Doodlepalooza

Cowboy elder

2012-01-26T20:07:00.000-03:30

Back when the iPad could only produce sepia tones.

Beauty is Embarrassing documentary

2012-01-26T18:32:00.000-03:30

This looks fantastic... can’t wait to see it.

Storage for paintings

2012-01-24T22:14:00.000-03:30

So my next little project will be to assemble a cabinet for storing paintings. Right now my basement looks like an art gallery exploded. I’ve got the lumber (thanks to my wife!). And I’ve got this detailed plan (see above).

Okay, so it’s just a doodle. It’s a start.

There will be more shelves/compartments added once I get the main frame assembled. Can’t think that far ahead right now.

Once it’s finished and blocked with paintings, I can drag it up to the top of my street, climb on top and ride it back down to my house (note the wheels (see above)). My neighbours would all be very impressed. I imagine there will be lots of smiles, handshakes and backslaps.

I should probably put some flames on the sides.

Okay, that last part I probably won’t do.

Flames would be cheesy. Stripes maybe?

Elegant gent

2012-01-14T10:02:00.001-03:30

Hombre

2012-01-13T03:11:00.000-03:30

Not quite sure where this guy came from. The recent snowfall must be making me think of warmer places. A far away land where the colour palettes are limited and the hat brims are exceedingly thick.

Cat nap

2012-01-12T02:17:00.000-03:30

Trying to capture the shape of our Xander as he snoozes on the end of the couch. I think the shape is good but I haven’t quite captured his... girth. Here he looks like a half-starved super model. The reality is, well, let’s just say the kitty door to the basement will soon need some expansion.

Blue faces

2012-01-11T16:41:00.000-03:30

I’m saddled with a virus this week so I’m not sure I’ll be doing much more than iPad doodles while crashed out in front of the TV.

Gros Morne

2012-01-01T22:29:00.000-03:30

First completed painting of 2012. Many more to come I hope.

Gros Morne
Oil on masonite panel
8" x 10"

2011: A good creative year

2011-12-31T14:15:00.000-03:30

This is an underpainting for a work in progress. Even though it’s barely begun, I’m calling it my 40th painting of 2011. (Just because 40 is a nice round number to end the year with.)

I realized in 2010 that if I wanted to become a better painter, I had to stop my periodic dabbling and make a point of painting regularly. I set a goal to produce 50 paintings this year. Though I fell short, I’m happy with my output. I think I’m ending the year as a much improved and more confident painter.

For the painting above I’m using a Gros Morne photo by my colleague Chris Hammond. He’s generously offered up a slew of his landscape photos for me to use as reference. I expect this little collection will result in quite a few landscape paintings in the coming months.

I’ll leave you with a link to great post by Chase Jarvis called 10 Things Every Creative Person (That’s YOU) Must Learn. It’s written for photographers but applies to all creative types. Instead of making resolutions this year, I think I’ll just revisit this list periodically.

Happy New Year!

Rose

2011-12-28T15:49:00.000-03:30

An oil painting in progress. Waiting for it to dry before the next layer. I laid the paint on thick so it might be a while. Should end up with some nice textures though.

Frenzied flock

2011-12-28T15:20:00.003-03:30

This is a detail from a large acrylic painting I’ve been picking at over the last few months. The image is of a frenzied flock of birds evacuating the area as a storm moves in. Unfortunately, it didn’t really come together as planned. I was thinking of painting over it but I might just build a smaller frame and transfer the canvas, cropping out all the crappy bits.

Prussian Peaks painting

2011-12-19T21:05:00.000-03:30

More mountains. They’re not quite out of my system yet. I’m currently eyeing my largest available canvas and thinking about the big empty wall in my dining room.

Probably going to happen.

BTW, these peaks are only Prussian because I made them with Prussian blue. Their resemblance to anything in reality is pure coincidence.

This diptych consists of two 12” x 16” masonite panels.

