untitled autumn slough

                                                               oil on canvas 50x40


 From a study done in 2011, both are improvisations based on memories of Minto Brown Island. This progressed quickly and I was feeling brilliant. Then came two weeks of tweaks as I tried to reconcile a simple but looming shape with the delicate intricacy of the vegetation. A 'stillness' was what I was after.


At the Clackamas Art Extravaganza I bought another inexpensive new paper made from rocks called Mineral Paper by Yasutomo. I was assured it was tougher than Terraskin but it isn`t. My problem involves the multimedia I usually end up using in a work on paper. Acrylic binds the paper along the edge to my drawing board and when I very carefully try to lift it free, it tears! When that began happening to the painting below, I stopped and got a box cutter and cut the painting out leaving the edge. This is not acceptable but I did like the painting even if it was a little smaller than I intended;

                                Over the Sea 31 11.75x 8.75 watermedia on Mineral Paper


 Loving pure color, pattern and complexity, I was smitten immediately when I discovered the work of the Lebanese painter Huguette Caland. Take a look at the magic she weaves;

                                                                 Huguette Caland

                                                               Huguette Caland

                                                   It`s fun being Huguette Caland!


 No new I pad paintings from me this week but scroll down here and check out Cynthia Wick`s vibrant slideshow.

                                                Father and Son by Cynthia Wick


In case you missed it in the 1970s, here is the incredible chocolate chip recipe from the Diet for a Small Planet Cookbook. One and a half grams of complete protein in each cookie! And they`re delicious!
[notes to the right are for a double batch]

[WW=whole wheat]



My workshop in Coos Bay July 10;

work for sale in my studio

Bryant Woods Spring

                                          Bryant Woods Spring oil on canvas 40x40


 From my unexpectedly beautiful walk in the rain last week in Bryant Woods.
I guess as the new normal, this Spring too is a month early. It`s beginning to feel like Northern California!
Lots of small experiments in this one. I wanted the forest to be in shadow but with a lot of color variety and texture. As usual this involves placing paint down in a given area then moving it around with squeegees and spatulas, cutting through it with rubber scrappers, wiping it with rags and drawing into the wet with q-tips. Section by section. Nearly every successful idea requires adjustments elsewhere. Eventually it coheres or doesn`t, more luck is involved than skill. But I don`t give up easily. The foreground was to be the brightest element just as the meadow was the day of my visit.


 The magnolias are out and as splendid as always! What an extravagant tree, it`s nearly embarrassing! These 8x8 studies on wood were created in 2008 for an arts benefit sale.

 In 1983 my brother Gary clipped a article out of the Oregonian newspaper and sent it to me in Santa Fe. It was a review of the poet Lewis Hyde`s book 'The Gift'. It had the provocative subtitle of 'Imagination and the erotic life of property'. [Since changed] Well that was too intriguing and I bought it immediately. Right from the start this guy started explaining the way art comes into being and why I found the life of an artist so confusing. I have never been quite as educated and consoled by a single book. I reread it every few years and always find new insights. The introduction is beautifully written and seductive. You can read it here and this includes a link to a pdf file you can download of the whole introduction. If you`re not moved, do stop, it`s not for everybody.

 The deadline to apply for a residency at the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology on the gorgeous Oregon coast is fast approaching! April 18!
I`ve stayed twice and each time was exceptional. This is the perfect opportunity to really concentrate on a project, I highly recommend it.

                                                  Autumn Slough I-pad painting


 A study for a large painting I just completed and will post soon. Procreate is perfect for composing as it is easy to change things quickly.


My favorite Frida Kahlo;

                                     What the Water Gave Me by Frida Kahlo



work for sale in my studio

Boundary Marsh - big ceramics!

                                                      Boundary Marsh oil on canvas 50x36


 I asked Matt McCalmont to make me some large canvases for my show this summer. In non standard dimensions. This is the first one I`ve painted on and it was a pleasure. More wetlands though the whole region, including my yard,  would qualify as one. In 24 years of being in the Northwest, this is the only winter I can remember where I was so stymied in my walks. Huge pools of standing water right over the paths, fallen trees, mud of every description and downpours that no one would venture out into. Two days ago I desperately wanted out of my studio to stretch my legs somewhere beautiful. It was raining and I almost didn`t go but we`re into a Spring pattern already and I knew there was a good chance it would stop in awhile. It did not but I was so glad I went! Bryant Woods is my go to forest for quick refreshment and it`s stunning right now;

 And last week we got away for an overnighter in Oceanside;

 Absolutely my favorite place on the coast! Sort of tricky to get to sometimes. This recent trip required a pilot car to lead drivers over a washed out road on a cliff overlooking the ocean. The only other road was closed because of a culvert collapsing. Nonetheless, so gorgeous once we were there! Just a couple of restaurants and motels, no shops but a spectacular setting at the base of a huge bluff. The sunset was foggy and opalescent and when I got home I did an I pad painting of it;

                                                                  Oceanside I pad Tipton

                                                             Jeff Blandford with one of his pots

                                                                  Blandford


Here he is throwing 300 lbs.
I love ceramics and once made a couple of pots myself, it is not easy. I`m especially impressed with giant pots. In the photo just above, he has weights in that backpack to help give him leverage. Take a look at his work.

