Resurgence & Ecologist

    I've received my copy of the November/December 2013 issue #281 of Resurgence & Ecologist magazine. This magazine is an English publication that covers ecology, social justice, activism, arts and ethical living. I was approached by the magazine to use an image of one of my paintings to go along with a story written titled "Urban Zoology" by freelance writer Mary Ann Lieser. Mrs. Lieser's story of wildlife seen on her pre-dawn 5 mile walks had won a 2013 Nature Writing contest by the magazine. In the story Lieser describes encounters with grazing deer along her urban Ohio environment so my painting seemed appropriate.
    I stopped my truck to take the reference photo of that deer crossing the road. He froze and just watched me take the photo. Around that turn behind him is Hwy 154 heading into Santa Barbara. We have deer everywhere where I live. They walk into our yard and eat the leaves off of our apple trees, roses, asian pear tree and apricot trees. One time when putting the trash out after dinner I heard this clacking sound and one was hopping (prancing) up our street in front of our driveway. Another time I walked out of the door to the studio and 2 deer stood 6 feet away from me in the driveway. They darted away and I almost fell backward into the door not realising they were deer and not Big Foot...hey, it was almost dark. If you ever get a good look at a deers legs you wouldn't believe how something so thin can lift that animal over a 6 foot fence in a single hop. They really are amazing animals.
Thank you Emma Cocker and the rest at Resurgence & Ecologist Magazine...and nice story Mary Ann Lieser.       

Spring Blooms

"Spring Blooms"

9"x 12" Oil on Panel
A painter buddy of mine, Rich Gallego, finished the year with a painting I saw and that was all I needed to get his kick in the butt to do a painting before the year ended but it was less than an hour away from midnight on New Years night. I started this one but had to stop to do the Champagne thing, haha. I finished it today after getting caught up with other needed things. This was painted from a small 5x7 study I did a few months back. I realy liked certain parts of the study and wanted to try a bit of a larger painting. I like the far off mountains but wish I had placed them just slightly higher. I also like the textures and bits of pure color in the foreground poppies. Some paintings are just fun to paint and this was one of those types of paintings....fun one to start the new year off with.
Happy 2011!!!

Summer Above Los Olivos

"Summer Above Los Olivos"

8" X 10" oil on panel
I finished this one just now while enjoying the Pacific storm that rolled in yesterday starting as light drizzle but was pouring all night and this morning. Hopefully Lake Cachuma will fill to it's top with this good chunk of rain we're getting. This hillside is just north of the tiny town of Los Olivos, CA. I drive up there a lot in summer to check out the colors and see what nature has created for artists to have fun with....nature never lets us down.
I had to run down to take Linda Christmas shopping down in Goleta yesterday and was only too happy to find out they now have a Hawaiin BBQ restaraunt there. Yummy! Guess where I'll be stopping on my way down to Pasadena in the future???

Christmas is almost here so in case I don't post anything before then I want to wish everyone who reads this blog a very Happy Christmas and a much better New Years than last year, hahaha.

Grey Morning Near Lompoc

"Grey Morning Near Lompoc"

12" X 16" Oil on Canvas
Was looking back over the paintings that are drying and caught this one that I thought I had posted but apparently not. This was painted back around July or August. I had bought a case of 12 X 16 canvases made by Winsor Newton, yep, the paint company, and have been painting up a bunch of those. These canvases have a great price but many of the ones I've used are slightly tweaked, meaning not square. I fix them as I go but it's more of a slight irritation than anything else. Nice primed canvas with a good weight but whoever is putting them together needs some help, hahaha.

Evening Approaches

I painted this little 5"x7" painting a few months back and really liked the scene. I painted this small one to work on grasses and also play with the background mountain colors. Things worked out in it so in that little frame it went. I had recently picked up some 16"x20" canvases for a good price and wanted something to paint on one of them so I decided to go larger with this little painting trying to pretty much keep to the original painting.

In going larger the only thing I really lost at first was some of the atmosphere in my background. It wasn't really lost...just wasn't as pronounced as the smaller painting had it and my guess is the larger canvas through me a bit. Took me 2 days of letting the painting sit to notice it. I've corrected it and now all works with the larger piece.

"Evening Approaches"

16" X 20" Oil on Canvas