37/50

Blue peaks painting

2011-12-17T16:15:00.000-03:30

My mountain peak iPad doodles have evolved into a triptych oil painting using three masonite panels each measuring 8” x 10”. I like the result. The panels had a warm acrylic coat over the gesso so I simply wiped away the blues to expose the highlights.
Sold

Blue peaks

2011-12-16T22:26:00.000-03:30

More iPad peaks. Much like the last. Except bluer. And peakier.

Mountains

2011-12-15T22:27:00.000-03:30

Raid party

2011-12-14T00:36:00.000-03:30

So I’ve had this gag comic series bouncing around in my head for quite a while. A polite descriptor would be to call it a gardening comic but really it’s about the insects imbibing on pesticides.

Siri and Santa

2011-12-12T23:14:00.000-03:30

AKA “Santa’s got an app for your crap!"

Glass bottles

2011-12-07T01:39:00.001-03:30

Pushing pixels on the iPad again. Some imagined bottles.

Xander

2011-12-03T00:51:00.001-03:30

Did a quick doodle of our much-loved lard-ass, Xander.

I’ve gotten pretty good at translating 'cat' over the years. Here he’s either saying “Why are you not rubbing me?” or “My food bowl is not overflowing... make it right."

Cecil

2011-12-02T22:43:00.001-03:30

I started this one in my painting class with Greg Bennett. Greg insisted he needed a name and christened him Cecil.

I know, he’s a bit intense. But Cecil’s not a hater... he’s a protector: he’s got your back.

Cecil has made it into the shop. Lucky bugger.

Cecil
Oil on canvas
18” x 24"

34/50

Snow Day!

2011-11-24T15:00:00.001-03:30

This old cartoon came to mind today as I was clearing snow. But it’s not all bad... day off work, wood stove’s cranked up to eleven, leisurely brunch, catching up on freelance work and I might even get to some painting this evening.

Winter shades

2011-11-17T13:40:00.001-03:30

Jury's still out on whether I love it or hate it.

It's another heavily textured acrylic. Plaster base, several gesso coats followed by at least a dozen layers of paint and glaze.

The trees were made with thinned paint and applied with an eyedropper... gravity was in the driver's seat.

I think I've got these out of my system for the time being. Back to the oils soon.

Winter Shades
Acrylic and plaster on canvas
20" x 16"

Calculation Blues

2011-11-14T07:00:00.000-03:30

Calculation Blues: the feeling I get when attempting to conduct business with my flimsy entrepreneurial skills.

Speaking of flimsy entrepreneurial skills, this painting is in the shop.

Calculation Blues
Plaster and acrylic on canvas
16" x 20"

Crossroads

2011-11-13T13:03:00.001-03:30

A new textured abstract painting. Making these are WAY too much fun. I've got another one underway.

This one is in the shop.

Crossroads
Plaster and Acrylic on canvas
16" x 20"

Garden sculpture

2011-11-13T02:47:00.001-03:30

Did a little landscaping during my long weekend.

Wookie Cutz

2011-11-11T20:07:00.001-03:30

Chewie follows his dream.

(Or was I thinking of Ringo Starr's dream?)

Anyway... Wookie Cuts.

No one will suspect a thing

2011-11-11T12:25:00.001-03:30

Stripes

2011-11-09T01:19:00.000-03:30

Illustration Friday's theme this week is "Stripes". So... Bill Murray. What else is there? (I threw some actual stripes in the background... just in casey).

Autopilot doodle

2011-11-03T13:34:00.000-02:30

Whenever I feel like doing some drawing but have no subject in mind, this is the guy that usually emerges. He's the autopilot doodle. Maybe I'll call him Otto from now on. He's no one in particular. He used to thrive in my sketchbooks but now he's propagating my iPad.

Wise guy

2011-10-30T19:39:00.001-02:30

I'm taking a painting class from Greg Bennett at Anna Templeton. One of the paintings I'm working on is a large (by my standards) owl (18" x 24"). I missed class last week due to some freelance obligations and, for some reason, kept thinking about that owl. So last night I made this little (6"x 6") fellow. He's way more blue than I intended but I think it works. I'm not sure how wise he is... he looks a bit on the snarky side to me.

31/50

Edgar Allan Poe

2011-10-30T03:05:00.002-02:30

For Illustration Friday's "Scary" theme.

