Broken Spruce

                                                          Broken Spruce watercolor on Yupo 12x9


 Another on the theme of distance juxtaposed with decay, the mortal and the eternal. Georgia O`Keefe mined this vein thoroughly with her vistas and bones though the oceans in her work were vestigial. The Southwest was once submerged under the sea for millions of years.
The impulse for this came from walking around Cape Arago after teaching last July. The winter storms wreak havoc on the front line of the forest and it often looks like a battle scene. I visited the coast a few years ago after a severe storm and saw a whole hillside of young alders snapped off at the same place.

                                                      Harry`s Sunset oil on canvas 16x20


 The remarkable painter Harry Stooshinoff posted a similar piece on Facebook recently. I told him in a comment I was going to steal it. He didn`t warn me away and I did. Scale is an element he skillfully plays with.

                                                                Three Iris watermedia on Terraskin 13x9


 It was a week of tinkering and repairing as I thought about a big new painting to be. My favorite sort of studio time. Small projects, rescued paintings and ambitious ideas. Please return to my last post with an Icelandic waterfall in Gjain. It finally is right! Here are a couple of other improved older works;

                                                        Riverbank Study 14x11 watermedia on Yupo

                                                         Fiscalini Surf watermedia on paper 20x16


 The great jazz musician Toots Thielemans died in August at 94. His instrument was the harmonica and he could make it say anything! My Dad played harps as well and idolized this artist. He might be best known to the general public for performing the theme to Midnight Cowboy written by the phenomenal film composer John Barry. The melody is plaintive with just a bit of hope. Dad learned to play it for me because I thought it was so moving.
With the passing of Toots last month, many memories of my father and his musical life rose to the surface.
In the late 70`s I was living out in the country in northern New Mexico working at a restaurant that has become quite well known, Rancho de Chimayo. My parents were visiting from California and I took them to the restaurant for lunch. Tiptons are always running late so as we finished eating on the patio, most of the other guests had left. We had that well fed glow. All of the sudden Dad pulls a harmonica out of his pocket, puts it to his mouth and belts out a passionate rendition of Release Me! I remember feeling intense horror, pride and embarrassment all at once! Like a third grader, I wondered what everyone including my boss would think. We are a family of introverts. Friendly, but we look forward to retreating to our rooms. I sat there and wondered who he really was. If a person, even a father, is comfortable enough to be spontaneous with me, I take it as a compliment.

                                                 painting by Miguel Acevedo


Isn`t that a terrific painting! The placement of the clouds seems to compress the focus into a single moment in time!
I love good seascapes!! This seems to be a 'golden age' in this genre. Ran Ortner,  Dion Salvador Lloyd, Zaria Forman, Kurt Jackson,  Hanna Woodman, Ruo Li and many others are doing innovative outstanding work.

                                                                  Babytable


For the Lake Oswego Plein Air Festival, I intend to take into the forest a 26x40 sheet of yupo and paint in black and white watercolor. I have never painted anything close to this big on location and I`m excited to try. This will be on Friday the 23rd near the Red Fox Hills entrance to Tryon Creek State Park. I think I have the logistics figured out and will begin around noon. If you`re looking for me, send me a text; 503 380 4731



available work for sale in my studio

"New Landscapes" Coos Art Museum July 9 - Oct. 1

Red Surf-hospice

                                                                 oil on canvas 8x8 2010


The ocean is the source of life on earth and our blood is the same salinity as the sea.

My mother entered hospice this week and all trajectory stopped. At 88, after a lifetime of health problems, she said no more treatment. I admire her decision. How marvelous it is to see someone face imminent death without fear. That is a gift to the living. I`ve been present for a birth  and a death and the profound gravity and intimacy are similar. It`s a privilege to be there.
She`s watching a movie tonight, so it appears Mom lives another day!

                                        Barcelona triptych three oil on panels each 24x24


I delivered this commission to the building site of the Barcelona apartments. The project is to provide low income housing in the 'old town' part of Beaverton. I was 'hired' by the Kimberly Kent Art Brokerage. I find commissions really tricky because there isn`t a personal motivation propelling the painting. But the client liked my work, I was given the theme and the specs and I thought I can do this, I`m a professional.


My show in Oregon City continues through Dec. 23, though a couple of holiday related closures are happening. If you`d like to view it, give a call first.

work for sale

Over the Sea 27 and others

                               watercolor on paper 24x18

Like most of the others in this series, this began halfheartedly but became serious. This is a 'go to' theme when I need to paint but I`m too distracted to focus. Before I understood what a complete cliche they were, I used to paint pears for this reason. They have such a curvy voluptuous form and with a jaunty phallic stem, there`s something for everybody! Someday I`ll post a bunch of them.
Here are some earlier pieces from this series. As usual, the 'styles' range from realism to symbolism to abstraction. All are me, sometimes just days apart. All are about remembrance.

                            watercolor on yupo 5x5 [#1]

                            watermedia on yupo 8x8 [#4]

                                   oil on canvas 10x8 [#7]

                                   oil on panel 5x5 [#8]

                                 oil on panel 6x6 [#13]

                          watercolor on paper 12x12 [#16]

Larry Groff`s enlightening web site, Painting Perceptions, nearly closed down this week. It never occurred to me that it cost money to produce. Which is naive because it has a wealth of information about representational painters and painting. He`s a really bright guy and asks thoughtful questions when he interviews an artist. The archives are rich with insightful, wonderful profiles. So when he said he was shutting down because of a lack of funds, I quickly made a contribution through the Paypal button I had never paid attention to. Larry wrote to say he could continue for another year. If realism is your bent and especially if painting on location or from a model is your passion, this site is extremely rewarding. Somehow I started reading it early and saw it blossom. Larry`s own recent work has become luminous and haunting.

Got to love Pinterest! How else would I have heard of Peter Hicks? He looks like a merry grandfather and  his website assembled with a kit, but this man can paint! It seems in Britain there is a respected tradition of landscape painting that is missing here. And watercolor in particular is celebrated. Even Winston Churchill was an active, decent painter! Watch this trailer for a film about Peter which is still in process. I love seeing him tilt and maneuver his support. He will do anything to get it right.

The next open studio/demonstration is Sat. Dec. 13, 10am

work for sale in the studio