Air Filter

just got my AllerAir 5000 Exec DX from Cheap Joe's.

i felt like i needed to make this large purchase since i have to keep the windows in my painting studio closed for most of the year because the winters here are so long and cold. hopefully, this air filter will help me live a little longer and healthier. i'll let you know if it worked. or not.

Lumberjack Chop Chop

here is the before and after photos of the paintings that i chopped off. i really felt like there was too much sky. other artists like Ray Turner can pull off a good composition with a lot of sky, but not me.

Latest train paintings

Whew! just finished more train paintings for my gallery. they were all painted on hardboard because i ran out of canvas. the good thing about painting on board is that if you are not satisfied with your composition, you can always chop off the sides until it looks right. in one of these three paintings, that was the case. i started on three panels, all sized at 48" x 12". well, it ended up that the last painting didn't feel right, so i cut off the top part on my table saw to get rid of some of the sky.

Unorthodox equipment

i've meant to post this earlier, but somehow i always manage to forget. as it is no secret that my palette is unconventional, so are my tools for painting. no one has really taught me this system, but at the same time, i'm sure it's not new. my system has evolved over the years as i continually seek to set up a system that is very time saving at both ends: setup and clean up. this was very important to me as my family grew, i could not spend as much time in the studio. so i had to make sure that when i was in there, i used my time in there painting. very unromantic and non-traditional as far as the fine arts was taught to me, but yet it works practically and efficiently.

so here it is, from left to right:

• Butcher paper and cutter: i don't mix my paints on glass as i found that just rolling out the paper and crumpling it up when i was done to be a much faster and less tedious
• ZipLoc bags: any left over paints i scrape up with my palette knife and save it in this bag. i squeeze out all the air and the paint is usually good for up to two weeks. this would be my chromatic grey for future painting sessions.
• Short hair comb: i use this as a cleaning surface for my brushes. i squeeze Gojo pumice hand cleaner onto the comb and wash my brushes onto the teeth of the comb.
• the last unconventional tool in the photo is the gum stimulator. i got it at Rite Aid. i use this to scratch back into wet paint for fine, straight lines. you can also use this to scratch out your signature if the paints are still wet.
  

Helicopter Gunship

helicopter gunship based on the anatomy of a scorpion. just had to get it off my chest. originally sketched with ball point pen, then scanned and Photoshopped. two things that are problematic: main rotor looks as if it would collide with the tail boom and the front weapon pods(pincers) would block the pilots' views of ground below.....oh well.

Blue Engine 644

just completed this morning. still not claiming to be a train expert, my artist buddy is....here is the fairly limited palette that i worked with.

Engine 4364 painting

my gallery have been asking for more train paintings. this is a tiny one, 12" x 9", oil on canvas board.

Upon Mount Ararat done

i had to stop rendering this thing. i wanted to do more on the water and waves, but i had to stop.....moving on. done in Photoshop.

Wild Oats 008 Detail

so many have asked to show a close up of a recent painting, 83" x 16", of the produce section of Wild Oats that i shipped off to my gallery recently. well here it is. sorry about the quality of the picture. i don't think i have fully harnessed the potential of my digital camera.

Upon Mount Ararat

personal project. struggling with this piece. any suggestions?