"Fade to Black 2" - 24" x 24" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow core door panel - $250.00

Here is another little 24 x 24 inch painting created for my mobile art business.  As often happens in art this piece involved a happy accident.  I was using an empty gesso bucket to create a black circle around the large "planetoid" (??) at the bottom left.  I had a sheet of wax paper with black paint on it and was moving the lip of the bucket around in the paint so I could transfer it.  When I was done I looked at the wax paper and really liked the effect that I saw so I duplicated it in the top half of the painting.  The result becomes the story behind the painting.

Who knows how long the earth has been here, some say 6,000 years and others 4.5 billion.  What we do know according to the Bible is that one day the earth will be destroyed by fire. 

 2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

This painting then is a before and after; the current earth below and the blackened cinder that it will become before crumbling away once again to the dust that formed it.

"Heavens Gate" - 24" x 24" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow core door panel - $250.00

Here we have a wet on wet painting, a technique I like to use to diffuse colors and achieve an organic effect.  It is hard to see the effect in the photo and I really had trouble with the white areas so know that they are not as bright in the actual painting...  Of all creation outer space is perhaps the most mysterious.  On earth we see the minutia of life, from a blade of grass to a lady bug and the mystery of life in general.  In space we see a vastness that is simply hard to comprehend and in those light years of time and space the mystery of God unfolds for me. 

"Isa 66:1 Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool:"   

How great is our God?  The Psalmist says it the best:

 "Ps 95:3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods."

Amen and amen...

"Tranquility 2" - 24" x 24" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow core door panel - $250.00

Initially this painting was a follow up for an earlier painting called "Tranquility" which was reminiscent of a peaceful Island paradise.  I leaned this painting against a wall upside down (as it appears now) and things really changed.  A young man walked by and asked me if it was a transformer jumping off the canvas.  Another person saw a sea turtle and so on... Little did I know that I had created an ink blot test of sorts but that is the wonder of abstract art; each mind see's something a little bit differently and I suppose it is not un-like laying in the park and watching clouds float by on a summer day.

Turtle or island paradise...  I hope you see something you like in this painting.  Perhaps it is the simplicity of it all or the cool relaxing colors and the good news is that you have four different ways you can rotate this little gem so you can always change your latitude...

"Cold Front" - 24" x 24" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow core door panel - $250.00 (SOLD)

"Cold Front" is another in my series of smaller works geared to sell on the street and out of my mobile art gallery.  Well actually it is more like a mobile painting storage unit that I unload where ever people congregate and then begin the process of shameless self promotion as I sell the populace on the concept of buying local AMERICAN art and not a bunch of cheap knock offs from China.  I mean have you looked on EBAY lately?  Sure you can buy a 24 x 36 abstract oil painting on canvas for 49.99 but when you get it, it may not look at all like the photo and additionally all you get is the canvas which then has to be stretched over a frame.  Most people cannot do that themselves and end up paying Hobby Lobby to do it for them.  This generally costs as much as the painting and if you want a gallery wrapped look then your painting goes from 24 x 36 to 21 x 33.  If you choose to save the entire painting then you are left with a piece of art with either a white border around the sides, or you could paint it black or frame it which costs even more money....

I know everyone cannot dish out $150 for a painting in these hard economic times (which actually are not that hard...) so I do accept offers when I sell my work on the street or when you call or email me from this site!  If you love a painting then work with the artist.  Trust me, we want you to have the painting and many of us will reduce the price to accommodate your budget.

Stepping down from my soap box...  This painting was inspired by some crazy weather patterns we had this spring.  One day it was 96 and the next day it was 68.  You could actually feel the air cooling down while the deck was still hot under your feet.  I thought to myself:  "What would that look like visually?" and here is where we ended up, letting warm and cool colors do all of the work!

