"va" Wins Best Abstract Plaque!

Today at the St. Bernard Art Guild Members Fall Show, my dot art painting, “va” received a Best Abstract Plaque. Plaques are awarded for specific themes, i.e. best spiritual, maritime, portrait, etc. The judge was Kathy Miller Stone, an artist from Baton Rouge. The show was held inside the council chambers at the St. Bernard Government Complex. The actual plaque is in the second photo below.

I've Been Painting

Yes, I’ve been painting. I found a groove to get these pieces finished. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going now. I want to be prepared for “Black Friday.” My e-mail box has been jammed with SPAM encouraging me to go shopping on Friday. That’s the biggest shopping day of the year. Saying “Black Friday” sounds more ominous than making me want to go out and spend. Well, I’m going to make an effort to have some more spares ready in case I sell. My fingers are crossed.

ak

acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

al

acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

am

acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

Dalmation

In 1996 the live action version of “101 Dalmations” was released. About that time, I became obsessed with trying to use dalmation fur patterns in a painting. For this work I decided to place dalmation patterns inside red rectangles. I entered this piece in a group show. After the show came down, I stuck it in a corner and kind of forgot about it. Recently while rummaging through some boxes in that corner, I found it.


acrylic on canvas, 24" x 30"

More from the New Batch!

Here are three more paintings from the new batch I’m currently working on. I’ve decided to refer to them as “a” Series Next. I figure that is an appropriate follow up to “a” Series Transition. Oddly enough, two of these sold last week. Hopefully that is a good sign. Several people have asked me to keep my colors bright. Well, I intend to listen given what has sold recently.

ah

acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

ai

acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

aj

acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

Seis

Well, here is the third painting I finished for the Poydras Home Art Show. It is the most experimental of the three. Again the background color was a challenge. What colors would pop? What colors would need altering to pop? As for how I will proceed after this painting, I’m not sure. I need to get back to my smaller paintings for a while. After all, they have been more popular. The other day I brought this one and “Cinco” over to Ele to hang on the wall.


acrylic on canvas, 20" x 20"

I do have three more canvases, this size, in the beginning stages. Another three are waiting for me to begin work on them. In the meantime I decided to name this group of paintings “Numeros.” It seemed a logical enough title for
this series.

Cinco

Moving onto the next painting in this grouping, here is “Cinco.” In this painting I experimented even more with my format. I made curving and isolated irregular shapes made up of dots. Some colors I mixed for the other paintings had to adjusted for the red background. After making my last post, “Cuatro” sold. I wonder if I’ll experience the same luck again.


acrylic on canvas, 20" x 20"

Cuatro

In the last few weeks I went back to finish three paintings started over two years ago. All three of them are 20” x 20”. I mentioned them last year here – in their unfinished state. During the course of this year, I sold two similar paintings that were completed in the fall of 2006. I still have the green one.


acrylic on canvas, 20" x 20"

Instead of making these new paintings exactly like the first three, I’ve started to experiment with the way I paint these larger canvases. Yes, I do bore easily and I can’t stand to do something the same exact way repeatedly. You’ll see an evolution of process as I post images of the next two paintings that follow this one.

These three new paintings will appear in the Poydras Home Art Show and Sale this coming weekend. What excites me most is that the home is in a location where people I know will go and see the work. Too often I receive excuses from friends about the location of an exhibit. The locals tend to keep to a certain neighborhoods of the city. Anything further is just too far. Admittedly I am more adventurous in traveling in our metropolis.

Hopefully, I‘ve hit on a successful niche for this size dot painting – particularly since I’ve invested in six more canvases that size. As of right now, these canvases are in various stages of completion. In the meantime I’ll be anxious for feedback following this show before going forward.

za

Here we are at the end of this batch of paintings. Unfortunately my source photos perished with my last computer. They were of a pre-owned Volvo I purchased after first one that was totaled. My new one is ruby red. It has a beige interior. And that’s where this painting starts, the background colors.


acrylic on canvas, 5" x 5"

My imagery is primarily from two photos. One was of the light under the side mirror. It was a new feature on this model, 2004. The previous car was from 2001. The other image is a lit up tail light. I used other dots to fill in the rest of the canvas. This piece was difficult to finish because of the colors. I liked the color variances that happened.