The Hanegraaf Easel

A very good friend of mine, Peter Hanegraaf whom I met in Pasadena, built a customized easel for me back in 1998. I remember when I spoke to him about it, he just jotted down a few notes and asked a few questions about what I wanted in design. All I wanted was an easel that could spin around and turn upside down because I liked to paint upsides down sometimes, especially when I get stuck creatively. A few weeks later, he surprised me with the beautiful easel mounted on a lazy susan. It is adjustable to accomadate small and large canvases and it also has a 'hand brake' to lock to whatever angle I set my canvas at.

It is now 2008, very close to 2009 and I am finally able to mount this easel onto my studio wall! I had it done tonight and I am very eager to use it. Why did it take so long for me to mount it? I am currently living in a house where my studio is finally big enough to accommodate a spinning wall mounted easel! Ten years, three cities and 4 children later I finally have this beautiful easel up and ready to go! I'm naming this the 'Hanegraaf Easel', after Peter. Peter, if you are reading this, you are a good man. Oh by the way, Peter built this for me free of charge. Good man indeed.

Latest Paintings

A gallery in Idaho called and was interested in seeing if my paintings will do well with their clients. And so I am sending these latest paintings. The train painting is an image I have done already, but trains always seem to do well so I gave it another whirl. Let's hope this gallery will be willing to take me on and represent me. It could never hurt to be represented in another state!

Red Car on Lift / 14" x 12" / oil on wood
Union Pacific 21 / 14" x 12" / oil on wood

Santa Monica Freeway 002

Here's my second take on an earlier painting I did of the 10 Freeway in L.A. I wasn't quite satisfied with how the first painting turned out (See post on 9/7/2008).

Finished with a Alizarin/Transparent Orange glaze, then a Transparent Earth Yellow glaze and lastly a Ultramarine Blue/Burnt Umber glaze on the bottom half, all with drying times in between.

Need to crate this up tonight and hopefully make it in for our annual Holiday Show!

72" x 14" / Oil on canvas

Hover Cycle

I haven't posted any concept art for a very long time, even though I do it everyday. Thought I'sd post a line drawing of a vehicle concept art I did for a science fiction writer about 6 months ago.

Laundromat 008

I have been working alot of overtime at work and just moved into another house. It is just in the last 2 weeks that I feel like I'm starting to settle into my new studio. So forgive me for the inactivity on my blog, but here is my latest painting just completed.
14" x 12" / oil on panel

Union Pacific 020

My wife was dissappointed after I did my usual finishing glazes on this painting. According to her I lost some of the original vibrant colors. For some reason, I like to add a layer of grunge to all my paintings, and yes, I do lose some of the freshness every time i do it. I've always thought this was strange of me to do this considering I grew up in beautiful Hawaii. But then again, I did grow up in Kalihi which wasn't so beautiful part of Oahu. Those that know Honolulu who might be reading, you know what I'm talking about...

Anyways, the glazes that I concocted for this painting was a mixture of Sap Green and Burnt Umber on the ground and a mixture of Indian Yellow and Transparent Orange on the top half. Oil on canvas / 27" x 17"

White Pickup On Lift

14" x 12", oil on wood.

Santa Monica Freeway

I've always wanted to do this painting. I was excited when I started it. It didn't turn out as well as I wanted it too, but I will treat this as a warmup. My panoramic format, i feel, is so appropriate to communicate those crazy wide freeways of L.A.!

36" x 12", oil on canvas.

Union Pacific 019

14" x 12", oil on wood

Union Pacific 018

Wow, this is my eighteenth painting of trains. I was asked by my gallery to explore changing my format to something more upright as opposed to the long panoramics that I have been doing. Oil on canvas, 25" x 40".