"Nuclear Family" (SOLD) - 24" x 36" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow core door panel - $350.00

So...  Little did I know that the title of this painting would end up being controversial.  I saw a really old magazine from the 50's and it had this picture of a family ducking and covering in their white picket fence - leave it to beaver house with a mushroom cloud in the background; and then I painted this little piece and called it "Nuclear Family".  Next thing I know someone is telling me that it is not politically correct and all that...  Really?  I was just having some fun with a play on words.  (Hence the mushroom cloud)  Relax and enjoy the painting already, I promise there is not an ounce of hatred or judgment in it.  Scouts honor, no groups of people or animals were harmed in the painting of this painting... 

"Quandary" - 24" x 30" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow core door panel - $225.00

SOLD!!  I was out on the street last Friday evening trying to sell some paintings and this monochromatic piece was among those works that I was displaying.  I must have had five or six people ask me "what does that say, are those letters?"  

Honestly, I was not being intentionally cryptic when I painted the white line.  It is just what happened after I picked up the squeeze bottle of white paint and started moving it over the painting.  Later I did notice however that it seemed to resemble some semblance of a word, maybe...  I also did not intend for the black and grey space to resemble an aardvark but it sort of does doesn't it?  Quite the "quandary" isn't it? 

"Focal Point" - 16"x20"x1.5" - Acrylic on repurposed canvas $75.00 SOLD

This is a small painting that I created for the singular purpose of creating affordable art that most people could easily purchase.  While this painting may not have been "Inspired" (some might call this style soul less or décor art) it is still an interesting piece full of color, texture and interesting technique.  I was also pleased to see it sell very quickly which made me think that I might have opened up a new venue.  Time will tell.  Look for more smaller pieces to follow as I try to compete with the inexpensive Chinese art flooding EBAY as well as all of the cheap prints at Gordman's and other home stores...

The Life Is In the Blood - 32" x 38" x 1.5" - Acrylic on hollow door panel - $525.00

Blood cells, veins and cappilaries...  The "LIFE" is in the blood.  Blood cells carry oxygen to the body and ultimately CO2 and other wastes from the body.  Blood, if you really think about it, is simply a transport mechanism.  Without it we die for it carries in it what we need for life.  The Bible even makes a statement about our blood:  Le 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood:  This speaks of course to human life but when we take a look at this concept with spiritual eyes, it becomes pretty easy to see a parallel story line.  If we want to have "spiritual life" then we can also find that in the blood.  Not in our own blood however, but in the precious blood of Jesus!   His blood washes our sins away and replaces them with His own Righteousness.  Now that is a blood transfusion!

"Days of Noah" - 20" x 24" - Acrylic - 150.00 US

This is actually the third in a series that began with the "Rule of Nines".  The second painting was called "Solstace" but I cannot find a decent photo of it and now it has sold!  Not a bad problem but I kind of hate it when that happens.  I am loving the juxtiposition of organic verses geometric in this group of paintings.  I have also started using some metallics just to spice things up a bit.  I coated this piece with two layers of liquitex gloss varnish and the colors just popped.  I wish you could see the depth in this photo but it just isn't showing all of the detail that I wish it would.  This painting will be showing soon (next week I believe) at Dr. Becky Bryants' office at the bone and joint center near Cox South.

This deserves a shout out to the Springfield Regional Arts Center (SRAC) as well as all of their corporate members for sponsoring shows like this one.  Thanks for the opportunity!





"Impact" - 30"x15" - Acrylic - SOLD

This little 30"x 15" painting is called "Impact".  Really, I need to quit watching ancient aliens and through the wormhole.... This dinosaur killer tells quite the tale but I will leave you to figure out the story just the way you see it instead of boring you with my explanation.  Can you believe that someone recently told me that I talk too much about my art?!!  Not sure if I can change that but if the aire of mystery causes more interest then it would definitely be the right thing to do.  I think...  What do you think?  I'm co-dependant right?  Nuff said...

"Rule of Nines" - 24"x 40" - Acrylic - 425.00 SOLD

Ok...  Well a lot has happened over the last month.  I curated a local show called "Intellectual Abstractions" at the Creamery Arts Center here in Springfield, MO and it was a great success.  I sold four paintings and made several new friends.  In addition; I have begun working as an Artistic Consultant, mainly assisting local venues in setting up gallery space and finding artists for shows and the such like.  It is very rewarding and I am very happy to be working in a field that I am so passionate about.  Thank you God for answered prayers!

