Showing Up


"Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work." - Chuck Close

I have been making a concerted effort to show up more lately. Since January, I have been finding the time and the motivation to create more work and to share it more often here on the blog and through various social media outlets. I have made the decision that I am not going to hold back any longer. If I want to be a thriving artist, I need to make art - period. I need to live the life now, and not allow so many things to get in the way pulling me from my art.

To that end, I have been making it into the studio more often, and I have been working on small pieces quite a but in the evening as I watch tv. I have been finding little ways to stay engaged in my art, and not allow too many things to interfere. It does mean that I've occasionally let the vacuuming go, and I have sacrificed a little but time with my wife and my animals. But it is important to me to continue to build the momentum and to allow the making and the creating to flow. It is important to me to consistently show up!

Making Progress


I spent a couple of hours in the studio on this warm February day working more on pieces. I started earlier in the week. I added a layer or two to several of them, and my favorite so far is the small painting pictured above. This 4x6 inch piece has a certain glow - a certain richness about it, and I am really loving the deep ruby color. I'm not certain what I'll do with these paintings or how far I'll go with them. I may leave them fairly simple and more abstract. But then again I may paint something on top. I just don't know.


Work in Progress


I spent a couple of hours last night beginning some new pieces in the studio using Golden High Flow acrylic to build up layers of color and textures. I built most of the cradles a couple of weeks ago, which I shared in this post. Then I spent a couple of days applying gesso to the cradles (see below), and finally began painting yesterday.

I've been exploring a lot with experimental watercolor techniques lately on small papers, and I wanted to achieve similar effects and textures with acrylic. The thin High Flow acrylic is a perfect for creating layers in a similar fashion as the watercolor.

I plan on building up more layers of paint to create more intense color and richer texture, and once the color is down, I may paint some of my radiating designs or faces. After I finish these, I'll have to kick it into gear to make more for the studio tour.


Western Loudoun Artists Studio Tour


Today was another cold and icy day in Northern Virginia, but my thoughts have turned toward spring since I found out that I will once again be part of the Western Loudoun Artists Studio Tour the weekend of June 18 & 19. So mark your calendars, and come visit me in my garage studio in Purcellville, VA. Here are a couple of photos from last year's tour. I better start making some new work!


Small Journals


I took advantage of the President's Day holiday, to work in a couple of little journals. They're both 4"x6", and one is a journal that I am sharing with David as part of his tet[R]ad project that he is doing with our good friend Sam Peck. This project is all about one-on-one collaborations and journal exchanges with a number of people. Both Sam and Dave are exchanging journals with over 60 or 70 people. For more info on the project, check out their tumblr site or their Facebook page.

The other journal is a small book that I am keeping just for myself. I just started it this weekend, and I have only drawn and painted in it a little bit. I'm looking at it as place to play and experiment.


I always like working in my regular, 11"x14" journal, but it's nice to work on a different scale. That change can spark new ideas, new themes, and new imagery. The smaller, more intimate space simply feels different, and so the art making that happens in that space is different.

I'll share more from both of these journals as the work progresses.

Working on the Weekend


Part of this three-day weekend has been spent working on a few things. Dave and I spent some time working in journals Friday night, and we were able to fit in a few hands of cribbage. Saturday we spent time working on our presentation for the National Art Education Association Convention in Chicago in March.


March is going to be extremely busy. First we have Art and Soul in Portland. Then I have the workshop in Galax, VA, and finally we have the NAEA Convention in Chicago - lots of travel and lots of work. I'm looking forward to it, though.

Workshops in Galax, VA


I am pleased to announce that I'll be teaching workshops at the Chestnut Creek School of the Arts in Galax, VA on March 12 and 13. Each day is a separate workshop, so people can sign up for one or two days.

The first workshop on Saturday, March 12, 2016 is Cultivating Creativity from 9AM-4PM. Based on the online workshop I launched in January, this mixed-media workshop is about letting go and opening up to the unpredictable and the accidental as a way to much our creativity.

The second workshop on Sunday, March 13, 2016 is Building Layers from 9AM-4PM. This mixed media workshop is all about creating rich layers with simple materials. So, if you've ever wondered how artists get those rich layered works, don't miss this workshop.

David and I had so much fun last year teaching in Galax. Unfortunately, David can't make it this year, so I'll be going solo. For more information or to register click the links above, or go to the Chestnut Creek website.




Penny Hauffe at Purcellville Town Hall


I was able to spend part of this evening at an art reception for local Northern Virginia artist, Penny Hauffe at the Purcellville Town Hall. Penny is a versatile artist painting pretty much everything, and her exhibit of forty-two works contains everything from abstracts to highly rendered portraits, from whimsical animal paintings to landscapes. One of my favorites was a large painting of colored pencil shavings.


One of my wife's favorites was the Blueberry Snail. If you're in the Leesburg/Purcellville area, make certain to stop by the Purcellville Town Hall to check out Penny's work.