Self Portrait (it's about me again.)

9x12 Ray Mar linen pannel



I have some stalled bigger pieces in the works and some smaller odds and ends that are not dry so here is a recent self portrait. I'm more comfortable with landscape, but I try sometimes to do the figure or in this case a little SP. This is the first self portrait I've actually finished and don't hate. Drawing is a bit off, but I let go with the color and brushstrokes like I never did before so that's a good thing for me. As you can see (I hope) I'm a fan of choppy Russian painting.
Seems like the timing is right as were are supposed to review the year and do some soul searching introspection, This is about as close as I can come to that endeavor. Hope you all had a great holiday and your hopes fulfilled in the New Year.

Crane After The Rain

When Tony and I were in Stockton we wondered around a port area that had a huge crane on the bank of narrow harbor. There was a big barge parked in port and a grain silo type building across the way. It was late in the day and the colors after the rain were lovely. I expected the workers to stop us a some point, but there was no hassles. Everyone was quitting for the day and there was no security patrolling.
We both got some great shots. This is my first painting based on that excursion. I didn't have the presence on mind to notice the name of the business, darn it.

12x16 oil on RMLB

Abandoned

Oil 16x24 on wood

I recently went back to the neighborhood were I found the Dark Bus. it's was gone, but I found this abandoned little nothing car.
Sadly, I have so much contempt for the faceless style of this model that I didn't even notice what kind it was. Can you tell me?
No matter how many times I go though this neighborhood I get lost and end up going the wrong way on the freeway during rush-hour. I hope it's worth it.
Dark Bus sold right away and I miss it, so I wanted to see if I could repeat that success. This as a bit more color and the camera is further back maybe less intimate? Maybe to friendly color wise?

SLO Show and...

Freight Train 9x12 oil on ray Mar linen for the show but sold before the show

I've been too busy to give a blow by blow of my show trip, but I'll try and give it a quick go. I went up with Sharon and the bird Friday the eighth crashing at the gallery owner's guesthouse up on Gorton Mountain.

Great views and hospitality extend by Ralph and his lovely fiancee Carrie and their cute little button Rainier. Pictured is Rainier, Ralph and Sharon at a local dock.


Sunset Drive In Marquee 8x10 oil RMLP

I managed to do a small painting the next day at the sunset Drive in the afternoon between light rainfall and magnificent patches of sunlight trying to break thru. By the time I finished it started to rain pretty hard. By the time we were ready to go to the show It wasn’t raining, it was a full-blown storm coming down in sheets. We braved it, I'd have stayed home if I could have. Unfortunately, most everyone else was saner then we were and did stay home. A real disappointment, thankfully tempered by the fact Ralph and his Gallery director Ken sold 7 paintings the week before the show. We sold one during the show, met the other artists and a few brave collectors.

My friend for Wet Canvas Ron Guthrie and a few hardy collectors who braved the storm were a pleasure to meet.

Sharon and Mookie went back on Sunday and my old painting pal Tony Peters showed up on Monday and we drove up to San Francisco to visit museums and galleries. That was kind of a disappointment as most of the galleries were pretty commercial.


We did see a tasty little Ray Turner show and discovered a great artist at Hackett- Freedman named Ann Gale who just blew us away with her great drawing, subtle color with a modern / traditional brushy painting combination I can only dream about achieving.
Were got tons of great reference photo's of San Francisco and then dropped down to Stockton for the JC Leyendecker show.




Knowing his body of work, it's not a great show in the sense that there were few of his best covers there or any Arrow colors pieces, but it was still amazing. I think I'm finally knowledgeable enough about painting to have formed a pretty good theory on how he worked.
We got more industrial photos in Stockton and found out why you should never stay at a Howard Johnson's. Basically it sucks rancid donkey balls in hell. Guy put his girlfriend head though a window while we were there. Floors had the original rugs from the eighties.If this is supposed to be a decent place to stay for budget minded Black people I can see why they are pissed of at the deal society hands them. I hope when they do a corporate take over of HJ they just burn them all to the ground. Artists on a budget or not, next time a few bucks more and the Ramada.

Electric Trailerland

Admittedly this is a color experiment. I tried you go as electric with the colors as possible and yet not be day glow gross. I'm sure a de-saturated version would be better received by most, but I have a part of my brain that likes certain high key colors and has to push them once and awhile. 12x16 oil on Ray Mar linen panel
I'll go into a longer post on my trip soon.

4 Banger, on to the show

Strom Drain 12x16

Here are a bunch more oil paintings for the show. I wanted to go out with a bang as I'll be gone for a week. Going up to SF after The SLO show to hit the museums and some galleries and take photo's then over to Stockton to see the



J. C. Leyendecker show. I'll try and look in, but don't have a lap top.



210 12x16


Off to the Side 9x12


Coronado Bridge 12x16

Pabco Paper 2 and 2 painting pals

Here is a small 6x8 PA of Pabco Paper Oil on linen board



My painting buddies Jennifer Mc Christian and Bill Moore have entered the blog world. For a year now Jennifer and I have been doing urban painting around the southland, mostly centering somewhere near the Los Feliz area as that close to her studio. Jen has been a great influence on my work, while she never has given me a formal lesson, just observing her nearby has taught me much, particularly about making the little things into great paintings. It always amazing me what she can do with a simple panting of a picnic table.

Bill was a student of mine who has "graduated" to painting without my tutoring, his work is coming together fast. We have a lose little gang that usually meets once a week if you check Jennifer's Web site you can see many of the same areas that I've painted and posted on this blog. Some with me or Bill actually in them.



http://www.jmcchristian.blogspot.com/ cut and paste or go to links------>>



http://williamkmoore.blogspot.com/cut and paste or go to links------>>

Trailer #3

Everything is wet so here is one from my trailer series I didn't post (here) as I had posted a similar one to it not long ago. I don't what to post so many of the same subject in a row, for instance I do have another Train painting dry, but I want to save that one for a bit, due to having so many trains recently. 16x20 oil on linen board.