My miniature paintings.

Last year I added miniature paintings to my inventory for art and craft fairs.  Unfortunately, I probably don't make minimum wage with them but they have paid my show fees at otherwise bad shows.

It has been a long time since I've been here.

Last summer I was going blind.  I had a large tumor on my pituitary gland the was pressing on my optic nerves.  Fortunately, Tufts om Boston was able to operate, take out the tumor.  They had to pack some fat from my stomach against the base of the brain to keep the brain sack from tearing.  The tumor was so large that it left a large void at the base of the brain.  Post op. my vision has returned to normal and I recovered part of my art fair season.

Just throwing in some recent paintings

 

The grumpy kitty is acrylic on 4 by 4 inch slate that I show on miniature black easels.

  

11 by 14 inch acrylic painting.

  

Rainy in Seattle  (perhaps sleepless as well :)  )

11  by 14 inch acrylic, just to show I'm still around.

It's been a long time.  My season of air fairs is over and I should start blogging again.
My two Christmas paintings: My Christmas Wreath and Christmas Angel.

Both painting are 8 by 10 inch acrylics on stretched canvas.  The wreath is a bezel cut canvas so no frame is required.

I started an Oil Pastel group on the Paint My Photo web site.  This site is dedicated to the sharing of photos between photographers and artists for use by artists to use as reference photos in the creation of their art.  It's a free site open to artists and photographers.

This painting is loosely based on one of the reference photos.  The lady in red with the lantern is from the photo, all the rest is my imagination.\

It's an oil pastel, 11 by 14 inches on canvas panel.

My latest painting:  An oil pastel, 12 by 24 inches on canvas panel.
Artists use manikins to aid with figure drawing.  I decided to just paint the manikin.  I use this painting at the entrance to my art display at art fairs.  He is my official greeter.  He's "Howdy the Manikin."

Hiatus

I have been down for quite some time.  I was incapacitated shortly after my last October posting with back pain.  I under went back surgery later in the month and have been in the doldrums since.

Fortunately the pain is gone but I have permanent left foot drag that is helped quite a bit with a brace.  I now walk with a cane.

It must be quite a sight when I walk my dog, Gus, and he decides to take off after something or someone and he drags this stumbling, semi cripple behind him.  He weighs almost 140 pounds.  His taking off after someone isn't an attack but he expects everyone he sees to come and pet him.  He has a couple of neighbors that give good back rubs and there is just no holding him back when he sees them.

Top photo is Gus, of course (one of the loves of my life)
The bottom photo is of my number one daughter, Tammy.  This was a few days after my surgery and I still had a lot of pain at the time.

I hope my muse will return and I can start painting again.

Last Saturday's art fair in Dover, NH was pretty good.  My giclee prints were well received but I wasn't able to sell  any of my original paintings.  I guess, that with the current economy, no one seems to want to put out the big bucks.

One of the visitors to my site was a pet goat.  The gentleman's goat is a pet, house broken and even sleeps with him.  I'm not too sure about those horns and hooves on the bed with me a night.

My oil pastel "Texas Gothic" won first prize in the associates division of the international Oil Pastel Society.  It's on 11 by 14 inch archival canvas panel.

I will be erecting my canopy and art walls at the Apple Harvest Fest in Dover, NH this Saturday.  At least I hope I'll be able to participate.  I've thrown my back out and I hope I'll able to have the pain down to a tolerable level by Saturday.

We'll be at the McConnell Center which about a block from the main venues.

I've been informed that one of my paintings has won an international award.  The official notification will be tomorrow........

It's like waiting for Santa Claus.

I'm way behind in keeping up with my blog.  I've been painting furiously and have a good number of painting that I've been adding to my art fair inventory.

It's an 11 by 14 inches, oil pastel, on canvas.  This is one of my favorites.  I'm not a vegetarian but I won't eat lamb nor veal for that matter.

It's been a busy summer.  I normally do 6 to 8 art fairs a year but I've built up so much inventory, I've scheduled 20 art fairs from June until the second week in December.

Since it's going to be a rainy weekend here, I lucked out and had this weekend free.

