In Progress

Picked up the brushes again after a long time; I'm finally continuing work this gal.

Impatient Blue

"Blue"

oil on canvas

20" x 16" 

A quick somewhat experimental piece which I completed in one sitting tonight. It was more about the mood than the actual content.

'Pioneer'

oil on canvas

24" x 20" 

You are a fish out of water; the first of your kind to enter a strange place. You are a pioneer in your own mind and a stranger on the shores of this new land.

'Skin'

oil on canvas

20" x 16"

Painted last weekend, this particular piece has been in the works for years. Years ago, I took a photo of one of my relatives sitting near a window. The play of light and shadows on his person was absolutely fascinating to me and I knew one day I would replicate it.

Scales and Feathers

 "Dragonfish"

Oil on canvas

24" x 18"

"BullSh@t Fish"

Oil on Canvas

22" x 28"

 "Look Up"

Oil on canvas

30" x  24" 

The three paintings above were completed early in July but regrettably I am only now getting around to updating the blog. Since these are all "creatures"  I decided to do a batch post. Plus I have to admit I am feeling somewhat lazy today and I'd prefer to save time with posting.

"Unwrapped"

Oil on board

2' x 2'

I am not particularly fond of this piece. My impatience won out over my other feelings and so I ended up with a painting which I think could have been much better. Perhaps one day I may set brush to it again but I don't see that happening anytime soon. I think I am particularly disappointed in myself with this piece because a lot of work went into prepping the surface.

Typically I use purchased canvases but I decided to try my hand at hardboard instead. Canvas the size of the piece of hardboard used above would cost three times the size. So it worked out quite well price-wise. The downside of using hardboard is the prepping especially if one does not have a sander. Fortunately I was able to purchase a sander of decent cost as well and there was a certain level of satisfaction prepping the piece of board myself. 

To prevent the resins from the wood soaking through and yellowing the paint in the future it was necessary to sand and prime the surface with acrylic three times which I did. And I have to say it was fun, I love to experiment after all. I even liked the way the oil responded to the flatness of the board unlike the toothy canvas. Unfortunately I have run out of acrylic(must buy bigger container next time) and will have to make do with canvas for now. But I do hope to work with board again soon.

Triptych: The Guardians, The Ghost and The Wandering Heart

 Oil on canvas

Each canvas is 36 by 12 inches

Finally complete, this triptych took a lot of effort on my behalf. It also took a long time for me to finish because I only worked on it here and there for the past year. However, I'm rather proud of the outcome. I'm not sure if I'll be doing more triptychs in the future but I already have an idea for a series. Long before the completion of this project I came up with a bit of prose for this particular piece which I post below.

The Guardians, The Ghost and the Wayward Heart.

Suns and moons of eons go by. Cumulus formations adrift in a sky composed of many shades of blues. I see them all passing by as I sit here, chained and rooted.

The Guardians, women in white dresses that billow in the breezes of ages, do not speak to me. The emotionless masks they wear has worn me down. In the beginning when time was a child, I spoke to them incessantly, tirelessly, yet they never answer. They are stones eternal upon which I cast my crumbling hopes.

My heart, stored in a canopic jar in the shape of an ancient deity left me a long time ago. It travels in the hands of others, passing place to place, person to person - a wanderer in its own right. A wayward heart that will never return home.

I am alone here except for the ghost of my lover that torments me. Wordlessly it hovers in front of me and in shame I don my own emotionless mask. The forgiveness I yearn for will never be given.

Evil Eye

Oil on canvas

20" x 24" 

A portrait of my brother. Replicated from a photo he took of himself and I could not resist painting it. His hand needed more work but I was more concerned with making sure I caught his facial similarity than anything else. Next time though, I will devote more time on hands.

Updraught

Oil on Canvas

24" x 12"

Anger

"Billow" 

Oil on canvas

30" x 24"

Innocence Exhaled

 24 x 30 inches

oil on canvas

This painting was inspired by a photo of my nephew. I embellished his hair because if you haven't noticed by now, I have a thing for abstract, flowing hair. ;)