Along the way I have still been able to find some time for painting.  This painting called "Rule of Nines" is 24"x 40" and is painted on a hollow core door panel with acrylic paint.  This is the first in a series and I will be posting more as they come along.  The number nine is a great number mathmatically and has held my interest for some time now.  I decided to make this painting after reading the Terry Goodkind novel "The Law of Nines" but prefered to use the word rule instead of law...  Here is one interesting factoid.  If you multiply any two digits between one and nine by the number nine (ie - 3 x 9 =27), then the two digits in the resulting number will always equal 9 when added together.  I will stop now because I see my wife yawning and rolling her eyes...  Enjoy the color if nothing else!

"Subduction Zone" - 24"x 48" - Acrylic - 550.00 US

This 24x48 acrylic on hollow core door panel combines both geological and geometrical aspects into one painting.  The concept is a merger of two of my painting styles and it came to me after watching a show on NatGeo about earthquakes.  No deep meanings here, just my abstract rendition of the movement of tectonic plates along fault lines.  This painting is currently for sale and on display in the lobby of University Plaza here in Springfield, MO.

"Babel On" - 36"x 32" - Acrylic - 625.00 US

 "Babel On"...  an appropriate title for this painting as well as my state of mind!  Things have sort of exploded around here and in a good way even.  This year has been full of opportunities starting with my own show at Driskill Gallery in the SBU Art Department.  The show went very well (I actually sold something...) and it seemed to open a door of further opportunities.  One of our upscale hotel properties, University Plaza,  fell under new management and opened their doors to display the work of local artists.  I was the first chosen to display there and ended up helping to curate the show which was a hit and actually made it into two separate newspapers! (woo hoo!!)  I also had several pieces accepted into the "Big Show" at the Springfield Airports Sky Gallery and directly after that was asked to curate my own show "Intellectual Abstractions" at the the Springfield Regional Art Council's - Creamery Arts Center.  This show will open next Friday July 6 and so far it is looking very promising.

Babel On is the second and last painting is my very small series investigating the use of a mono-chromatic pallet and symbolism to embrace social commentary and visually discuss the results of language and math in regard to their contributions to mankinds ability to grow in wisdom and pass on that knowledge to future generations.  Just try for a moment to imagine a world without language and then a world without mathematics.  Can you say "stone age"???

The writing in this piece is ancient Sanskrit, Cuniform and African Andinkra symbols.  These are some of the (if not THE) oldest "writings" in our recorded history of language.  Without the ability to document and record progress (Inventions, knowledge...) much is lost over time and the wheel then must be re-invented.  The ancient art of story telling is romantic and probably way better for us than television, but, in the end it allows for the "recipe" to change over time thus affecting the outcome...  True to my first sentence I have babelled on!!  Enjoy this piece and enjoy your day...

"Circular Logic" - Acrylic on door panel - 35" x 30" x 1.5" - 425.00 - SOLD

I continued with the center band in this painting, however, I utilized the concept of a fault line from my previous painting, by displacing portions of the band as if tectonic plates had shifted.  I incorporated circles instead of lines in this painting as an attempt to further the evolution of a concept.  I added directional lines on the circles which lead to a new type of signature for this series.  You will also note that there is a distinguishable face in the lower left as I began to pull form from the organic.  The changes in this painting led directly to a bolder use of definable content in my next painting called "Lust of the Flesh". 

In my discussion during the last few posts, I keep mentioning the phrase "evolution of a painting".  I am trying to let my work grow and expand into something deeper and more personal.  As an attempt to do this I am forcing myself to make changes in each painting that will force it to become something at least slightly different than the last.  Not just in composition and color but also a painting that stretches my own boundaries of creativity.  I want to create more....  I want to know what is really inside of me.

