Floodgates opening

Bliss. Rolling along, I'm on day 4 of being my own boss and it's great.

I had been staring at 3 blank canvases for the last few weeks trying to get an idea of what i wanted to paint. The previous paintings had been a struggle- both in terms of the imagery and the physical materials refusing to dry. I'd gone through the cycles of loving, despising, enjoying, and accepting the three for what they had become (actually, one of the previous 3 is still open to some destruction/creation), but the journey had left me a little intimidated by the unknown of the paintings that were yet to begin. I had also made 3 smaller explorations in abstraction which were hanging next to the larger blanks, influencing where i thought i might want to go. I ended up having to remove them from the mix on the wall. (more about my acceptance of pure abstraction another time)..

So finally, after leaving the dayjob, i get a sense of relief and satisfaction. I started in on one with a rough sketch. The composition seemed right, and so i started blocking in the colors (lately i've made a move to breaking up my composition and working with more high key set of colors). Somehow, this painting seems to be coming together surprisingly well- almost too easy. But maybe i deserve an easy paint this time around.

Inspired, I begin composition number 2, and maybe number 3.

In the meantime, I've finished prepping a slew of canvases for landscapes and smaller studio works, and have started a design for a postcard to promote the landscapes to people who ask me about them while i'm working.

pictures to follow (or precede given the recent to older format)

Studio intro

So here's a picture of my studio space. I've been lucky enough to share a large studio with 3 other artists- Dana DeKalb, Tina Vietmeier, and Andrea Antonaccio. Dana and Tina walk through my area to get to theirs, so i always try to leave them a path through my 'floor clutter' (more about my relationship to the ground plane later). Needless to say, there is lots to dodge on any given day.

We don't have internet access there yet, which has been a good thing for making paintings only. Now however, the studio is also my office. I promised myself i would get better with emailing friends and associates, as well as constructively researching opportunities to show the work. So hopefully soon i'll be posting from the studio as it happens.

So begins another journey

I quit my comfortable dayjob at Hackett Freedman Gallery where i was a prepartor for the last 3.5 years. I learned much and it was a great experience, but now it is time to focus on my creative career. I've been really good at going from the day job to the studio and making art, but i've failed to promote my paintings and do the things that can help my future as an artist.

This will be my art diary, exposed to those who are curious about what goes on in the studio. I'll share various stages of paintings as they happen along the way, as well as some of the other concerns of being an artist.... like what do i wear now that i dont have to blend in ; )

And of course, i have to learn how to use blogger...
So here is painting i thinking of donating to an aids benefit auction, if they'll accept it.


"Flirting Disaster" oil on canvas, 2006, 14 x 11 inches