Gwyneth Seated in Monochrome

Gwyneth Seated in Monochrome

9" X 12"

Oil on Paper

2015

I painted this the other morning from life out in 29 Palms in a little under two hours. It was another trek for me across the mass of Southern California to a place I've never been. The workshop was held at a place called 29 Palms Creative Center & Gallery and the host, other artists, and model were more than pleasant company to keep. The drive there was amazing too. So many wildflowers in the desert. The most I've seen in quite a few years. 

Untitled #301

Untitled #301

24" X 36"

Charcoal on Paper

2014

I used a large sheet of Vellum for this 25 minute drawing completed last year. Vellum is a rather unforgiving surface to use with charcoal because it is very difficult to eradicate any mistakes. Also, the tooth fills up rather quickly. Although there is a kind of stark beauty to the work because it forces you to make definitive choices without hesitation. It's kind of a high-wire act like working in ink without an underdrawing, but on a large scale.

Danielle Seated

Danielle Seated

12" X 16"

Oil on Canvas

2014

This 3 Hr. life study was painted on an untoned canvas. Typically I enjoy working on a toned canvas while doing studies like this from life as they afford some forgiveness in terms of coverage. 

When working on such a stark surface you have to work a bit more diligently to make sure that the paint connects so that bright canvas gaps don't show up in-between strokes that have been laid down. To accommodate for this I usually load the brush full of paint while attempting to describe forms with as few strokes as possible. 

This approach to painting is called 'economy of means' by many, and more than a few of my favorite artists worked in this manner. There is kind of elegant simplicity to it when thing work out well.

44th President

44th President Sketch

18" X 24"

Charcoal on Paper

2015

This 45 min. sketch of President Obama is from an image that just seemed to catch my interest the other day. It's always remarkable to witness the ageing of Presidents in office over time as I imagine they endure an exhaustive work schedule and inordinate amounts of stress. There was a kind of 1,000 yard stare in his eyes that was absolutely gripping.

Camille Seated

Camille Seated

12" X 16"

Oil on Canvas

2014

This is a four hour Alla Prima painting from life completed last year at Angels Gate. I used quite a few very large brushes throughout the painting. Especially in the background. Using these can be a bit tricky sometime as it is a very simple thing to ruin prior carefully laid in strokes.

Skull in Umber Monochrome (Sold)

Skull in Umber Monochrome (Sold)

9" X 12"

Oil on Paper

2014

I painted this 2 hour study from life using Raw Umber and Titanium White. Monochrome works like this are a great way to study value relationships, and the skeleton in particular presents an elaborate exercise along these lines due to the myriad of small changes in form.

Cactus Study

Cactus Study

24" X 36"

Charcoal on Paper

2012

One of the aspects that I most enjoy in drawing is the linearity in form description. Although working in mass can also be easily achieved as well through various methods, to me drawing is very much about working in line. I feel it is one of the definitive differences between how I approach a drawing and painting.

This difference is especially true of working at larger scales. It is uncommon to see artists drawing at a larger scale than 18" X 24" and whenever I show up to a workshop with a  24" X 36" drawing board I am typically the only individual working at that scale. One thing this scale brings out in drawing is the relatively small proportion of the tool to the working area. So in this way many small scale strokes have to be laid down to achieve tonal differences. An advantage of this is that you can emphasize directions of form in each stroke that build up to larger overall compositional patterns as I've done in this study.