A Change of Seasons

Usually with the arrival of Fall I'm overcome with the need to bundle up, drink hot apple cider, and type away at a new script. So far all I want to do is paint. Thank goodness for that.

These past few weeks I've been hard at work on a series that is perhaps the culmination of all previous doodles, paintings, quilts, etc. If ever I have felt lost or out of place, these 11 x 19 inch landscapes seem to have brought me back to exactly where I need to be.

It all started with this:


Over the River and Through the Woods (2011)
Watercolor, ink, antique marbled paper, and thread

I had been re-reading Grimm's Fairy Tales (my copy has Arthur Rackham illustrations of course) and wanted to create my own version of the deep woods that Hansel and Gretel left their bread crumbs in, or where Little Red Riding Hood had her run in with Big Bad.

After finishing the painting above I came up with a couple of 3 x 5 inch sketches and fleshed them out:

Sketch for Zauberwald



Zauberwald (2011)


An enchanted forest that for whatever reason has similar coloring to the German flag.

Sketch for Crown of Thorns

Crown of Thorns (2011)

work in progress

At first my sketch reminded me of a canopy of trees forming in the distance. But the more I work on this piece the more obviouse the title seems to be.

I hope to finish a series of six and will post new images as I complete them. I'll have to save the writing for Winter!

Perfect Harmony

The length of one of my best friend's hair at the time of our first meeting never fails to amaze me (we're talking Crystal Gayle). I met Leslie way back when in Denton, Texas. We became instant friends and life long supporters of each other's artistic pursuits. Her gorgeous singing voice also never fails to amaze me. Leslie Sisson is an incredible musician.



During our younger years I often watched her play solo shows in coffee shops. At some point in the early stages of our friendship we made a brief attempt to play music together but quickly realized I was better suited to hold paint brushes. More recently I've been heading over to the Doug Fir everytime she comes through Portland with two bands she perfects: The Wooden Birds and Matt Pond PA.

Leslie has been hard at work on a new solo album. There was no hesitation on my end when she asked if I'd like to do the artwork for it. My favorite track (at first listen anyway - they're all favorites now) was Harmony, a hauntingly beautiful song evoking images of a vast open sea.

The early stages of a six panel watercolor and ink painting:

Paper waves added:



And finally the girl in a boat, keeping whether she is headed home or out toward the stormy sea all to herself.

Summer! So Nice to See You

Gods and Goddesses


So now that summer has finally arrived here in Portland, Oregon, I've been doing my Maenad duty by running about sampling wine and beer. While recovering from my sampling I've been enjoying three new books I picked up at William Temple:






The faded red one is a 1933 copy of Dangerous Acquaintances with some risque illustrations by Alastair. That combined with re-reading Edith Hamilton's Mythology resulted in this new illustration of Daphne.


The Other William Morris


My boss at Oldimprint.com, Elisabeth Burdon, just returned from Brighton where she participated in a symposium on the map-maker MacDonald Gill. His pictorial maps are amazing!


She brought me back this lovely tea cup with a beautiful William Morris pattern:

Inspired to come up with something slightly less creepy than my previous root works, I completed the two pieces below on Sunday.

 

Untitled (2011) - 8 x 8 inches, watercolor, ink, and layered marbled paper.



Untitled 2 (2011) - 8 x 8 inches, watercolor, ink, and layered marbled & vintage paper.

Root Canal Inspiration

I survived my first (and hopefully last) root canal today. Here are my latest Root Paintings just finished Tuesday night. They are wee little works, 3.5 inches square.

Underground Disco (2011)

Footsie (2011)

Chair Envy

Used to be that my mid-century Made in Sweden chair was the highlight of my studio apartment. It certainly has become my cat Norman’s favorite furniture to sleep on.

A few weeks ago I noticed a slow collection of garage sale items amassed on the front porch of where I work at Oldimprints.com. In the center of it all was an old and dirty rocking chair. I’ve always wanted a rocking chair so I asked my boss, Elisabeth, “How much?” She and her husband, Craig, said I could have it, gratis.

Craig told me the chair is about 100 years old, came from somewhere in Ohio, and is made of oak.

To Cane or Not to Cane

I happily took the dirt covered chair home, determined to spice it up by re-caning the seat cover so that one day I could sit on it whilst reading a lengthy novel.

After taking the disintegrating leather seat cover off I determined that a portion of the wood was cracked and caning was no longer an option. I would make a new seat cover myself and add re-upholstery to my long list of useless talents.





Fabric Choice

Before leaving for their exciting new life in New York City, my friends Suzie and Don left me a bunch of items including a half completed skirt. Recalling my painful experience trying to sew an apron, I knew well enough that I would never finish the skirt. The fact that it had the same basic shape as the old leather seat cover made the decision to reclaim the pretty purple fabric quite easy.

I trimmed it to the approximate size, added some batting and backing, and finally machine quilted it together. There was no way I was going to produce any form of straight line so I opted to create some wavy, fake wood-grain type of lines. I then re-covered the seat with the fabric by hammering it tight with tack nails.

My Rockin’ Chair

And here she is. A thing of beauty. Oddly enough I have yet to see Norman try to sit on this one. In fact he’s curled up on the Swedish chair right now.

A Heart's Journey

Sometimes the most beautiful heart is the one with the most stitches.




A Heart's Journey (2011)
7 x 7 inches
Watercolor, ink, thread, and antique marbled paper.


I'm finishing up another version on stained wood. A little darker. Maybe even some blood involved! Fake paper blood of course. Stay tuned...

Forest Layers

Today I finally figured out how to take the best photos possible with my sister's camera that I have basically hijacked since I bought it for her. The bright sun really helped too. These are some old paintings mixed with a brand new one. Enjoy!

Forest Layers (2011)

Finally a new tree painting! The recycled cabinet doors from the Rebuilding Center are being put to good use.

Reichstag (2005)

This belongs to my sister now. I've never been able to capture the color accurately until today which is super exciting for a nerd like me.

I See Myself in You - Symmetry (2008)

The silver background used to be an issue but now you can see all of the detail.

My Dad, The Conqueror (2002)

My all time favorite painting of Mr. Berretta which was inspired by an old photo of him standing by his hobby horse.

Some of these are now available as archival prints at my Etsy shop!