Pushing pixels

2011-10-29T13:13:00.000-02:30

Some idle scratches from the iPad.

Bee... now in technicolor!

2011-10-26T22:30:00.001-02:30

Okay, not really technicolor... just splash of watercolour. Puts a bit of spring in his step.

I think that's enough bee posts for this week.

(I shot it on a coloured background so you could see the fibres in the awesome paper.)

If you are so inclined, it's available in the shop.

Lino bee

2011-10-26T00:14:00.002-02:30

Apparently I still have bees on my mind.

I've been anxious to try out the Unryu paper I received a few weeks ago so I decided to have go at a small linocut. The image is approximately 3"x 4" on 5"x 7" paper.

I cut the plate tonight and made 8 prints. The thin paper made hand burnishing easy-peesy.

It's been nearly a year since my last linocut... can't wait to do some more. When these dry I'll post a better image.

Buzzzy bee

2011-10-24T00:27:00.000-02:30

Still feeling buggy since the last post. This fellah is refuelling.

Made using the marker tools in Sketchbook Pro on the iPad.

I am doing other things beside iPad doodles. I've got 5 paintings in progress that I've been picking at this past month. Also, I recently splurged and bought myself a big roll of Unryu paper (11 yards!) in anticipation of new linos.

Bygone bugs

2011-10-17T20:47:00.001-02:30

While digging through a few boxes of cram here at Doodlepalooza HQ, I stumbled across some old sketchbooks.

These critters were drawn for The Independent (NL) about 5 years ago. I don't recall the story they accompanied but my crackerjack sleuthing skills tell me it may have had something to do with bugs. According to my detailed notes, we've got a Garden Spider, a Cinch Bug and a June Bug.

Dusk

2011-10-15T18:23:00.000-02:30

Bit too dark maybe.

Reach

2011-10-14T00:28:00.000-02:30

Neo social

2011-10-13T17:14:00.002-02:30

Francis

2011-10-12T23:42:00.000-02:30

Frank

2011-10-10T20:57:00.001-02:30

With Halloween approaching, I thought this fellah would make a good submission to this week's Illustration Friday theme: contraption.

Purple sky

2011-10-09T03:11:00.001-02:30

Cloudy landscape

2011-10-06T23:33:00.000-02:30

Exhausted

2011-10-06T00:58:00.000-02:30

This guy looks how I expect to be feeling at work tomorrow after yet another late night of iPad doodling.

Just realized his ears are wee.

At the lake

2011-10-04T02:16:00.002-02:30

No reference for this one... just winged it. iPad freestylin'.

The colours were a bit too bright and bubblegummy for my taste so I darkened the whole thing in Photoshop and desaturated the colours a bit.

Digital tree doodle

2011-10-03T01:07:00.001-02:30

Watching some painting vids tonight and trying some things out with the iPad.

Line up

2011-10-01T12:55:00.000-02:30

Who looks guilty?

Pink bot

2011-10-01T01:14:00.000-02:30

Albert Einstein

2011-09-26T22:25:00.000-02:30

This portrait of Einstein is something I've been working on for a friend of mine. It's still in progress. I'm going to let it dry and maybe touch it up a bit next week.

Albert Einstein
Oil on masonite
10" x 10"

Wikitoon: Ginger Smith

2011-09-26T00:29:00.001-02:30

Former welder and retired professional wrestler, Smith now operates the salon Ginger's House of Curls.

Okay, okay... not really.

I've got several paintings happening but nothing to post yet.

Blogger's choice nominee

2011-09-15T18:59:00.001-02:30

I was surprised to discover today that Doodlepalooza has been nominated for a Blogger's Choice Award in the Arts/Food/Craft category at the Newfoundland and Labrador Blogroll! Yay!

Voting is open until the end of September and people can vote once per day. To vote you need to go here and put your choice in the comments. I'm up against two great blogs: Norton's Cove Studio and Rock Recipes. If you don't want to get involved with voting, I encourage you to at least check out the NL Blogroll. I'm always intrigued by the diversity of subjects that people enjoy obsessing over.

