My Nephew – Watercolor

Just a quickie this morning. This is Binh, my nephew (metaphase’s son), I was looking for a lunch time sketch subject and found this picture on the metaphase blog. He is a sweetheart, along with his sister Ava. Which I will paint next, but for now it’s Binh. I’m using watercolor and ink, the ink gives such a blacker black but harder to blend. So for now, the horses will be worked on at home and my buddy Binh will be the lunch time project. Thanks for visiting and hanging with me, I’ve been really busy, but trying to keep things fresh on the blog.

Just a Swinging!

What better way to get that first kiss? What better place to receive that last kiss from your loved one? There has always been a special place in American social history for the porch swing. I built a three level wood deck this spring, with a 12′ x 16′ screened in gazebo, and had plans for a ceiling fan and porch swing. Well I completed everything except the swing, I searched high and low for a well made, high back porch swing and found nothing. So, I built one. This high back swing is made of tiger maple (because of the tiger patterned grain), it seats three adults and weighs a ton. I have so many memories as a child, young adult and adult swinging on a swing with those I love. Everything from my grandparents having one and getting after me for swinging to high, to swinging with my wife when we were just 16 and started dating, to swinging with my own daughters from little babies, to the age of getting after them for swinging to high (learned that from my grandparents), to now when they both are beautiful ladies with a little time to talk to dad while swinging. I hope someday they can  swing on their porch and remember all the good times and talks they had while swinging with their mom and dad.

I’ve always said, the family that eats together (at the same time and table) stays together. But I think the porch swing runs a real close second.

Horses at gate – Acrylic

Because of a huge response and interest in my horse drawings and paintings, I have started an acrylic painting last night to sell on esty. It has been awhile since I’ve used acrylics and although I’ve painted with them for years, it still takes getting used to the drying time and blends. I’m not expecting a fortune for the painting and it may not even sell, but I thought it would be fun to see what happens. This is a photo of four horses at a gate, each with different markings and personalities. The one on the end has a little more playful attitude, which caught my eye. I hope to get more detail and finish at least two horses tonight and the rest by the weekend, but it depends on time and my “Honey Do’s” list.

I’m very busy at work but I’ll try to keep updating as much as possible in the mornings or evening. Keep visiting!

Scared the crap out of me!

Have you ever been so scared that you tried to run from something and even though your legs and feet were going a hundred miles an hour, you went no where? It’s like the old cartoon, where they were running so fast and not moving, that smoke started lifting from their feet. Well some us have seen it… not mentioning any names (brother), but it was the funniest thing I had ever seen. We were in my basement with a drop ceiling, where we suspected a mouse or rat had gotten in. We never had one before, so this was a new experience. So, I decided to put poison above the ceiling tile where we thought it was living. Now, not mentioning any names (brother) we ventured down the stairs, as I slowly lifted the ceiling, I saw a piece of ceiling insulation falling out. Being the teaser that I am, as it fell to where my brother (oops) could see it, I yelled loudly, THERE IT GOES! Catching a glance of something leaping from the tile, the man (my brother) started running like an Olympic sprinter, the only difference was, he ran in place practically burning a hole in the carpet. What he envisioned was this giant, man-eating, rat, pictured above, diving for his juggler. This was horribly mean of me, but I’m telling you, if you were there, you to would have laughed your head off. Oh, by the way we were both over the age of 35, not kids.

O.k. now that I’m going to catch hell from (my brother), I’ll tell one on myself. We were TPing (throwing Toilet Paper into the trees) at a friend’s house for Halloween. Iwas about 14 years old, 130 lbs, and apparently not very smart. I was with several older kids, some boys and girls. Anyway, in the process of TPing the dad of the person getting TPed comes busting out of the front door with a shotgun… acting like he was out to kill someone. He pointed the gun in the air and shucked a shell (we thought) into the chamber. Anyone who has hunted, knows the sound of a pump shotgun being loaded, and knows what a shotgun can do to you. Needless to say, I became an Olympic runner just like my older brother, only I was moving, when running. First of all, you can’t out run a shotgun, second of all, it was dark, Third and most important, when running in the dark at full speed, you have to watch for CLOTHES LINES! You guess it, at full speed, I ran my head and neck right into a clothes line and went instantly from an Olympic runner, to an Olympic gymnast, doing a triple flip, in pike position, right onto the ground (scoring all 10’s). All I could hear in the background was the shotgun bearing crazy man, laughing his head off, knowing he scared the CRAP out of me. Now, for the good news, after picking myself up in shame, still running, I leaped into the back of a pickup truck. No, that’s not the good news, the good news was, that a very attractive high school girl was leaping in after me and landing on top of me, Oh, did I mention that she was a high schooler, and I was in junior high.

There’s a couple of examples, now give me your moments, that you were scared the crap out of.

Due to the Graphic content

The content to this blog may be to graphic for the weak hearted or elderly… wait a minute that’s me! O.K., it’s a graphic, just a graphic, nothing scary, nothing gross, well at least not much, and kinda hot, but not obscene. I thought that I would do something a little different in style for the halloween theme, and go with a graphic style vampire . I enjoy halloween because it allows us to be a little crazy, creative, and it’s the only holiday that you’re supposed to be ugly, which is easy for us that are already ugly.

My family and I just spent the weekend at a halloween themed campground. The entire campground of more than 350 lots, decorate and create halloween scenes at each lot. The campground also has dances for the teens, pumpkin carving, ghost stories around a giant fire, and much more. Adults dress up and become kids for the weekend and enjoy each others company and food. Food, lots of food, to much food and guess what, I ate it all, I’m so ashamed. The campground is called Lake Rudolph in Santa Claus, Indiana, the web is lakerudolph.com. They started with 1 weekend and now due to popularity have grown to 6 weekends. They have 200 rentable campers that have a queen size bed, kitchen, dining room table, living area and a bedroom with 4 bunk beds, with heat, air, and kitchen appliances. I know what you’re thinking… that’s not camping, but as long as you have a huge campfire  marshmallows and chocolate, that’s camping. Check it out and try to find a local campground and encourage them to due the same. They make a fortune off of it, and it’s great fun for family and friends.