"Fault Line" - Acrylic on door panel - 40" x 32" x 1.5" - 480.00 US

To be honest, I approached this painting very openly hoping to find some magic and see this series of paintings begin to evolve.  Once again I wanted to use bright and vivid colors with even a little more saturation this time.  I chose to balance the bright colors with the whites, greys and black in the center of the painting.  While I like this painting it does not represent the title as much as I wish it did.  I hung on to this thought and incorperated it into the next painting called "Circular Logic".  A face emerges in one of the lower black lines of this painting and although it was accidental, I liked it and added a face into Circular logic as well.  I didn't know it yet but the evoloution had begun!!

"What Lies Beneath" - 30" x 30" x 1.5" - Acrylic - 375.00 US - SOLD

So I have discovered yet another paint application tool.  This time it is a (drum roll please) PIZZA CUTTER!  What a great tool for making long straight (or curved) skinny lines...  I also used a piece of coat hanger to make lines in this painting as well.  This painting started out with the concept of an iceburg hence the blue colors.  It took a sharp turn somewhere and I ended up exploring the juxtiposition between organic forms and geometric design.  One of the greatest thrills in abstract painting is watching the painting evolve and take on a life of its own.  Look for more paintings similar to this one, with even more vibrant colors, to be posted soon.

String Theory - 12" x 16" (on repurposed canvas) - Acrylic - 75.00 - SOLD

This is a very small painting for me but I like the results.  The canvas is stretched around a 1.5 in deep frame (gallery wrap) and the painting continues around all sides.  Quantum mechanics, vibrating lines and multiple dimensions all play into String Theory.  String Theory is a contender for the "Theory of Everything" and that my friend is a big bite to swallow, for to understand everything means to understand God Himself.  Not to worry however, "for though now we see through a glass, darkly; one day we shall see him face to face".  Then we can sit down and have him explain it all in detail!

"Aquifer #2" - 40" x 28" x 1.5" - Acrylic - 435.00 US

Number two in the "geological" painting series.  This one utilized much bolder colors than Aquifer #1 and I have added bluish glass beads to the water layer for a texture effect and to pick up the light better.  This piece reminds me of southwest desert landscapes, especially those of Arizona and New Mexico.  This may be the most "orderly" abstract painting that I have ever created.  Some of the rocks are very realistic and yet the abstraction comes forth as I attempt to portray my perception of what a raging underground river might actually look like if we could see it.

"Aquifer #1" 50" x 36" x 1.5" - Acrylic - 695.00 US

This is the first in a series of "geological" paintings.  I won't even attempt to catagorize it except to say that it is abstracted reality.  Of course, many would say that all abstract art starts with something, therefore, all abstract art is abstracted reality.  Problem solved...  I am very intrigued by what lies beneath us.  One of my favorite movies as I was growing up, was "Journey To the Center of the Earth" (the original one with Pat Boone).  I still like to explore caves and look at rocks and wonder about their journey.  Underground rivers or aquifers are very interesting to me.  Some of them are very large and flow for great distances before erupting from the earths surface as a spring of what is usually very fresh and pure water.  Somehow they remind me of the earths arterial system if you can image that.  (Hmmmmm...  Living water??)  For those who are interested, this piece was created using a sponge to apply the color field, a small squeeze bottle for the cracks and a small foam brush to "dab" in the metallic jewels under the water.  The water was poured onto the panel in layers to create a more organic look though it is hard to see the layers in this photo.  The painting is coated with two layers of liquitex acrylic gloss varnish.

Solar Storm (20 x 30 acrylic on canvas)

This painting was inspired by the Mayan Prophecy of doom for 12/2012 as well as the Bad Company song Burnin' Sky.  (I told you the 70's influenced me!!)  I was asked to paint this very quickly and as a demonstration of my techniques during the July first Friday artwalk outside of Randy Bacon Studio's and Figment gallery.  It was very hot and I had some serious competition as the painting cockroaches from the zoo were working just across from me. (really??) 

Since I was rushed I was using liquid acrylics, a credit card, squeeze bottles and paint squeezed straight from the tube onto the painting.  It was what you might call an observed exercise in automatic drawing, but with an idea hanging out in the back of my mind.??  I see a large citi-scape relected on water with the Burnin' Sky evidencing the fulfillment of both Mayan and Biblical prophecies as the sun reeks havoc on the earth and its inhabitants