Don't worry... I won't be bombarding you with requests to vote. This is the only time I'm bringing it up. I might add a link in the side bar for the next few weeks. Oh and I've rented a dirigible with "Vote Doodlepalooza" emblazoned across the side to circle St. John's for a few weeks. That's it though.

Thank-you to Stephen Harris for both nominating me and for the fine work he's done over the last few years keeping the Blogroll rollin'!

Tree float

2011-09-08T00:47:00.000-02:30

I'd like to move a tree in our backyard away from the house as it is too close.

But it's huge.

I imagine the roots are very long and whole weight would make it impossible to budge.

I think my only options are alien technology or extremely powerful telekinesis.

Decisions, decisions...

Punk fish

2011-09-07T01:07:00.000-02:30

I should have given him a Black Flag tattoo.

Hindsight, etc.

Back to painting soon.

Punk Fish
iPad doodle

Hero

2011-09-04T23:37:00.000-02:30

Another iPad doodle. My new favourite pastime when I'm supposedly watching a movie.

An abstract diversion

2011-09-02T17:56:00.000-02:30

I needed a break from the oils this week so I did some acrylic paint pouring/dripping. For such a gentle process, the painting's got an aggressive vibe. Title and orientation yet to be determined... suggestions welcome. Adding to the shop later tonight... after nachos.

Untitled
Acrylic on canvas
40" x 32”
Sold

Green bottle

2011-08-31T00:40:00.000-02:30

Moon Boy

2011-08-30T21:41:00.001-02:30

Classic Moon Boy album. Back when he was tourin' with Tony Orlando and Dawn.

Not really.

It's just another iPad doodle.

But you knew that.

First rule of Sketch Club ...

2011-08-24T21:57:00.000-02:30

Trying another iPad drawing app: Sketch Club. Very nice, simple interface. Easy to switch tools and palettes. My last cartoon was made in Sketchbook Pro which seemed to have more drawing features but the interface was a bit more cumbersome. Looking forward to spending more time with both apps.

iPad doodle

2011-08-23T14:26:00.000-02:30

Finally got a stylus for the iPad. Much more fun to use the drawing apps.

Now I can make important contributions to the art world such as the one above.

Old-Timey Gent

2011-08-14T16:54:00.001-02:30

For this one I just grabbed a random old portrait pic off the net for reference and went to town. Didn't stress over likeness or realism... just had a bit of fun with it. Will probably do more like it.

This is available in the shop.

Old-Timey Gent
10" x 10"
Oil on masonite

Dad

2011-08-12T12:23:00.000-02:30

This is my first painting in five or six weeks. I was going through some recent photos and found one of my father which I thought would make a nice portrait. There are a few things I'm tempted to tweak but I'll stop here... I think I captured his likeness fairly well and don't want to lose it by overpainting.

Dad
8" x 8"
Oil on MDF panel

Bottles

2011-07-30T19:53:00.000-02:30

Lots of little bottles. From the sketchbook.

A sordid past emerges

2011-07-22T21:15:00.002-02:30

I was thinking of doing this as a painting. Actually a series of various animal mugshots would be funny (and fun to do). Especially the giraffe.

Monkey business

2011-07-12T01:42:00.000-02:30

I was just thinking how much better this image would be as a traditional prisoner mugshot. Lil' monkey holding up the placard with his info. Crime: poop flinging.

Smilin' doods

2011-07-11T20:19:00.000-02:30

More scratches from the sketchbook.

Mugshot dood

2011-07-10T00:53:00.000-02:30

Sketchy bugger.

Patina Squares

2011-07-07T20:15:00.001-02:30

I just realized I never did post the end result of this little experiment with plaster.

I just listed this set in the shop along with The Great Stone Face (Buster Keaton) and King of the Hill paintings.

BTW, am I the only one that thinks Patina Squares sounds like a medieval game show?

Probably.

Bukowski

2011-07-01T00:10:00.000-02:30

Just watched the Bukowski documentary Born Into This. I think it's revived my interest in him. Read some of his poems and short stories 20 years ago. Didn't realize he'd written six novels. Must check them out. A gruff relic. But what a voice. Can't believe such a well-pickled man managed to stay alive so long.

