for marian

for marian
mixed media on paper
click to see large

Here is a piece I created for marian parmenter, the co-founder of the SFMOMA artist gallery. Last night, there was a celebration for her, she'll be retiring and moving onto new adventures. The gallery artists were asked to create a piece for her, this is the piece I made. Marian was the first person to ever show my work, and the first person to offer me a show.
She has always been a tremendous support - every artist needs a person like that.

new prints

recent prints

untitled (woman/tangle)
sugarlift etching, drypoint
click to see large


untitled (woman/tangle)
sugarlift etching, drypoint
detail
click to see large

untitled (woman with beads)
linoleum block print
click to see large

new work - wash drawings

new work on paper
click to see large

dia de los muertos (the family)

just back from oaxaca, I was there during the day of the dead.
(as soon as I have my wits about me, I'll post some of the photos I took)
here is a just finished painting, heading off to an exhibit at Tew Galleries, in atlanta.



dia de los muertos (the family)
acrylic on panel
36"x 42"
click to see large


dia de los muertos (the family) - detail
acrylic on panel
36"x 42"
click to see large

fabric paintings

quilt painting #1
click to see large

quilt painting #1 - (detail)
click to see large

quilt painting #2
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quilt painting #2 - (detail)
click to see large

I've started doing improvisational fabric paintings (known in the vernacular as "quilts").


I like the juxtaposition of different pattern, color and shape, the slight wonkiness of it.


I also like the loose irregular edges, but I am puzzling over how to display these, other than just thumb-tacking them to the wall.

I'm also working on a number of mosaics -a lot of my work right now seems come from the concept of mosaic, that putting together found and collected objects.

girl with a pearl

girl with a pearl
acrylic on panel
click to see large

santa ana (lucky)

santa ana (lucky)
click to see large
3' x 4'
acrylic on canvas


santa ana (lucky) - detail
click to see large
santa ana (lucky) - detail
click to see large

untitled (the nest)

acrylic on panel
click to see large

my secret...
for the final part, the very finest details of the eyes, I made a brush out a single cat's whisker, which my cat graciously donated.

the gordian knot

4 x 6 feet

acrylic on canvas
(some process shots of earlier stages below)
click to see large

exhibit

fort bliss
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fort bliss (detail)
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maple leaf
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I have two large pieces in a show at art-scape gallery, in walnut creek
(not the two pieces that are shown above)
If you are up that way, check it out, it's a lovely gallery.
art-scape gallery

dearest bobby

click to see image large

the letter came from a large batch I bought at a flea market.
It always makes me a little sad, a life ending up in a bin, photographs torn out of albums.
I do really enjoy reading them, trying to glean a story (bobby had gone to what I presume was a summer camp, and had LOTS of letters from different girls.)

I love the use of the "H" for the perky "Hello There!", the plaintive nature of the question, and the eccentric and arbitrary use of the comma.

"Hello There!"
Dearest Bobby...
have your feelings, toward me, changed yet?
You know darn well bobby that our likings are equal

I love that last line..

bosphorus

click image to see large

click image to see large

this is a collaboration between myself and gary amaro.

the name derives from the bosphorus, the straits that divides istanbul, and east from west.
the origins of the name, bosphorus, derives from classical mythology. Io, one of Zeus’ lovers, was disguised by him as a white heifer to avoid the attentions of his wife, Hera. Hera wasn't fooled by this ploy, and sent a gadfly to pursue the little white cow, who was forced to swim the strait to escape.
from the greek ‘the cow’s ford’ (like "oxford").

the lapwing flies

image taken from...

http://www.naturephoto-cz.com

sigh.
i'm having extreme seller's remorse...
this is one of the pieces that will be at the sfmoma artist's gallery big hoo-haw warehouse sale. The title comes from a fragment of text on the page "the lapwing flies". when I titled it, I wasn't sure exactly what a lapwing was. I imagined those lacy winged mayflies that hover over quiet water.
(I usually don't read the text while I'm painting, not until afterwards.)

I painted this last week - researching today, I discovered a lapwing is actually a bird, and, much to my delight, there is a type of lapwing that has markings much like the painting.

the poem, the deserted village is by oliver goldsmith
(the book I used was a beautiful discarded rag-paper replica from the 1920's- I would never destroy an actual book in good condition). this book had never actually been read..the pages were still uncut.

looking up oliver goldsmith right now,
I found that he was..
"a likeable but disorganised character who once failed to emigrate to America because he missed the ferry".
also, that the term "goody two shoes" derives from a children's story he wrote.
(sometimes, it's delightful to let oneself be tugged through one rabbit hole after another on the internet)

...."No more thy glassy brook reflects the day,

But, choked with sedges, works its weedy way;

Along thy glades, a solitary guest,

The hollow-sounding bittern guards its nest;

Amidst thy desert walks the lapwing flies,

And tires their echoes with unvaried cries."...

pond, newt eggs

click to see large

when I started this painting, I was thinking of allium - the beautiful pale spherical flowers of onions and garlic.
but as I worked on it, it transformed into a pond.
earlier this spring, I was in the berkeley arboretum.
in the japanese section, there is a beautiful pond.
look closely, you'll see bevies of newts, and clusters of their gelatinous egg masses. (hint, wear polarized sunglasses).
newts go through an astonishing metamorphosis.
(btw, what is the difference between a newt and a salamander? hmmm.)

botanical garden

SFMOMA's annual artists warehouse sale

click to see large

phew! I've been a real laggard about updating my blog, I'll try and catch up.

I've been doing alot of landscape painting, and recently, I've been on a collage frenzy, getting ready for the annual san francisco
museum of modern art artist gallery warehouse sale. It's a big huge event, with all work %50 percent off of the gallery price. Last year
was the first year that I actually went to the event...wow!
It's kind of a exuberant art piranha feed, tables and tables and TABLES of art.


sfmoma annual artists warehouse sale

my studio at the moment...

exhibit and opening

I'll be having a solo exhibit of my work at the mahoney library, at the santa rosa junior college - petaluma campus.
one fun thing about this show...it's the first time I've been able to exhibit my representational paintings, abstract paintings, children's book illustrations and sculpture together at the same time.
march 5th to april 30th
reception wednesday march 14, 4 - 6pm



SRJC's Petaluma Campus, 680 Sonoma Mountain Parkway, Petaluma. Admission is free. The library is open Mondays through Thursdays from 8am to 9pm, Fridays from 9am to 1pm, and Saturdays from 10am to 3pm, except for school holidays. For more information, call (707) 778-3974.

*please note....
there is no charge for parking during the reception, but at other times, there is a parking fee on campus.
If you are in that neck of the woods and would like to visit, there is some metered parking.

operculum

acrylic and mixed media on canvas
36 x 48
click to see large

sorry for the awful photos.
scroll down through previous entries to see photos of the work in progress.

here is a neat site on operculae (when you open a window, mouse over it...)

operculum

operculum - process 3

operculum - process 2

operculum - process 1