                                                              Tollef Runquist


 Another young artist I`ve been watching is Tollef Runquist who lives on the coast of Maine. This guy is a natural. His work looks so effortless yet it is intelligently composed with great wit and skill!


Evil dies too, goodbye Justice Scalia. You could never mention homosexuality without disgust and contempt. Your denial of racism in our society was as racist as could be. You did not recognize the sanctity of a woman`s right to choose what is best for herself and her body. You will not be missed.


work for sale in my studio

New Work No Titles

                                                                      1. oil on canvas 20x16

                                                                   2. oil on canvas 20x16


 Same old problem, what to title new paintings of familiar subjects?
I`ll get to it later.
Every painting begins with an intention that originates from an experience. How they conclude is more often than not quite different. There is a point in the process where to insist on the 'vision' would sacrifice what is happening before me, the true pleasure of exploration. Forget about the idea that launched it! Funny thing though, it usually circles back around and reclaims the most important part.
 The wetlands in #1 were inspired by the Fanno Creek marshes near where they join the Tualatin River. They`re near my home and I visit a lot in winter. What I love about them is the dense variety. So many textures and colors doubled by the reflections and amplified by the bird sounds! And so inhospitable to anything heavy! Like me as I sink into the mud. When I paint them, I want to layer all the elements into an interconnected teeming whole. So while I may have photos or sketches of particular clumps of grasses and trees, ultimately they may be included or not as I grope toward something serene yet kinetic.
 #2 comes from viewing the autumn color against the bright reflections of clouds on the river. I began by including the wavering reflections of trees and soon realized it was too confusing. In removing them my vividly colored leaves were visually unanchored. So I added chunks of green vegetation with spidery stems linking each mass together. Now it doesn`t exactly look like what I saw, but the buoyancy of that sunny Fall day is there.


 As this election season came to life I thought, this year I`m going to vote from my heart. I`m going to vote for Bernie Sanders. He has walked his talk for decades and his decency is obvious.
I believe politics is the real world enactment of our spiritual values. This is why I`m a Democrat. My Dad explained it very simply, 'Democrats are for the little guy'. This is also in accord with the Christian teachings I was raised with.
So I planned to vote for Bernie in the primary and I hoped his success would keep Hillary humble and honest. I believe it has. Then I read this article claiming a vote for Sanders was a vote for Trump. That`s so provocative! But it made sense and caused me to remember the McGovern campaign I worked on in 1972. That good man was slimed beyond recognition, he never had a chance. The same would happen with Sanders I fear. I`ve decided it`s not worth the risk. President Trump? That is too scary to imagine.

                                                             Miroco Machiko


 I`m crazy about Miroco! She completely turns distinctions between illustration and fine art on their head! She`s bold and playful, inventive and fearless! Such fresh air!

 This photo is so painterly! The color alone is gorgeous and the composition is both stylized and dynamic! 'Dalmatian Pelicans' by Marko Konig



work for sale in my studio

Camassia Oaks

                                                        Camassia Oaks oil on canvas 20x16


 I`ve painted these three oaks several times but never felt I succeeded. So when I was in Camassia last week, I stood on a rock above them and studied them carefully. I`m getting closer.

Laura Foster became my friend years ago after she bought a painting. When we met, she told me she wrote walking guidebooks. Later while shopping I saw "Portland Hill Walks" at Fred Meyer [northwest mega grocery store] and I bought it.
This was way more than maps and landmarks, it was crammed full of history, cultural context, botanical and architectural details, vintage photography and practical information such as where to get a drink of water and use a restroom. John and I would do one of the 'walks' every Sunday followed by Burgerville. The Oregon City walk was one surprise after another, sort of like a scavenger hunt.
 The morning after my mother died and my studio flooded she was at my house  hauling away wet cardboard, organizing my packing supplies and offering needed moral support. Within an hour, her wonderful hydrologist husband Kevin arrived and assessed the situation and told me what I would need to do. Though I refused to even shake his hand, he still caught the wicked chest cold I had.
True, selfless friends.
Laura is publishing a new book on the Columbia River Gorge and I can`t wait to get a hold of it. I want to know where to go that does not involve a waterfall! And where to eat!! When we`re living in Camas, the Gorge will be near and beckoning, and I know the guide will be super helpful. Watch her describe the book in this video.


