New Commissions

Some new commissions I recently completed..

The Birder

This is a figure painting of Kevin in the snow, in the wilderness, with the sun setting behind him. This also has a long way to go.

Kevin's Portrait

So I am working on a lot of paintings at once. While I have not entered any competitions this year, setting those goals and working towards them have provided me so much clarity. I am including the portrait of Kevin here - it still has so much more work to be done! I believe it will take me the rest of this year to finish it. I really want it to be exactly how I have envisioned it. The photos aren't the best, but you can get an idea. This is the first portrait I have ever done! The painting still has a lot of shininess, and quite a few hard edges, which will gradually be eliminated the more I work on it. I am happy with the overall composition, so the basic groundwork is laid. I will enter this into the 2013 BP portrait competition. I want this to be the most emotional, realistic work I have ever painted, and if it takes another ten months, well, then so be it!

Lifetime Journey

So it's been a long time since I have posted, and I apologize for that. One of the reasons is, I have been working on several paintings, but they are just not at the finished state I envisioned.

I was getting ready to send a portrait of Kevin in to London for the BP portrait competition. But something just felt WRONG. I wasn't happy with the portrait. It wasn't near the level of perfection I had in mind when I began it. So I called some friends, and they agreed. Ted gave me some TERRIFIC advice.

Basically, this is the journey of a LIFETIME. I shouldn't rush. I will be painting until I am 90, and viewed that way, this competition is just a blip on the journey. I shouldn't sacrifice my vision just to accomplish a smaller goal along the way. I was reading the comments of some artists who won prizes for the BP portrait competition, and I was struck by one comment in particular. The artist mentioned he had been working 2 YEARS on his portrait. While I probably won't spend such a long time on this painting, this comment does help to shed some light on the matter.

I will be posting the paintings here when they are finished. I am really feeling at peace and strangely energized by my decision. I wouldn't have been happy with myself if I had sent in half an effort to such a prestigious event. Not to mention, investing over $70 for shipping!

Meanwhile, the long hours in the studio continue....

Painting for upcoming Art Salon

I am currently working on a painting of my partner Kevin, out in the snow. It is a peaceful, yet vibrant portrait. I am calling it "The Birder." I have been working on it intensively for the past 2 weeks. It has a few more days to go. I will be entering it into my first ever art salon competition, at the GreenHouse Gallery of Art in San Antonio. Here is the website with past winners: http://www.greenhousegallery.com/cgi-bin/mp/salon/siawards.pl?Category=top50

I cannot deny I am quite nervous! It still has a way to go. I will post a picture of it on this blog upon completion.

Once I am finished with this one, I will immediately begin work for my NEXT painting, which will be bigger and even more challenging than this one. I am feeling rather passionate about all this.