More Little Paintings

del los huertos mangos - the mango orchards
12" x 10" each

Little Paintings

coati 2, 30 x 30 cm


coati 1, 30 x 30 cm



chicharonnita, 30 x 30 cm



jugita, 30 x 30 cm




azulita, 30 x 30 cm



michelada, 30 x 39 xm

I found a lot of bones on the beach near my house and have been inspired to include them in paintings again.

While retaining some of the gestural work - I get to work with/against the aesthetic of bone.

working in the mobile studio...

Music Sketch #28

The latest Music Sketch from this Saturday. Thank you to Jim O'Neill, Aaron McCabe, and Mark O'Day for making amazing music.

Quixotic, 24 x 36 inches, acrylic on linen



Josie and Jason Got Married, 36 x 48 inches, acrylic on canvas

the great wave

sculpture play

each sculpture uses found bones from many different creatures. I am exploring my fascination with the material of bone and my desire to create new structures by placing bones in arrangements outside of their natural configuration.

Pillow Sculptures

These were inspired by my trip to New Zealand. They explore ideas of comfort, death, and "preciousness"

Art For Choice

Art For Choice: Friday, October 2, 2009 from 6:30 - 9:30pm at the W Hotel in the Foshay Tower.

Minneapolis artists, such as Amy Rice, Michael Birawer, Jennifer Davis, Terrence Payne, and myselft donate 100% of the profits from our original artwork auctioned at the event. Bidding for the auctioned art starts at 1/3 to 1/4 of the original retail value of the artwork.
The proceeds support Pro-Choice Resources - a Twin Cities grassroots organization that has worked for over 42 years to knock down the barriers that keep women and youth from receiving the sexual health information and services they need and want. Each year they serve over 25,000 people through one-of-a-kind programming.

In addition to viewing the artwork online, you may see it on display at Nina Bliese Gallery from September 25th – October 1st, 2009.

Soap Factory - $99 Sale

I've finished a small 5"x7" painting for the Soap Factory's $99 Sale. The sale is "an aesthetic melee, a statement about the inherent value of art," and a fundraiser for the Soap Factory.



The most exciting part? None of the works of art are labeled with the artist's name so one get's to sort of play detective and try to figure out who's is whose. The following is a list of some other participating artists:

Ta-Coumba Aiken, Vena Ambrose, Abigail Woods Anderson, Nadine Anderson, Dan Attoe, Daniel Atyim, Nina Lola Bachhuber, Gabriel Backlund, Michael Basler, Heather Beal, Melissa Bean, Scott Bean, Loretta Bebeau, Barbara Bell Smith, Neil Beloufa, Kim Benson, Ken Boland, Beth Bowman, James Boyd-Brent, Tamara Brantmeier, Kyle Bravo, Bryn Bundlie, Nate Burbeck, Cathy Camper, Sandra Capecci, Andrea Carlson, Jaime Carrera, Tim Carroll, Kate Casanova, Pamela Caserta, Eva W. Christopherson, Katherine Clanton, Caleb Coppock, Beverly Cottman, Michael Coventry, Howard Cruse, Virginia Davis, Jamie Winter Dawson, Loretta Day, James Dayton, Lee Delegard, Nico Demm, Debra deNoyelles, Noelle DeHarpporte, Jesse Draxler, Pete Driessen, Steven Dropkin, Andy DuCett, Tim Eastop, Courtney Egan, Lillian Egner, Beth Ensign, Jan Estep, Bob Fagerhaugh, Faith Farrell, Chris Faust, Rochelle Feinstein, Clea Felien, Mark Fischer, John J. Fleischer, Lisa Fraker, Patrick Gantert, James Garofalo, Masaaki Genka, David Gillette, Felicia Glidden, Ruth Ann Godollei, Bill, Gorcica, Rebecca Grady, Will Grant, Katie Grilleart, Carmen Gutierrez-Bolger, Jessica Hagen, Lindsy Halleckson, Chad Hambright, David Hamlow, Todd Harper, Sally Heller, Michael Hersman, Lauren Herzak-Bauman, Ben Heywood, Jess Hirsch, Tom Hollenback, A. Holligan, Norm Holmberg, Keri Huber, Luke Hunt, Timothy Hutchings, Joshua Huyser, Andrea Jenkins, Eric Joas, Seitu Jones, Bethany Kalk, Diane Katsiaficas, Lisa Kellner, Sandy Kinnee, Pamela Kirton, Ann Klefstad, Carolyn Kopecky, Suzanne Kosmalski, Linda S. Koutsky, Patrick Koziol, Ryan Kronzer, Matthew Kunes, James Michael Lawrence, Jenny LeBlanc, Shaina Lee, Shawna Lee, David Lefkowitz, Kurt Liljequist, Jacque Liu, Alan Livingston, Fiona MacNeill, Jorge Manghi, C. Mansfield, Ruth Marquardt, Rod Massey, Liz Miller, Lawrence Mikesh, Sarah Moeding, Ilene Krug Mojsilov, Zoran Mojsilov, Matt Monaghan, Kristina Mooney, Clive Murphy, Ana Musachio, Scott Nedrelow, Molly Nelson, Nick Nelson, Charlie Nestor, Lisa Nguyen, Gabe Nielsen, Ruben Nusz, Chiaki O'Brien, Suzanne O'Brien, Sara Parr, Gary Paterson, Jehra Patrick, Lidia Pavitova, Maia Pavitova, Natalia Pavitova, Marie Pelkey, Eric Plumb, Cat Pond, Anthony Portz, Kirsi Poupore, Elisabeth Preble, Lyz Preus, Ashley Prichard, Patrick Kemal Pryor, Ernesto Pujol, Katherine Raadt, Ana Raba, Shannon Rankin, Mitch Redepenning, Giselle Restrepo, Colette Ricci, Jill Richardson, Justin Richel, Aaron Ridgeway, Nicole Riemenschneider, Ewan Robertson, Katherine Rochester, Thomas Rose, Lindsay Roth, Molly Roth, Cathy Ryan, Brandy Satchell, Boris Scherbakov, Jenny Schmid, Jes Schrom, Kari Schuster, Josi Severson, Aki Shibata, Patrick Smith, Alec Soth, Peter Sowinski, Roxie Speth, Jill Stafford, Zac Stafford, Joe Steinbach, Marilyn Stevens, Dmitry Strakovsky, Scott Stulen, Andy Sturdevant, Carolyn Swiszcz, Philip Taylor, tectonic industries, J. Temple, Tiffany Thayer, Tamara Thomsen, Liz Tjepkema, Toneski Love, Colin Trechter, Jodi Trotta, Erik Ullanderson, Bart Vargas, Chris Walker, Maria Walker, Hillary White, Jim WIdder, Rosemary Williams, Peter Wilson, Caroline Woodruff, Colette Woods, Jane Wunrow, Irene Ziegler, Anthony Zinonos

