'Triptych Number One'

This is my one and only triptych in my entire collection.  The three canvas boards measure, 11" x 14", 14" x 18", and 16" x 20", and are painted with acrylic paints (normal and metallic).  Viewing the original in person is quite different, due to the use of the metallic paints, although it is still dynamic in a slightly subdued way because the sheer metallic paints change, not only with the light, but also with a change in viewing angle.  I am pleased with the outcome of this triptych and I am surprised that I have not been motivated to paint more diptych or triptych paintings.

'Ghosts in the Night'

This silly, fun, whimsical painting was inspired by the graining pattern in the 24" x 24" wood panel that served as the canvas for this piece of artwork.  The shapes of the ghost figures was present on the raw wood and as I looked at the shapes of the darker graining, all I could think about was these silly ghost images.  This painting was done very quickly, about fifteen minutes total time, but I'm not trying to brag about the swiftness of this painting, just simply pointing out the spontaneity of the creation and evolution of this piece of art.  I like the outcome.

The people who have seen this painting see at least one face in the gold "clouds" above the ghosts.  Some observers say they see more than one face.  That is part of the fun of artwork that has more depth than just the paint on the surface.

'Tree of Life'

'Tree of Life' is a new painting that was partly inspired by another painting (shown below) that I did in early 2007 titled, 'The Roots of a Broken Society'.  'Tree of Life' is an acrylic on 24" x 24" wood panel.  This painting, like 'The Roots of a Broken Society', can be viewed in two positions and it works either way.

When I painted 'The Roots of a Broken Society' back in 2007, I was thinking about the broken, dysfunctional society that I call home.  Citizens of our Country are quick to refer to ourselves as a superpower, and yet, we are a very, very dysfuntional, hypocritical society.  I'm not saying we are all bad, but we have a lot of cleaning up to do here at home.  We really have no business acting like the police and citizens' brigade to the world community until we get our own community better organized.  We may be the oldest democracy on this earth, but relatively speaking, we are a very young community.  Our behavior, as a society, is the equivalant of a teenager trying to lead the people of the village, even the elders, with no regard or respect for the knowledge that others hold.

'The Roots of a Broken Society'

My new painting, 'Tree of Life' could just as well have been titled, 'The Roots of a Broken Society, circa 2013', but I was trying to have a more positive outlook, as titles go.  But it makes me quite sad to look at our society of 2013.  Not only are we NOT any better now than we were in 2007, we are much more divided and broken.  I can't put my finger on any one exact reason we are so broken, but I can opine that religion and politics have played major roles in creating the divide, and the mixing of politics and religion are acting like an anchor in holding our society down.  One aspect of our broken society that is disturbing to me is that we are fighting a "war" in Afghanistan against the likes of the Taliban while here at home, we have our own version of the Taliban that is trying to destroy America and we are doing nothing about it.  We aren't even considering it a war, and it is, a war raging against America by some of our own citizens.

I am hoping that America becomes a better society in my lifetime, but I won't be holding my breath.  I will try to remain positive and hopeful that we will become much closer to the "superpower" that many of our citizens (unrealistically) think we are.

'Boy on a Box'

This painting is on a 12" x 18" wood panel and is done with acrylic paint and pencil.  The transition to this digital image that is shown here is quite dramatic.  The original has a very different appearance.  My use of metallic paint and the lighting at the time of photography help make this digital image really dynamic.  'Boy on a Box' was partly inspired by King Tut and partly by an autobiographical story of a period in my life long ago.  While the original painting is not that significant to me, this digital image is one of my favorites in all of my collection.  I really love the image shown here and consider it a dynamic accomplishment.

'The Velvet Mouthpiece'

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Many people in America believe that Mexican-Americans celebrate the fifth of May as the anniversary of Mexico's independence, but that is incorrect.  Cinco de Mayo is mostly celebrated outside of Mexico with the exception being the city of Puebla, which is where the actual celebration is held.  Puebla celebrates this day as a day that a very small, out-numbered group of Mexicans defeated the French army and regained control of that region.  This event is known as The Battle of Puebla.  The French did come back a year later and regain control for three years.  Then, all "invading" militia were defeated by the Mexicans and Mexico gained its' independence.  Mexico celebrates its' Independence Day on September Sixteenth.

The Fifth of May became a day of celebration for "Cinco de Mayo" in America mostly by way of a marketing campaign by Miller Brewing and Anheuser-Busch Brewing so that they could sell more beer.  Another way to look at the celebration of Cinco de Mayo in America is an exploitation of Mexican heritage by two American corporations in order to sell more product and make more profit for themselves.  Happy Cinco de Mayo!