3 Waring Nations - Heart, Hands, and Head.

“The heart is more treacherous than anything else and is desperate. Who can know it?" Jeremiah 17:9

In this world we all have a war going on between the brain, the  heart, and its accomplice the hands.  Trying to get these three to work together for our benefit can be a constant struggle.  We all  have obligations, desires and passions.  Balancing these in an imperfect environment can be very trying.  This painting symbolizes that for me.  Our lives can bring us much pain, or overwhelming joy.  But, this all depends on what the head and hands are doing.  The emotions from the heart can turn sensible thoughts into insanity.  The brain can make the heart want what it didn't even know it needed.  And the hands can bring you the beautiful and the putrid, depending on what the brain and the heart tell them to fetch.

I have been obsessing over the idea of using a heart in my work for a few years, the beauty and the gore of it.  I seem to always want to paint everything pink.  Pink is a comforting color for me.  Whenever I want to paint something I always ask myself  "How would pink look?" A pink padded cell at times sounds relaxing.

Mixed Media 3'10" X 5'1"

BULL 8-27-2006

This is one of those paintings you paint and your not sure if you hate it or love it.  I feel that it's missing something.  Help me out.  Any ideas.  Thanks 

Acrylic on canvas

Manatee 9-26-2011

  

Lulu's has a game where you can fish for different sea creatures.  Her favorite is the manatee or as she calls it "MANTEE",  also her mother's favorite.  It inspired me to paint this for her.   

Acrylic on Canvas 5in. X 7in.

Cypress Trees

Here is a painting I did in 2006 of some Cypress Trees.  This was a gift to my wife.  She loves the look of Cypress Trees and would always comment on them whenever she saw a tree or a photo of one.  I think this originally began from a holiday she took in Italy.  Acrylic on Canvas.

Friut

While my daughter Lulu played Play Dough, or painted or drew.  I would work on this piece.  Normally I don't care for still life bowls of fruit.  But, after reading a biography of Frida Kahlo,  I was inspired by Frida Kahlo's take on fruit.  This is what our bowl of fruit looks like, often being pillaged by my Lulu. 

Picolino's Jester

On Sunday we went to lunch @ Picolinos, an Italian restaurant in my neighborhood.  While dining there I noticed a picture of a jester next to us.  I was inspired by its harlequin pattern, and thought I would give it a try. I had a piece of canvas and used my daughter's water colors for this piece.

Eleven

What do you give your wife for your 11th wedding anniversary?   Yeah, I had a hard time with this one.  If your wife is anything like mine, she has more jewelry and handbags that she will ever be able to use in a lifetime.  So, I have been thinking for a while about a dark grey wall with a bright green tree sprayed on it.  I transferred the idea to a canvas. I have also been playing around with this Faux Bois technique.  So I thought I would combine the two and came up with this idea.  I put the 11 on the tree like one would carve the initials of there lover in a tree to symbolize there everlasting love.  So,  this was my gift to my wife for putting up with me for 11years.  OH, and jewelry....

Annies Organic Rabbit

recently I was interested in a painting technique called Faux Bois (from the French for false wood) refers to the artistic imitation of wood or wood grains in various media.  I have been thinking of how I could use this in an interesting way. I raided the Garage for this project. It consists of the following

3 Parts House Paint
1 Part Graffiti
1 Part Martha Stewart - Faux Bois Kit
1 Part Annie's Organic Bunnies -One of Lulu's favorite snacks.

Magnolia Seed Pod

I painted this painting as a gift to my wife several years ago.  Every time we would go for a walk and pass by a Magnolia tree my wife would want to stop and look for and collect a seed pod.  Often I would have to pick the perfect one out of a tree.  I was getting tired of all the seed pods lying around the house.  So, I thought of the perfect solution.  I would paint a picture of one of my wife's favorite things and eliminate the pod hunting and gathering.  Not one of my favorites, but my wife greatly appreciated it.

Girl With the Giraffe

 I was inspired by a trip my wife and I took to the San Diego Wild Animal Park when we lived in San Diego.  They have an area where you an feed the giraffes.  I was also thinking of a Scripture from Genesis 1:28 "Further, God blessed them and God said to them: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth and subdue it, and have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and every living creature that is moving upon the earth.”"  With those inspirations I thought that a little girl being able to feed a giraffe an apple as part of her day, seemed like paradise.

I painted this painting years before I had a daughter.  One of my daughter favorite animals if the giraffe, or "raffe", as she calls them.  My favorite part of this painting is the Girls shoes, and the sky. 

Something About Trees

My wife pointed out to me the other day that I paint a lot of trees.  Its funny how you can paint for years and not realize you are always returning to a certain subject.  I guess for me its trees.  I think its the shape that appeals to me.  Its dramatic without being overly complex.  You can hold a lot in a tree.  It stands alone, or it can be accessorized.  Whatever it is, you'll be seeing a lot of trees in the future.  I have a lot more trees coming.

I cant remember how I came up with this idea, but I love the tidiness of a clean cut square.  The ability to put a tree, with all of its many pieces and textures into tiny squares appealed to me @ the time.  Tell me what you think.

TREE-DAY AND NIGHT

This was an idea I came up with a long time ago after seeing Rene Magritte Exhibit @ the LACMA- Los Angeles County Art Museum. Magritte had an amazing way of painting light and darkness together.  I first fell in love with Magritte's paintings on a day trip to a art museum in Brussels, Belgium while staying with a friend in Paris. 

René François Ghislain Magritte (21 November 1898 – 15 August 1967) was a Belgian surrealist artist. He became well known for a number of witty and thought-provoking images. His intended goal for his work was to challenge observers' preconditioned perceptions of reality and force viewers to become hypersensitive to their surroundings.

Haus and Fletcher



 Haus and Fletcher are our dogs.  They have always been a inspiration to me over the years. The last painting is of Rosie, our friend Deb's dog.  I think all artists get much inspiration from their pets.  Just look @ Picasso and Lump

Zebra

I often find photos of things that I think are interesting and don't know what to do with them.  It seem like we all clip items out of magazines, or save thinks on to the computer only to never look at them or forget they exist.  I found a photo of a zebra's face and wanted to make it a little more significant that just a old saved photo.  The top pic is a photo and the bottom piece is my painting.

White Crane

OK.   So here is one of those paintings I did and I am not sure if I like this or not.  Originally it was just the crane on the green background.  But, I thought that was boring and not really my style so I added some gold stripes.  I think it has some potential.  My wife hates it.  So I need some other peoples perspective to find out if this is genius or crap or some where in between. 

Giraffe

The idea for this painting came from this Jonathan Adler Ceramic Sculpture.

William Shakespeare Comes to Dinner.

This is one of my first paintings I ever painted.  Oddly enough it was inspired by the movie Bringing Down the House, with Steve Martin and Queen Latifah.  There is a scene where the french bull dog, named William Shakespeare is sitting @ the dinner table.  the movie was mediocre.  But, this shows that you can be inspired from anything.

Seattle Arboretum

Inspired by a trip to the Seattle Arboretum.  This was a gift to my besties, the Seaburgers.  Acrylic on Canvas

Night Owl

Inspired by my wife's recent obsession with owls. 

Acrylic on Canvas.

There Was An Owl

There was an owl
who lived in an oak.
The more he heard,
the less he spoke;
the less he spoke,
the more he heard-
We all should be
like that wise old bird.