So long and thanks for all the fish

2011-06-25T23:15:00.003-02:30

This Douglas Adams portrait was based on one of his publicity shots and painted, by request, for a friend.

He's best known for his Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series of books. I'm linking to the start of the most recent film adaptation which is not bad but the books are better. The books are always better.

Something I didn't know before was that Adams also contributed to some Monty Python sketches, including this one.

Douglas Adams

Oil on gessoed masonite

10" x 10”
Sold

Fossil folly 2

2011-06-19T16:34:00.000-02:30

Okay, I think I've got these out of my system. Back to the oils this week.

This one is my 25th painting of the year which is the halfway point to my goal of 50 paintings this year.

Fossil Folly 2

Acrylic and caulking on gessoed masonite

24" x 18"

Fossil folly

2011-06-17T00:08:00.001-02:30

I've been picking at this one since last week as time permitted.

Last year I did a cartoonish fish fossil that I really enjoyed making. Even though I'm doing a lot of oils this year, I thought I'd revisit acrylics and have another go at the fossils.

This time, instead of using expensive art mediums, I'm using caulking. (Yes, I've been installing our baseboards this week. No, they are still not finished.)

Fossil Folly 1
Acrylic and caulking on gessoed masonite
24" x 18"

Printsy interview

2011-06-05T23:10:00.003-02:30

There's been little painting or printing these last few weeks.

I'm installing baseboards in our house. The baseboard work snowballed, of course, into replacing all the baseboard heaters at the same time. I would normally be inclined to pay someone to do these things for me (especially the electrical) but getting someone in for a quote, let alone do the job, seems next to impossible. And our last few contractors did very shoddy finishing work. So I'm all about the DIY these days. It's satisfying work but it eats up my free time.

There is a an art to baseboard installation but I don't think I'm at that level yet. Thank god for caulking. And YouTube.

Anyway, there's a few bits of news to report.

First of all, Printsy (Printmakers of Etsy) has an interview with me on their blog this week which I'm very excited about! Thanks Diane!

As well, I've got a painting in a show! The QE II Library at Memorial University has a show every summer open to faculty and staff. "Salon Des Beaux Arts" opened a few weeks ago and runs until mid-August. Thank you to Joanne Costello and Stephanie Williams for curating a really wonderful and diverse collection. If you're in St. John's, it's definitely worth checking out... 60 pieces by 35 artists!

Also, my ego and pocketbook wish to say thanks to my friends Vanessa, Katherine and Mark who purchased some of my paintings in the last month.

There will be cake

2011-05-31T13:54:00.000-02:30

Actually, there's no cake. Just a doodle of cake. Tastes like ink and pixels. Yuck.

Creature feature

2011-05-26T21:48:00.003-02:30

Had a painting session with Nick Kokis a few days ago and this fellah was the end result. I may spend a bit more time with it.

To call it a still life would probably be wrong but we were using a plastic crow as a model. After a few beer, I lost interest in the model and focused on colour. Nick made some suggestions along the way so this piece seems to have the flavour of his work.

As the painting progressed the crow seemed to evolve into something more like a baby elephant or one of those masks doctors wore during the plague. If I were to pin down this character with more detail, he'll either need more wing, big floppy ears or a large brim hat. Though I kind of like him as he is.

Creature Feature
Oil on gessoed masonite
10" x 10"

23/50

Saggy ears

2011-05-25T01:05:00.002-02:30

In an effort to avoid still life saturation, I thought I'd just doodle with the paint tonight.

Saggy ears
Oil on masonite
10" x 10"
Sold

Daffodil still life

2011-05-18T01:18:00.000-02:30

I think this is still in progress... I haven't decided yet.

It's a white daffodil. I used blue in the shadow areas of the flower and I think it might be a bit too blue. Also, if I had my time back, I would have positioned the flower slightly facing right. It was straight on which made it difficult to illustrate the depth of the centre of the flower.

