Blog

For me, the last 10% of a painting usually takes 90% of the time spent to complete a finished piece. But it's those last few brushstrokes, subtle temperature shifts, and minor design changes that can take a painting from being good to (hopefully!) being something that really grabs the viewer and leads them in. Every plein air piece that I paint gets to about the 90% stage outside; it's back in the studio, when I'm away from the scene, that I can judge what the painting needs to be a better work of art, instead of being overwhelmed and over-influenced by [...]

The art season starts heating up at the end of April, and the last couple weeks have been busy with travel and shows. I spent last week at Bass Lake, just outside Yosemite, painting with a great group of artists. I painted "Awahnee Alfresco" on location with John Cosby and Kent Rogersen - the crowds aren't too bad at this timeof year, but we still had a group of spectators who enjoyed the show while we were painting! I also went to the California Art Club Gold Medal Exhibition in Pasadena- it's the best show of contemporary representational paintings that I've [...]