lot of people doing this stuff." He has dropped in from time to time over the years as I have painted here at USU and I have enjoyed his comments and occasional teasing. This weeks comment really opened my eyes to what a painting can mean to someone. When I dropped the painting off three days later, Ruby's mother said, "I don't think you realize how much joy you have added to our family." Funny how things work sometimes. Lesson from painting # 52: So much joy can come from art.

Little Sketch

Here is another little sketch(8"x 8") done in oil. After spending some time with Dave Dornan this summer, I was led to re-evaluate my approach to painting. I have been enjoying some chaos to order. These small pieces allow me to try new things without having to spend too much time on them. This little sketch was done in 3 sessions of 30 minutes. After they are done, if enjoyable, I will make a larger version of them.

Red Rum

Oil on panel, 8"x 12".

# 51

This is one of the funniest guys I have ever met twice in one day. We met a few years ago and were introduced to each other two separate times on the same day. Josh Caldwell(click on his name to the right) is an amazingly creative photographer and I did this painting as a trade. Hopefully he will be back in Utah for some more art rendezvous. Oil on canvas, 24"x 24".

Small Oil Sketch

I have been doing some small oil sketches on canvas and wood panels. This one is 8"x 12". I am spending small amounts of time, while trying new methods and techniques. This one is inspired by a movie that really forced me to think.

#49 & #50

My sister was recently married. I did these two head portraits for their wedding gift. A tinge of Norman Rockwell. It was fun to hit #50 and reflect back on all the head sketches I have done.

My sister Anna is one of the kindest, sweetest and coolest people I know, I was thrilled to see her find someone who matched those attributes. Peter is the type of person one would want to marry his sister. Such a fun day with a lot of amazing people. Congrats guys!!!

Helper Workshop: June 1-6

Next month Matt Larson and I will be teaching a workshop in Helper Utah. We will be focusing on painting and drawing the head. We will be working from a live model and focusing on the various forms of portraiture.

The are a couple of spots still open if you are interested email me or contact Marilou through the website
http://www.helperworkshops.com/

# 48

If it is an artist's job to search for beauty, then painting these eyes should be the prerequisite.

This is the painting at the show we put together for our students. 

Charles Morey Portrait for the Pioneer Theater

Here is a commission that I just finished for the Pioneer Theater. The painting is of the theater's Artistic Director Charles Morey. He has worked there for 30 years and helped to make the theater up there something special. This was an amazing project and I learned so much painting this painting. Go up there and check out a play and stop by and check out the painting. It is oil on canvas, 40"x 50" and was beautifully framed by Travis Tanner.

http://www.saltlakemagazine.com/galleries/pioneer-theatre-bravo-awards-2012/

Painting the Figure

Going back to school provided me the opportunity to do some figure studies/paintings. Always a fun challenge. This one is 34"x 40", oil on canvas.

The Artist and the Apprentice

This image is evident of how an artist often feels. It seems that pursuing a life in the arts is truly living life on the edge. Oil on canvas, 24"x 24".

Hansen Commission

This is a commission I did for my uncle John and aunt Dianne. And by the way these are the children of one of the nice families I have ever met. I really am blessed to have some amazing cousins.

The painting is fairly large(36"x 48") oil on canvas and was completed in 2010.

Show this Friday

We got a little show together for the final of a Drawing 2 class I am teaching at USU. 35 young energetic young art students will be having their first gallery show in this months Gallery Stroll in Salt Lake City. Swing by if you are in the area and enjoy some great art, some great company and some tasty snacks. You will not be disappointed.

Alpine Art

April 20th 6-9pm

430 e South Temple

SLC, Utah

New Series?

Two recent paintings, the second is a small black and white sketch 8"x 8" oil on panel, the first is a 24" x 24" painted in tones of blue.

I have been thinking of doing a series of medium to large paintings based on limited color palettes. The body of work would be done to explore what can be done with minimizing my options, while pushing the process in other ways by subtracting the complexity of color from the equation.

If only there was more time in the day....

Inspiration

These two small oil sketches(8"x 12") are inspired by the filmmaker Terrence Malick's movie, Tree of Life.

I loved painting this painting...

After painting a small scene from a small southeastern Utah town, I decided to try and paint the same image on a larger scale. The first attempt was 11"x 14" and the second attempt is 48"x 72". As I transitioned from a small panel to a large canvas I tried to up the scale of the tools. I used larger brushes, larger palette knives, and larger piles of paint. This homework assignment taught me a lot.

"...Shut up in a Tomb.."

The fun thing about going to Grad school is that one can make a painting and not worry about where it will end up. Artistically, I have been influenced by film as much as art history. The content of this scene/painting hit close to home because my brother and I were similar ages when our Grandfather passed away. I remember the funeral being an extremely confusing process. I did this painting to reflect on that and how cinema brings up those dormant emotions.

The painting is large(45"x 60") and I painted it mostly with large brushes one would paint a house with. I wanted to limit the control I had as I up the scale of the subject.

Small Success

One thing that is extremely necessary for anyone who is creating something is a small success every now and again. Making something out of nothing is a daunting task and failure lurks around every corner. Those failures lead to self doubt and despair. One remedy to this painful process is setting yourself up to succeed at least at something small. The sketchbook gig kept me from quitting and moving onto something else. I have decided to share some of the pages from those sketchbooks.

Many of these sketches are inspired by or master copies of someone's work. A great way to learn is to study those you admire.