Whether a trick or treat, leave me a comment!

Horse – Watercolor

I started this last night for my daughter. She loves horses and is off to college to become a vet tech, specializing in equine breeding or therapy. I know it’s similar to the predator painting, but I think she’ll love it. It’s almost finished with just a few more hair details to be placed under the eye and jaw. Thanks for visiting!

I just need to loosen up

I’m pretty calm and relaxed in my everyday living, but when it comes to art and woodworking, sometimes the creativity goes out the window (no pun intended) and precision and tightness takes over. Artist have always impressed me by the looseness in their paintigs, and yet accomplish amazing beauty in their work. My wife wanted more black and white paintings for our home so I set out one evening to complete this window scene. But, I wanted to treat it more as a sketch, than a painting, in other words try to stay loose without giving into the illustrator side in me. I finished it in one evening, which included a undetermined time lapse due to falling asleep while painting it (how much more relaxed can you get). Very seldom do I take naps, I believe in the saying (I’ll have plenty of time for rest, when I’m dead). But at my age (old) sometimes a nap is required.

This watercolor didn’t turn out as well as I was hoping, but I was determined not to go back and put in more detail. I have tried everything to stay loose, holding the far end of a brush, only to catch myself inching my hand towards the brush end to get more precise. Using brushes bigger than I need, only to catch myself angling the brush end to use the corner or edge of the brush to get detail. But, I’m trying, and my blog artist friends are a motivation. Seeing what you can accomplish with artistic styles, the color, light contrast, depth and creativity while maintaining a loose, beauty styled painting.

The Dance of Fall Foliage – Watercolor

Set adrift in a stream, a new journey has begun. Falling from what used to be, the knowing, the security and its life line. What began as a bud and becoming its own fingerprint on a limb. Growing and giving movement to a tree as though dancing in the forest with others. Swaying to the rhythm created by the music of the wind, or resting peacefully with no movement at all, bringing a cool spot for God’s creature to lay in the calm.

Its cycle continues even though its last dance in a tree has taken place. Swaying for the last time , a new journey begins. Falling gracefully with others, a new dance commences. No two are the same, all shapes, all colors but with the winds help, they form a flowing graceful dance as though one. It’s a dance of fairy tales, a whirlwind rainbow of movement fighting to reach the earth. Getting close at one point, only to be lifted higher and higher for another dance.

Once again a calm becomes the moment, and drifting downward to rest. Landing gently, barely causing a ripple in a crystal clear stream, they gather once more to dance. A graceful waltz, flowing in movement afloat in a stream. Sometimes dancing with others, sometimes alone, spinning and turning on a liquid dance floor only God could create. As its last dance ends, covering the earth’s floor like a warming carpet of bursting colors, it will soon fade into the ground and nourish the new, allowing the new to partake in the next dance of life.

Like leaves dancing in the wind, we all are given time to dance in life. Some will choose to watch as others dance, some will dance when it’s best to rest, and some will dance only to be dancing with no meaning. God has given us the music of life, it’s all around us, you just have to listen. Not with your ears but with your heart. So do you dance?

I choose to dance! That’s why I painted the watercolor above, to share with my dance partners in life.

emBARKED on new watercolor!

Took a break from the fantasy painting in order to complete this black and white wash this weekend. I love black and white photos and have requested my photog blog friends to post more of their black and whites. So, I decided to do a mono painting, and the flow of this driftwood entangled with each other caught my eye. It’s a 12″ x 16″ watercolor on hotpressed board. It took about 4 hrs to complete and was for sell, until my wife decided she wanted to keep it. She wins… all the time! So, it will be framed in a modern black frame, but I’m not sure on matting or not. The seam down the middle is a scanning mark, because I had to scan in two separate scans and pieced it together.

I was wondering, what would be considered a fair market price for a painting similar to this one? I usually give or sell my paintings to friends and family at a discounted or free, usually free, so I’m not sure what to ask when people contact me to purchase a painting. I’m not a crazy artist that gets offended by remarks or comments on my art. For one, I realize, all people have different taste, in music, art, looks and material things. So I don’t expect everyone to love my art or want to own one. But with the international market opening up for me, thanks to the internet, I have been contacted by several people wanting to buy my art, and  I’m not sure of what price I should be selling my paintings for. Do you go by the time put into the painting? Or is there a standard price for an unknown artist piece of art?

Help me out, all you pro’s out there, if you have any suggestions please leave a comment.

Tis the Season-watercolor

I know, I know it’s not winter in Indiana yet, but it is in my world. This is the time, starting in August, that I design corporate Christmas cards, oh, I’m sorry, Holiday cards for those politically correct. The watercolor posted, is a sketch for a card that I had done for one of our customers. Most of you know that I love the beach and the heat. There is only one week that I love snow and winter weather and that’s Christmas. Every once in a while we get lucky in Indiana and receive snow during the Christmas holidays and I love it. But once the new year rolls around, I’m ready for Spring again. I think more than the weather itself, what bothers me is the short days of daylight. I get to work about 7 a.m. and then get back home around 5 p.m., during the winter it’s dark when I go to work and then dark by time I get home for the evening… HATE IT!

But as the season approaches and the temperature drops, may your home and heart be filled with warmth, no matter what religion or philosophy you believe in.