I like the overall high contrast though. The background looks pitch black in this image but it's more of a deep blue (I mixed red and blue).

Daffodil
Oil on masonite
6" x 12"

Ryan's Fancy linocut

2011-05-15T01:41:00.002-02:30

A linocut from a few years ago. In the shop.

Print area: 12" x 6"
Paper area: 15" x 8.5"

Orange you glad...

2011-05-05T21:51:00.001-02:30

... I didn't say banana?

I think I'm done with the fruity still life for the time being. I need to diversify.

Now available in the shop with a saucy sales pitch.

Orange You Glad...
Oil on Canvas
8" x 10"

Rubik's Cube

2011-05-03T23:39:00.001-02:30

If you look closely at my subject (not in the painting but in real life), you would be able to see where I attempted to peel the stickers off my cube when I was 10 or so, desperate to find success with this puzzle but no idea how to achieve it. I think my best result was three sides... and that was probably a fluke.

This one is available in the shop.

Rubik's Cube
8" x 8"
Oil on masonite

19/50

King of the hill

2011-04-26T23:34:00.000-02:30

So here's the latest. I struggled to find a composition I liked.... even had one completely roughed in that I hated so I wiped it clean and started again.

I've started using mediums. No, not the I-see-dead-people kind of mediums... the oily kind. For the paint. Trying the fat over lean train of thought. Not sure if it's working for me or not but I'm making an effort to at least try all the possibilities I read about. Since I normally work on small pieces that are finished in less than 24 hours (ie before anything dries), it's probably not necessary. Seems more relevant to larger, long term paintings.

Like the wallpaper? I imagineered that myself.

The photo is not a great depiction but the phone started ringing and frankly, I'm too tired. If this ends up in the shop, I'll reshoot.

18/50

King of the hill
14" x 11"
Oil on canvas

Shady doodles

2011-04-20T21:18:00.000-02:30

Not feeling the painting bug this past day or so. I've become a blob on the couch, devouring season after season of Stargate SG1 with occasional doodle breaks. See above.

Guacamole Prequel

2011-04-17T21:45:00.003-02:30

This is the final version

This is a painting of an alien cyclops head dissection. No... wait a second. I was thinking of a different project. This one's a sliced avocado.

I always get those mixed up.

I'm going to let this one dry and retackle the background. The shadows look a bit of a mess to me. Too many indecisive strokes? I dunno. Can't decide.

Guacamole Prequel
8" x 8"
Oil on Masonite

17/50

Sergeant Major

2011-04-13T21:49:00.002-02:30

"Marching up and down the square not good enough for you? Right. Off with you then." Michael Palin's Sergeant Major in The Meaning of Life always cracks me up.

Sergeant Major
8" x 8"
Oil on masonite

The great stone face

2011-04-09T14:58:00.002-02:30

Buster Keaton was a comedy star of the silent film era. I've been enjoying watching some of his clips on You Tube this week.

According to Wikipedia, he made his own hats. His famous pork pie hat is actually a Stetson with the top cut off and the brim stiffened with concentrated sugar water. Apparently he went through at least a half dozen per movie (his physical comedy was hard on hats). He and his third wife Eleanor made thousands during his long career.

This painting is the result of the last few evenings. I'm happy with it but as I mentioned to a friend, I'm ready to try some larger canvases -- especially when painting people. Trying to do facial detail with tiny brushes in a couple of square inches of space can be aggravating.

The great stone face

Oil on canvas

11" x 14"

Vase still life

2011-04-05T21:52:00.001-02:30

I didn't feel feel like fussing much over the photo of this one so it's a shoddy photo of a shoddy painting. Making it was great, though. I went to my friend Nick's studio last week. He set up this still life and we had a crack at capturing it. In the early stages I got hung up on the vase detail and was discouraged when it didn't turn out as planned. The rest of the painting is made up of impatiently applied blobs... which ended up being slightly more interesting than the vase. The piece needs more work but I'm walking away from it. I can't be arsed.

Nick is an accomplished painter and a patient teacher. You should go buy something from his shop. At least give it a good browsing.