work in progress

Big Blue

120" x 72" mixed media on canvas

this painting is the last one created in the studio at the Northrup King Building, Minneapolis Minnesota completed in May of 2009

New Zealand Show - Star Tribune Video by C.J.

Here's a link to the Video from the private collector's showing of the New Zealand Series at Richard and Kristen's house.

...and to the article in the Star Tribune which first mentions Robyne Robinson's (our very own chic art connoisseur , jewelery maker, and anchor-woman) trip to Urgent Care.

Below are screen captures from C.J.'s roughly edited video:

leaving the old studio

Art-A-Whirl 2009

I took this video as I was setting up for Art-A-Whirl at the studio in NE Minneapolis May 2009. This was my last show at the Northrup King Building.



Here is half of the studio as it looked when the show was hung completely

the NZ show at Richard and Kristen's home

A special thank you to Richard Holt and Kristen Sparks for opening their home to me for the NZ show! Their loft at 801 Washington is for sale - visit Edina Realty's site for details.

that's different...

Happy 25th Wedding Anniversary Larry and Carol.

Buenos tardes...

completed today
24"X24"
perhaps influenced by the colors of Mexico



my painting assistant

Working in Mexico

Listening to Kutiman!







Scorpion on eggshells

chorizo and scorpions

Posting food pictures is irresistible! Today's lunch: Pico de gallo, really fresh avocado, two fried eggs, and a special chorizo mix. The chorizo is the soft spicy Mexican kind fried with sliced plantains and banana chili peppers. An amazing balance of salty savory, hot and sweet.



I am fickle about arachnids. I don't mind spiders around the house, and sometimes if necessary I will gently usher both poisonous and harmless spiders out of the house on a peice of paper. I am, however, not so tolerant and magnanimous with scorpions.

My friends Richard and Kristen just returned from a trip to the fjordlands of New Zealand. It's one of the few places on earth where there are no scorpions. That's why everyone there is so chill.

Phoenix Airport

This is the first time I am blogging from an airport and marks a move toward the proper tone of a blog; as an actual web-log, an account of what is happening now. I must belabor you again with my descriptions of the sunlight.

To me the variations in light through time and geography are as diverse as regional accents, and I delight in most of them - especially Long Island. The accent. The sunlight too I suppose. But Phoenix is absolutely golden. The skin of the locals is equally golden. Everything seems to glint as if it were gilded and covered in tanning oil.

I wonder if our eyes change in different sunlights like sometimes our voices adopt that reciprocal lilt or drawl of someone we are speaking with?

I am going to Mexico. Again. I like the way it smells.

I am reading Everything is Illuminated, by Jonathan Safran Foer, and listening to Pandora Radio. Everything IS illuminated.

Music Sketch - The Missing One
48"X48"
Acrylic on canvas

Music Sketch #22

Commissions

Last night I received the honor of creating a commissioned painting, and felt immense gratitude to include another person in my creative process. I've never had a bad experience with commissions, but sometimes I've felt like my freedom was being limited. It's an illusion, however; freedom is a state of mind. I don't think we (artists) ever create art solely for ourselves. It's impossible. Refuting this is like being suicidal.

Abel Tasman National Park, South Island, NZ

tree ferns


more tree ferns

Sketches, and such...

bird bones, sand castle



possums, fish, penguin, lobster, and resin



bird bones up close



pelvis, and assorted found objects