This is an enormous painting, 8'x4', called "Disembodied Man" that I created over a decade ago for the H. Poto gallery called "The Big Show".

Over a decade ago I painted this enormous piece (8'x4') for the H. Poto gallery in Sarasota Fl. Helena Poto (the owner of said gallery) put on a show called "The Big Show" all the artists were supposed to make big pieces. I picked up a sheet of plywood and got to work. The show had so many talented artists creating huge works and I was proud to be part of it, the painting didn't sell but I was still happy that piece was created out of the show. It has been in my house ever since.

A couple of years after the "Big Show"my fir...

I was lucky enough to design the set and work with the Homespun players, a truly talented group of creative individuals, on the latest project "The House of Bernarda Alba". The final few  shows are this weekend at the San Bernardino Garcia Center for the Arts and if you haven't caught it yet you really should.

I'll pat myself on the back a little and say the set looks great, but I'm really a small piece of the puzzle. Amanda Stevens' keeps the aesthetic of the play together seamlessly integrated from scene to scene with her beautiful costuming as well as prop selection/design. Her Husband Micah runs the lights and sound-FX which are surprisingly high quality for...

 I have a harebrained scheme. I love old video games and the old style pixel art work inside so I wanted to make some for myself and friends. It turned out awesome and pretty easy for me to do with the tools in my studio. I can even print them on canvas which is pretty cool. I can do them so fast in fact I figured, hell I'll do them for $5, so I did. I set up an Etsy shop and a Fiverr shop.

I think most people will do it for a kick, especially for a friends birthday. Why give them a birthday card when you could send them a pixel version of themselves that says "Happy Birthday" or whatever you want on it. I've even had people Pixelize their dogs. I have fun maki...

So I may have recorded (most of it anyway) one of my latest paintings, a commission for the Bungalow Beach Resort on Anna Maria Island. At first it was just supposed to be a simple

beach-scape, but good Lord did that look boring, so I was given the green light to let loose a little. The result is a painting that I really like on its own merit, not just as a beach painting disappearing into a hotel wall somewhere.

But then I had this time lapse and I was all, what do I do with it? So I sat down and edited the 11 hours of footage into roughly 2 minutes of speed painting. Also I learned I need a better camera.

But then what. Who wants to watch a beach painting happen...

I've known Ryan since we were grouped together in A.P. Art way back in high school, during the era of Con Air, O.J. Simpson being known as something other than a professional football player and the Heavens Gate people taking a spaceship ride to oblivion. Apparently I'm old.

I've been around artists my whole life, I've seen many talented people, many more talented than I (something my narcissism makes difficult to admit, but true nonetheless) most of them are no longer creating art anymore, at least not as the driving force in their life. They let the brushes dry up and become a memory. Ryan is not one of those people.

He found his niche and honed that ability....

Donald Trump is flat out trying to take over country, not because that was his master plan all along but becasue he can't seem to get along with much of anyone, including the republican party he leads. The further up he goes the less people he wants in his way. This man is a dictator begging to be elected and if we are foolish enough to do so he will treat the country the same way he has treated everyone else he comes into contact with. Ignore their advice, run them over, take what he wants, and cry foul if anything bad happens. Our democracy is likely strong enough not to allow Trump to truly become an absolute ruler, but he is the first candidate for presiden...

One of my favorite Micro's and an increasingly popular one online and at my Etsy store is "Finding the Way Home".

I feel like we are all trying to find our way "home", to make our little place in the world comfortable and meaningful. To check off the boxes that we personally find important. I feel like that penguin a lot, awkwardly navigating through a strange, somewhat dimly lit, environment, chasing a slow moving target to what I hope is a rewarding end. Often it is a dead end, or a sharp turn that awaits me. But more and more I recognize that our willingness to keep moving is the difference between success and defeat, between apathy and hope. When i see that...

Gun control isn't exactly a subject that can be talked about openly without inciting heated arguments. People care deeply about their right to own guns and the opposition sees a massive, gun toting population as a danger to public safety.

Look, I'm just an artist, I painted the image above and this blog post exists to explain the meaning behind it. (The bubble gum represents naivety, there, enough about that.) I've shot many different types of guns, been in a family household with several guns. I'm not anti-2nd amendment or a gun rights activist. I'm not going to pontificate for either side.

No, let's just get real practical here for a minute and use our god giv...

World leaders have always had the pesky problem of gaining public approval, or at least garnering enough apathy, in order to engage in a war. This is an important check the people have on the power and authority of any nations leader. War should always be an absolute last resort, preferably only in defense against aggression and only then when conflict is unavoidable. If your citizens are not too keen to march in step with the drums of war, there is likely a very good reason to continue negotiations in order to avoid the conflict. Of course, there are plenty of examples of leaders creating a narrative to incite the public's desire for war when there previously...

Why am I just giving away artwork?

Something that all professional artists struggle with is finding the balance between pure self expression and popular appeal. Examples of straddling that line are everywhere and artists of all persuasions, (writing, musicians, film makers etc) have had varying degrees of success.

My compromise is to create something of the same size over and over, something that can be collected into a larger body of work. This allows me to paint exactly what I want, only limited by dimension. So I created Micro Paintings, 6"x6" squares on gallery wrapped canvas.

While I realize that my style will appeal only to small percentage of art lovers,...