New Paintings

"Adventurers by Fate," based on a quote by Vincent van Gogh, impressionist painter and maker of good vodka




"Recharging," a futuristic nightmare world, where artists' models are artificial life forms.

AI: ARTificial Inspiration

Philosophical question: What if, in the future, artists were able to own their own live models, which were artificial life forms?

The shots are for a piece I am doing for submission in the "Future" show at UAG (starts 11/7/08).

Latest Works

It has been a productive weekend. See paintings, with respective titles above them.

"End of the Shift"




"View from the Kitchen"




The following two are inspired by a book by a famous Vietnamese Buddhist monk and friend of Thomas Merton. The book is called, "Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers," based on a series of talks around Christmas.

The first is Jesus (in progress).



The next is Gautama (in progress).

Solitude

These past two days, and most of Friday as well and probably most of tomorrow, have been spent in solitude. In the confines of the cloister, with trips down to the girls' house to take care of the cats, with paintbrushes and canvases and a good amount of paint.

What has been accomplished:

* Completed a new Dulcinea de la Mancha painting (see below);

* Completed a small piece for a friend, of an Alaskan landscape;

* Completed a piece titled either "Antietam," or "Bifocals;"

* Am reading "The Hero of a Thousand Faces," by Joseph Campbell, which is quite interesting;

* Laid down some base coats on two pieces of wood purloined from the house which will be a part of a series of hero paintings...first will be Jesus, then will be Gautama (the Buddha), although I am not sure I will pull it off...the title will most likely be based on a book;

* Have texted a few folk here and there, just to stay in touch with the world; and

* Have done a bit of contemplating.

Oh, yeah...I did a little job hunting too.

All this, of course, has been done with a soundtrack of various rock and roll, folk or classical music, including: Bob Dylan, Jesus Christ Superstar, baroque harpsichord, the Velvet Underground, and even some old Billy Joel.

My reading list is updated to the left.

Later I will reward myself by going to my local pub, having a beer and a bourbon and enjoying the company of my favorite bartender (who owns a couple of paintings herself).

Not a bad couple of days indeed.

New Painting: Dulcinea de la Mancha

First there was this sketch, done at a bar, over a pint of Sierra Nevada on a warm Friday afternoon:



The next day, the painting emerged. Mostly acrylic, but Duclinea is done totally in guache.