Another Portrait Inspired by Early Animation

"Christine #1"

6.5"x8.5" Oil on Canvas

2011

Red White and Blue Painting

"Popsicle"

36"x36" Oil and Enamel on Canvas

2011

I went a bit abstract for this painting.  A “bit” is an understatement.  This painting started off as a portrait.  After working on it for a while, I really hated what I saw so I covered the entire canvas with a thin layer of paint.  I busted out the house paint and added some thick layers of white letting the paint drip and fall.  I ended up calling this painting “Popsicle” because it reminded me of those red, white, and blue popsicles.  I can’t think of what they’re called…rocket ships, space ships???  Some kind of ship might be in the name.

A few days ago I came across this great artist from New Zealand named Richard Pearse.  He uses pieces of wood to construct these patterns of color.  I highly recommend having a look at his work.  I’ve been working with repurposed wood in a few of my pieces so I was an immediate fan of his.

Blue Haired Girl Painting

"Blue Haired Girl"

16"x20" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas

2011

This painting started off with me dropping a wide range of colors on the surface of the canvas.  I sat the canvas on the floor and just let the paint fall on top of it.  These splatters of paint made for a pretty interesting background.  The girl in the painting came next.  She wasn’t really based on any person in particular but seems to be influenced again by animated characters.  I wasn’t thinking about that when I painted her, but the final painting does resemble an animated character.  The girl seems a bit sad, it might be the blue and gray colors she is painted in or her dark eyes.  The hair is fanning out like it is blowing in the wind or she is posing like a model with a fan blowing.   

Hairless Ostrich Painting and Randomness for Creativeness

"Hairless Ostrich"

6.5"x8.5" Oil on Canvas

2011

As I’ve said before, I always find it fun to add a touch of randomness to my paintings.  Sometimes when I have trouble coming up with ideas I’ll get myself going by painting whatever comes to my mind or whatever I see around me.  You’re probably thinking a painting of a hairless ostrich sounds a bit random…well it is.  But there is actually a crazy amount of symbolism associated with the ostrich and the egg of an ostrich, from simplicity to fertility, and they are mentioned in biblical texts as well as Egyptian hieroglyphics. 

It is pretty random that I am even talking about the symbolic significance of an ostrich.  I guess the moral of the story is that it’s good to just start painting, no matter what it is.  Motivation is for amateurs anyways right?  I can’t remember who said that.

Most of the time I end up going in a direction that I never thought I would at the beginning.  Often a random direction that I am pretty happy with in the end.  Sometimes I will have days where nothing is working and I just have to scrap everything and start over, but at least I’m painting something, thinking, making choices, and learning.  That’s always a good exercise to move creativity forward.     

Oh, and ostriches have hair all over their heads…this one doesn’t.

Salvaged Bookshelf Face Painting

"Bookshelf Portrait"

18"x24" Oil, Charcoal, Pastel on Salvaged Bookshelf

2011

This is a painting I made on a bookshelf I salvaged from the trash.  I tore it apart and attached the shelves to a wooden picture frame.  It ended up being a little dark and sinister looking when it was finished.  I think it might be the eyes, or no eyes I guess.  I thought about painting in some eyeballs but I decided to leave it without. 

Face with One Tear Painting

"Face with One Tear"

30"x36" Oil, Acrylic, Enamel, Spray Paint, Saw Dust on Salvaged Canvas

2011

Here is a painting in made on a canvas I found in the trash.  I cleaned it up a little and painted over it a few times with house paint.  Before the house paint dried I tossed some sawdust on top of it.  This gave it an interesting texture.  I just started painting this face on it without really planning anything out. This is what I came up with.  The canvas had a tear in it when I found it.  I actually like the tear being there. 

If you want to check out an awesome artist, check out the work of El Mac.  His paintings and murals are pretty amazing.  It looks like they are resonating with sound waves or something.  Or like they are painted on ripples of water.  Check out the link to his website for a look at his work.