Turtle Trainer

This is a recent painting.  It's called "Turtle Trainer", is acrylic paint on stretched canvas, and measures 20"x16".  All the vestiges of circus have been removed.  All that is left is a boy, and his turtles, and the world they inhabit.

Miss Global Warming

In response to the overwhelming evidence of climate change, and mankind's contribution to it, I painted this painting.  It is called "Miss Global Warming, and is a 36"x36" acrylic painting on stretched canvas.  The face is modeled after the mother of artist Kay Sarver. 

Time Flies

 It has been a long while since I posted.  Time flies by imperceptibly sometimes. Old black and white movies used a wall calendar as a motif to symbolize the rapid passage of time.  Each page represented a day, and the large black and white numbers would fall off the wall in rapid succession.  That device seems slow compared to what we experience in our world today. 

The painting above is a detail of a painting I have begun.  No title yet.  Five ostriches marching in succession.  They set the stage for a black and white checkered floor that spreads out in its perspective grandeur, setting the stage for.....This painting's purpose is to retrieve my sanity that I lost while working on a behemoth  project that took way too long, but that is the subject of a different post.  I digress!

"Prima Ballerinas" is a 24"x30" acrylic painting on canvas.  It incorporates the circus theme and the concept that life is one big act and we are its players.  I love to juxtapose animals with children in games that children devise, because innocence and humor are common byproducts of such behavior.  Many times the animals display infinite patience.

Moon Drop

 "Moon Drop"; 24" x 24"; available.

The child's face in my painting "Pretty Boy" captivated me; I wanted to reuse it.  I was playing around with images and placed a figure with a similar face in a texture-filled jungle with lush vegetation. The idea of twins came into my head- along with a performing animal once again.  The concept of balance is an underlying theme I like to use in this series, but I wanted to take this beyond the normal things one would expect to balance.  A ball or another animal wouldn't be good enough, and so I chose the moon. It came with a Shakespearean reference which was perfect for the painting!  How extraordinary to have the moon falling out of the sky!

I  added a reference to the moon's effect on water, and the tides, so included a wave on the ground reaching up towards the moon. As I painted this, I slowly eliminated all the detail that I had originally intended to incorporate into the piece.  Symbols were eliminated from the twin's coats, and the jungle foliage was simplified over and over again.

The outdoor setting is still a stage for a performance, but the part each participant plays,  and its meaning, are puzzles to be solved.

Dogs

We have a new member of our family.  Her name is Sugar (see above), and she is four years old.  We picked her up in Nashville, Tennessee, and drove her home over the weekend.  In the past she was a therapy dog, and is as sweet as can be, hence the name.

My previous standard poodle was Nina, pictured below.  She was a senior rescue, and I used to tell people that I didn't want a dog younger than I was. She was a regal lady who spent many hours with me in my studio. I didn't make many paintings of her because it is very hard to see the face and eyes of black dogs, particularly when they are wearing a poodle topknot.  Below is one of the few images I made : a 7" x 5" acrylic painting. 

We lavished Nina with lots of  love.  Sadly, Nina died of liver disease last year. We miss her so much.  The empty spot in our hearts and our home prompted us to get Sugar.  

Pictured below is our beloved Jack.  He was the beloved pet who inspired me to paint him for over three years.  Jack was my muse, and companion during a difficult period in my life.  

His Beauty and Grace will never be forgotten.

Frog Handler

This is a 24" x 12" painting of a child circus performer who has a commanding presence on a small stage.
There are four frogs; one is on a high platform, and one is slung over the handler's arm., as if he had made a failed attempt to escape.

Two immense frogs are on leashes at the handler's feet. It appears that the frogs will be jumping through hoops, which the handler is carrying.

This piece is sold.

Buchanan Gallery, Galveston: Summer Show

These are a couple of shots from the Art Chatter Group Show that we had last summer.  It was a perfect night for an opening, and the exhibition was full of excitement.  Pictured above is the entrance to the gallery.  My painting, "Dog of My Heart" greeted everyone as they came through the doors.  The painting was flanked by Damon Thomas' Blue Dogs (I do not know their exact titles) Who guarded the entry as if it was the portal to King Tut's Tomb!

Pictured above is three of my "Jack of Hearts" Paintings: Dapper Dog (sold), Pretty Good Dog, and Winged Dog.

Pretty Boy

The series I am working on, Pretense, is about performance, clothed in a circus theme.  The circus part is mere decoration.  I am interested in the fact that we are all actors, and are constantly creating our scripts.  Who are we? What do we want to do?  How are we going to do it?  Why? What should we say and how should we say it?   Some people put on grandiose performances from huge arenas, and always have a sold-out crowd.   For most of us, our stages aren't big- maybe a four foot circle, and the audience comes and goes.
   

This painting is of a young boy on a small stage as seen through a vintage looking glass.  He is a reluctant participant in this performance, and would rather be somewhere else.  Seated on his lap is a large white cockatoo.  The title, "Pretty Boy" is a double entendre about the beauty of the boy, and the  phrase we say to parrots.

The boy is sitting on a miniaturized circus cart that is used to cage and transport animals.  His stage is so small that the curtain behind him presses in on all sides.

2012 Was a Very Good Year

I haven't posted for several months and so now is a good time to look back on the year that has just closed.  It was a great year.  I was in three shows; pictured above is the Gambol Show that was judged by my hero Mary McCleary.  The two large ochre paintings are mine.  It was in the Houston Art League in December.  I would put my other shows images on this page but blogger has come up with a new format and I am having trouble loading my picture files. I was the featured artist at the Archway Gallery with my Pretense Show in May, and then in June, Buchanan Gallery in Galveston had a group show for the Art Chatter Critique Group which was very exciting, and a lot of fun.  My sales have been very good- you might say that I am a happy camper!