more prints

Here's the second of my dinosaur series of block prints. It's not actually a dinosaur, but a marine reptile commonly called a Plesiosaur. These creatures ranged in size from 3 to 12 meters in length, and had amazingly long necks as well as four paddle-shaped limbs.

One of the reasons I started doing these prints is because I felt a sort of kinship with fossil preparators carefully carving away the rock to reveal the specimen. The process of carving to reveal an image really captured my imagination and I was particularly interested in portraying skeletons as they appear on site, rather than the fully articulated and assembled pictures we usually see. This image is more of a compromise, mostly because the neck was so long it had to be curled around to fit on the paper.

I did two different versions of the print, one without a background color, and one with a background that I printed with a rather beat up piece of wood to give some texture. They're available at my Etsy store.

Red Barn

"Red Barn II" oil on panel, 11x14

Big Rock Ridge

"View From Big Rock Ridge", oil on canvas, 12x24

Thanks to all of you who came to the opening on Saturday night. If you missed the opening, the show will be up at the Riverfront Art Gallery for another 6 weeks.

I met someone at the opening who asked me if I did workshops or took students out painting, and then got an email today from someone else asking the same question. I've never led a painting workshop before, but I think I'm ready to give it a go, and it sounds like the time is now. If there's anyone else out there who's interested in painting with me in a workshop setting, drop me an email, I'd like to hear from you.

Spring Weather

"Spring Weather", oil on panel, 8x10, $320 unframed.

I did this painting right after the painting I posted yesterday (link here) by crossing the road and setting up about 20 feet away from where I started. Setting them side by side is an interesting exercise in seeing how perspective can make a difference. Of course, if you come to the opening at the Riverfront Gallery this Saturday, you'll have an opportunity to see them side by side for yourself.

Lichau Rd Vineyard

"Lichau Rd Vineyard", oil on canvas panel, 8x10, $320 unframed.


I know it's spring when the wild mustard starts turning fields and vineyards bright yellow.

Dinosaurs!

"Camarasaurus" linocut block print on Rives BFK. 8x10 image. Available at my Etsy shop.

Anyone who looks over my bookshelf will see that evolution is a central topic of my reading. Recently, I've gotten really interested in dinosaurs, particularly the new feathered fossils coming from China linking birds to dinosaurs. Somehow I missed that geeky kid stage of obsessing over dinosaurs, and I'm making up for lost time. This is what I hope is the first of a series of fossil prints. I've compiled a lot of source materials, and now I get to play with my new press!

Red Bollards

"Red Bollards", oil on canvas, 18x24

This is another studio painting I've been working on for a long time, and am happy to have completed. I did some sketches and took the reference photograph at Fort Mason in San Francisco. I was attracted to the long line of red bollards, and the way the light reflected through the windows of the other pier. I'm hanging the show at Riverfront Gallery on Monday, and I think it's going to be a good collection of work, although I'm starting to run out of frames, and the frames I ordered last week still aren't here...Nothing like putting things together at the last minute!