I don't think I mentioned it yet but I've set goal for myself to do 50 paintings by the end of the year. I think this one makes 14. So far, I'm on track.

Yes, the crap paintings count.

Fruity bouquet

2011-04-01T19:07:00.005-02:30

I couldn't decide between painting an apple or painting a bottle.

Fruity bouquet
Oil on canvas
11" x 14"

Ten minute apples

2011-03-27T16:22:00.001-02:30

My submission to the Ten Minute Challenge at Daily Paintworks. The idea is as it sounds: paint the same subject repeatedly for only ten minutes at a time. I moved the light and repositioned the apple for each. It was a great exercise! I'll probably do it again.

Ten minute apples

Oil on MDF

8" x 8"

Ill-fated cabbage

2011-03-22T01:08:00.001-02:30

This is a doodle from an old sketchbook. I really should have redrawn it but I wasn't up for it tonight. I did, however, add some colour and shading in Photoshop. Based on a true story from the year of the Great Coleslaw Famine. Sad times indeed.

Posted for Illustration Friday's theme, Cultivate.

Studio still

2011-03-21T20:36:00.001-02:30

Golden delicious

2011-03-17T22:11:00.002-02:30

This one was an exercise in frustration. I had a nice, loose finished apple with lots of character but I kept touching-up to the point where I'd nearly repainted the whole thing and it lost all its zing. So I wiped it out with linseed oil and started again. The result is above. Not nearly as snazzy as the original but an important lesson was learned... don't overpaint!

Golden Delicious
Oil on MDF
6" x 6"

New paintings for sale

2011-03-16T19:18:00.004-02:30

My most recent paintings are available in the shop.

(Green bottle, Softball Reflection and Zippo have been sold)

Spoons

2011-03-15T21:06:00.002-02:30

This one's for Illustration Friday's theme-of-the-week: "stir". (The middle one is actually a spatula... he made a fuss so I had to let him be in it.) This one is available in the shop.

Spoons
Oil on MDF
8" x 8"

Green bottle

2011-03-14T21:10:00.004-02:30

This was a quick and dirty effort. The MVP is the shadow.

This bottle came out of the ground of my childhood home. Many years before suburbia set in, the neighbourhood was a city dump. Whenever any gardening took place, some surprising items would emerge. Jam jars, medicine bottles, china fragments... all quite old.

Green Bottle
oil on MDF
8" x 8"
Sold

Chicken portrait

2011-03-11T22:11:00.001-03:30

Chicken
oil on MDF
6 x 6

Softball reflection

2011-03-06T12:27:00.009-03:30

A small still life of the last softball from what used to be a vast collection. My childhood friend and I grew up near a softball pitch... anything that went over the fence we considered ours.

I'm adding this one to Illustration Friday's "Toy" theme. Sports fans may find that a stretch (or insulting) but, to me, it is intermingled with fond childhood memories of banana seat bikes, Rubik's cubes, skateboards and action figures.

Softball reflection

8" x 8"
Oil on MDF
Sold

Tree lino

2011-03-05T12:10:00.000-03:30

Last weekend I made a half-hearted stab at a new linocut based on a tree doodle from my sketchbook. The cutting process was great but when it came time to print, I lost enthusiasm. The printing process seemed tedious so after just three proofs, I walked away. I'll just chalk this one up as practice.

Zippo

2011-03-02T22:36:00.005-03:30

I thought I'd have a go at the Daily Paintworks challenge.

Zippo
6" x 6"
Oil on MDF
Sold

Boots

2011-02-27T14:44:00.000-03:30

I've been really enjoying Raymond Logan's blog. His posts are entertaining and his paintings are a real inspiration. I had his work in mind when I painted these boots.

Boots still life
8" x 8"
Oil on MDF

Pensive pint

2011-02-20T16:06:00.001-03:30

Cupid revisited

2011-02-14T22:50:00.000-03:30

This is a few years old but I don't mind reposting it because back then my blog readership consisted of my wife and... well, okay, probably just her.

Hmm. That's probably supposed to read "well-intentioned".

The Doodlepalooza copyediting staff have been sacked.