Next Saturday, I'll be in Dover, NH and their Apple Festival.  The art fair protion is a new show on the fringe of the Apple Festival.  I hope many of the Festival goers find our location.

Oil Pastel blending tool

We were having a discussion in the Oil Pastel Forum, of the Wet Canvas Web Site, on the tools we use to blend our oil pastels. I prefer paper stumps but one of my WC friends recommended using pipe insulation as a blender. I gave it a try but I still really prefer my paper stumps. I found the insulation to be a bit unwieldy. It kept knocking off things off the table, my brush holder on the floor among other problems. I also found them difficult to use when trying to blend a delicate passage. However I found that if I held them a bit farther back along it's length when attempting to draw, it automatically created an abstract.

At Ampersand Gallery, Newmarket, NH

One of three paintings currently, showing at the Ampersand Gallery, Main Street, Newmarket, NH. The Show runs until the 18 of December.

It's a $100 show, with no art work over $100.

Showing at Exeter Town Hall Gallery

Two paintings currently showing at the Exeter Townhall Gallery, Exeter, NH. Unfortunately the gallery is only open weekends from noon to 4 PM. I will be sitting the gallery on the last day of the show, Dec 18. I also have 15 of my giclee prints there, available for purchase.

New Hampshire Open Doors

I will be at the Mac's Apples, 230 Mammoth road, Londonderry, NH this Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM to 5 PM. I will be demonstrating my art as well as offering my original art and giclee prints.

I really need to be more active here.

Three of my recent oil pastels

Haikus and Art

Currently entered in the Exeter Townhall Gallery for the next three weeks. It's a combination of poetry and art. A poem written for each piece of art or a painting made for a poem.

I write Haikus (Americanized version, three lines of 5, 7 and 5 syllables) for some of my paintings. Haikus are short and unpretentious (like me). Occasionally I write the Haiku and then paint a subject evoked by my Haiku.

This painting was done a number of years ago when I was in a darker place.

"Adrift"

"Adrift on a dark,

Dark sea I dream of what never

Was and never will be."

This painting has won four awards in Juried shows ranging from Honorable Mentions, to a first place in Pastels. I've shown this for many years now but have never been able to sell it.

Another autobiographical Haiku and painting: "Into the Sunset", as an old (really old) retired Air Force Pilot, I feel this is quite appropriate.

"Into the Sunset"

"The sunset beckons.

I fly the valley of clouds

Tracking the beacon home."

This one also won awards but one judge criticized the repetitious cloud shapes in the lower half of the painting. I guess she couldn't see the hand of God reaching out to receive me. This painting sold the first time I put it up for sale. The patrons are the judges who really count.

Londonderry Art Fair

My Monet's Pond was one of the paintings sold at the Londonderry Art Fair last weekend. Even though I did let a gentleman haggle me down about 50% on two paintings, it turned out to be a good Saturday. I just wanted to get the first sale of the day out of the way. (My artist friends always give me a hard time when I do this. In fact they give me a hard time on my pricing in general. They should be higher??????)

Applecrest Orchard

"English Canal", 11 by 14 inches, oil pastel, on watercolor paper.

This one won't be framed in time to join my art exhibit at the Applecrest Orchard, in North Hampton, NH tomorrow and Sunday.

I will set up my pavilion with about 20 paintings and a large number of Giclee Prints.

This is all part of the Applecrest Orchard's Peach Festival. Perhaps they will have some peach cobbler for me.

T33

My T33. My advanced trainer of 50 years ago. I finally got around to painting the aircraft.

10 by 10 inch image, acrylic on 140 pound watercolor paper.

Exeter, NH Art Fair

Painting of the fountains in Prescott Part. Some Artistic License taken. 11 by 14 inch acrylic on canvas panel.

I will be showing my original art and a number of giclee prints at the Exeter, NH art fair this Saturday. I was late signing up for the fair and the only spot left was inside. So I'll be showing my art inside of the old townhall, on the stage. Alas I'm probably the only artist who will be showing inside at an outside fair.

I'm like the old joke of the guy who brings a knife to a gun fight.