portraiture

I substitute taught at Art Center for two portraiture classes. I did a portrait study for the students in both classes and here's how they came out. It was about two hours or so and I was able to get a little more finish than the 20 minute portraits! The students really enjoyed watching the paintings evolve and I had fun doing them. They said they learned a lot!

the Brewery

Next weekend is the Brewery artwalk and I dropped a couple paintings off at a show space there. Also, I plan to do some plein air during the artwalk so I brought my gear with me and drew this. It's underpainting so I plan to put more color on it but kinda like the painting yesterday I'm stopping at this stage and letting it dry. The light is much closer on this one, but it still has a nice, drawn 'roughness' that I like. oil on canvas, 36 by 24.

Here's the website for the Brewery Art Walk. I'm in space "W-13" and I'm selling an urban landscape and a master copy.

Helms Ave

I went out to Culver City for some picturesque views of the Helms Bakery. The light wasn't right at the time I went out there but I did this underdrawing on the canvas with oilbars. Normally I'd immediately paint over this, but I'm going to wait and go back in the morning when I think the light will be much more dramatic. All I'm going for in the underdrawing is placement and composition, not a feeling of light and shadow. I still think it's fun to see the underdrawing because it's really primitive, like a kids crayon drawing. In fact the oilbars help that mindset because they feel like giant crayons made of linseed oil and drying wax. Here's a view of the corner of Helms Ave and Washington Blvd. oil on canvas, 36 by 24.

footsies

I've been fiddling with my painting of Footsies, having fun resolving areas of the composition. I started this painting in 2006 and forgot about it for two years. I always sorta liked it but was never totally into it. now I've jumped back into it, completely repainted it, and I like the new direction it's taken. I have a feeling I'll put it against the wall and forget about it for another two years but at the moment I'm really enjoying indulging all my pure color desires... As a painter I love color! I love it so much I want to paint as much of it as possible! ahahahhhaahahah! oil on canvas, 30 by 48

South Pasadena

I thought I'd try to get one more painting of South Pasadena before the show dropoff on Monday. There are a number of old Victorian style houses and this one stood out to me. As I was painting it I met the owners who said that this house was built in 1890 and at one point used to be a schoolhouse. Here's a before and after of the painting. The before is a bad camera-fone pic how I do the lay-in these days, I try to draw like a kid! I imagine some people might see the painting at this stage and think I'm nuts, but its fun! oil on canvas, 28 by 22.

footsies

I went looking for landscape this morning but struck out. I came back home and decided to work on a piece I've had lying around for a little while, an interior of a bar in Highland Park called Footsie's. I liked the piece but never completely so I thought maybe slapping another coat of paint on would help. If you're not happy with a piece, then painting more on it can never hurt, it can only make you like it more or still not like it. It's a NO LOSE situation! ahahahah! oil on canvas, 30 by 48.

Buster's

I'm entering a show called "Rialto Visions" which is about icons and landmarks of South Pasadena. The drop-off is this coming Monday and the show is the next day! So I want to try to sneak a few more landscapes between now and then. I went to the metro stop at the corner of Mission and Meridian and painted Buster's. South Pasadena has some neat old buildings, and the light couldn't have been better this morning. 18 by 24, oil on canvas

back at the Rialto

Today was a California Art Club sponsored 'paint-out' at the Rialto Theatre in South Pasadena, which I scouted out and painted last week. Boy was it nice out today! Unlike last week, the weather was perfect this morning. Bright crystal clear sunlight! I got out there at 8am and brought a bigger canvas this time, 36 by 18. I really enjoyed the sunnier day. The paint-out is in promotion of an upcoming movie about painting called Local Color which they are screening tonight. I watched the movie and it was good. I wish there had been more analogy between painting and life. Between the act of painting and the act of life; how one attacks their paintings and how one lives their life. Of course I wanted to see more painting!!

update: a local blogger was out taking photos yesterday and I ended up in her blog! It's a fun picture of me painting... check it out here: Glimpses of South Pasadena

painting Let's Paint TV!

I went on the internet version of Let's Paint TV yesterday and did a portrait of John and Howard Blueberry doing the show (oil on canvas, 30 by 24). It's always a blast! Too bad the show didn't save, but here's the painting to remember the moment. Then later that day, we met up at the Hive gallery and did some street painting. John brought his portable PA and for about an hour he gave a stream of consciousness play by play of his painting and giving creativity advice to the crowd and I was across the street painting him! oil on canvas, 24 by 18.

UPDATE: John put the portrait on E-bay. Let the auction excitement begin! Like Damien Hirst at Sotheby's. aahahahahha!

and here's a self-portrait video of John on Spring Street doing Let's Paint TV

20 Minute Portraits!

I haven't done the live, quick-sketch portraits in a little while, but will be at the Hive this Thursday for Art Walk painting some again. They're fun! I've done a bunch, and sometimes I forget to take a photo of them and the sitter buys the piece. But I ran into this gentleman at the Hive opening last Saturday, who'd sat for me a couple months prior. It was a good portrait and he sent me a picture of it, so I'm posting it on my blog.

descanso gardens

I went out with Grace to Descanso Gardens to paint landscape. I decided to paint more Grace than landscape so here's what I came out with, a landscape painting of Grace painting landscape! It's always fun to get a painting in a painting because you can get really loose there! Like Matisse when he did that ...

back downtown

I went to 8th and Grand again to paint the Commercial Exchange building again. I invited my class last week to join me and a couple students came and watched some of the painting. It was good fun, a great day out! I painted on top of an old workshop study of Sara Streeter what wasn't much of a piece. I sanded it, turned it upside down and went nuts on it... Bye bye! Welcome new painting... oil on canvas, 24 by 18

the Rialto

I went this morning to paint the Rialto Theatre in South Pasadena. The light wasn't behaving as it kept going to cloudy to sunny over and over. I stuck with the overcast light because that's how it was the most. oil on canvas, 24 by 12.