 You visitors that are artists, listen up. Imagine you get out of bed in the morning and before you`ve even had your coffee, you`re at the kitchen table drawing! Yes drawing, dreaded drawing! I swear, this Procreate drawing app with the pressure sensitive drawing stylus is mesmerizing! No more tedium! Putting in a background color is instantaneous, shading is fast and easy, corrections are immediate! I could spend all day with this thing! Its great advantage is there is no artifact. And that is precisely why I don`t give it all my time. I need to make a living. But for 'research' such as life drawing and location studies, it is ideal.
This was a quick one;

                                                                Oswego Lagoon-Ipad


This is how I did it;

Here are a couple of others;

                                                            Oregon Refuge-ipad

                                                                    Forest Details-Ipad


 Now that we finally have an open door with Cuba, I hope to see one of the lyrical, dreamlike paintings of Tomas Sanchez some day.

                                                                         Tomas Sanchez


Ongoing through March during regular business hours at the Johnstone Financial Advisors;

work for sale in my studio

Fanno Creek February

                                               Fanno Creek February oil on canvas 30x24


 My first painting of Feb., from the acre or so of wetlands where Fanno Creek joins the Tualatin River. [Easy to get to from Durham Park] Certain little places in the landscape grab and hold me, this is one.

We`re planning to move to Camas WA in the Fall to be nearer to my family. The hospice experience with my Mom made me realize I wanted to be closer to my brother and sisters in law. We worked so well together in caring for her.
But I will miss the special places in and around Lake Oswego I`ve become attached to.


 And speaking of Mom, she left her sons a little money! It is a bittersweet gift because she worried she`d outlive her funds but she didn`t.
Now I`m spending it and this would please her.
We`ve ordered a new sofa which is being made in a neighboring community.
I bought a painting! This is something I rarely do because I already have a couple  thousand paintings of my own. Look at this gem!;

                                                                 Melody Cleary


 There is no way I can look at this and not feel better. Thank you Melody!


In December I was in the home of Ruth Armitage and she showed me her new Ipad Pro as well as her snazzy new drawing stylus which she used with the drawing app called Procreate. I have used Art Rage and Brushes and found them complicated and frustrating while using my finger as the 'pencil'. But David Hockney, who is older than me, had mastered them so I kept trying. Ruth said Procreate was easy and she handed it to me. Within seconds I could tell this was altogether different. The great innovation was the pressure sensitive stylus. This allows for all the nuance in human emotion that comes through the hand. And it`s fast! So I just bought one too and I`m very excited. It will be terrific to take out on location with my plein air friends. These are my first attempts;

 Separated by an ocean and a continent, I have finally found my soulmate in painting. She lives in London but loves what I love. Elizabeth McGill paints the ambiance of forests and parks through painterly, expressive means;

                                                                 Elizabeth Mcgill

 Nice little reception last night at the Johnstone Financial Advisors. Turns out deep blue is the optimal color to display my work against!  The building is a wonderful example of optimistic, flamboyant 1970`s architecture. Take a look, get some advice!

work for sale in my studio

Understory

                                                             Understory oil on canvas 36x60


 I`ve been locked in mortal combat with this painting the last 10 days. This is the second painting on this canvas and the process made me wonder if it ever got easier? Doesn`t experience count? I`m so sick of it, it will just have to be 'good enough' for now. Elizabeth Gilbert makes the point that perfectionism will make us crazy and that sometimes it`s best just to accept the work when it isn`t our best. Move on to the next good idea. All I wanted was to create an intimate sense of summer. Maybe I did...       No more green for a while!


Unknown works of Richard Diebenkorn have come into view at the Van Doren Waxler Gallery in New York! Look at this beauty;

                                                             Richard Diebenkorn work on paper


 And his sketchbooks were donated by his wife to Cantor Arts Center at Stanford and every single page is online! There is no better way to know what an artist thinks than by perusing their sketchbooks. They are the thing I grab when the house catches fire.


 Good news, bad news. Your spouses were right. There is enough research now to confirm that creative individuals have very high levels of psychopathology. But they also test extremely high for psychological health. It seems that contradiction and paradox are the norm. As if we need to be told! The coexistence of opposites is the engine of creativity.

                                                          Silver Sand oil on canvas 5x5

The Johnstone Financial Advisors give great advice, like good art, drink nice wine, and serve delicious hors d`oeuvres. Come meet them and me this Friday evening Feb. 5, 5-7 pm. The location is on 3rd St. just a block south of A [toward the lake] in downtown Lake Oswego.

work for sale in my studio