Landscape of Virginia

I was asked ever so politely to add some people and cars to my painting of The Tavern, and so I did. I began with a 50's Chevy and some guys dressed like oldtime detectives pointing out something or another. Then I added a Zap Comics sort of androgenic character, I don't know what the complete story is with these guys, you'll have to use your imagination to figure it out. This restaurant has been in Charlottesville since before my time (which was 1977)'a townspeople's favorite' and it really was. Hope u like what I did to it. '

This is "The Tavern" painting taken a few steps further along in its development with my oils.

The Tavern no longer exist, sorry if this is breaking news for you but its gone. It closed last year to make way for a new shopping building of one kind or another. One always has to make way for the wrecking ball after a while in our 21st Century lifestyle of Charlottesville. This city is in a boomtown mood, new hotels and shopping malls are coming into being left and right. And so I snapped a few photos of 'the Tavern' building before its gone for good. That restaurant was a staple for many a U.Va. student on any given Sunday morning for a breakfast to kill for, sometimes I was even at there tables awaiting pancakes and sausage. The food was good and always worth the short wait it took to get fed. It is missed. The restaurant was around for decades. I'd say unofficially that it might have been established in the 1960's but I am not sure. I do know that it was suggested that I had to paint it. To which I often responded, "not now, the building is ...

Many times one gets a look into one's soul from writing what one does or experiences in life. Art on the other hand is a time when one responds to life with color, shape and form when one is making an abstract painting. Seldom do I go into an abstract canvas with a preconceive thought or notion of what I want to do. I do best when not 'thinking ahead' unlike most of my time being alive in this thing called 'the twenty-first century living'. My enjoyment as I have stated in previous posts is 'getting lost in the moment' with my work being the very vehicle of that bliss. This particular painting is one that I stopped and restarted again and again in as much as I felt it needed a little more, and then again a little more, and so on. Before I stopped completely, I took a good look and saw where the canvas need nothing more in order to be 'complete in itself'. Abstract #17 is one in many times during this summer of experimenting where I went ov...

This is a fun work of art, it was not preconceived. It happened entirely as I sat behind the easel and 'gave myself the problem'. I had a good time making it, and it wasn't complete until I had 'finished it' and framed it, then pondered what I had done only to discover an imbalance which shouted out that more work was needed. So back on the easel it went and I put those touches that 'just made it so right'.

Here in my home I work on a lot of different things, today it was humus: humus with halopinas and lime to be exact. It turned out quite well. I followed the receipt. Then I worked on my next canvas. It went fast. I worked with the color of the rays and got them just that way I wanted it. Then I worked on them a little more. All in all it seemed to be an ok painting with only one exception; the line up of the screw was off kilter between being inside the circle with an internal square and being outside the square. I would be bothered but I didn't see that much wrong with it that way. I would suppose some finicky guy might have a cow over it but hey its art. We have license to break the rules if we want to and here I did 'want to' so I'm leaving it 'as is' Hope you like it. It was fun to make with all the bright colors and all. Let me think for a while as to just what I wish to call this canvas.

It needed some more, or so I decided upon the state of midsleep last night in bed. So, I got to it today. Its more defined with what I added.