Back from Brazil....

So, I'm back. Rather than go on endlessly about the trip, I'll let a few of the pictures I took give you an idea (which would be appropriate because taking pictures was what I did for the vast majority of my waking hours on the trip..in all, I took over 3000 photos in four days). For those of you in Brazil, if you see yourself, drop me a comment and let me know...also if you'd like a copy of the photo send me an email I'd be happy to email one back to you.
The music in the video is The National's "Fake Empire."

P.S. The video is actually 3 and a half minutes, not 5, it goes on with dead air for that final bit... editing mistake, sorry.

Now the show is over....

Hello All. I'm still here in Brazil, don't have too much time to write, but I did want to share the final version of the video I've been working on. I couldn't post it til after the show, as I didn't want it to be old news for the audience. The painting is not done, as you can see and I mentioned before, but I'll post the rest when I finish. Enjoy!

Off to see the wizard...

An interrupted work...

This is a short one, sorry. The face is not finished (not nearly), I've been interrupted by my preparations for the Brazil trip. With some luck, and internet access, I'll be able to post while I'm down there. If not, expect new postings to be spotty for the next couple of weeks.

Two new paintings...

These two paintings have not yet been posted on my main website...just haven't had time, but I thought you'd like to have a look. They both showed at the Urban Angel group show in London (the smoker has sold).

Coming into focus...

Blocking out the color...

In the beginning....

Background ahoy. You are watching a painting session that lasted until 5 in the morning. I've never watched myself work before, I had no idea my face gets so close to the painting.

Prep time....

So, Next week I'm off to speak at the "Pixel Show" art and design conference in São Paulo, Brazil. In preparation for that I am filming myself complete a piece from start to finish in time lapse photography. For the next couple of days you will be treated with snippets of my painting process, I'm sure you are all overjoyed and anxious to see how it all happens.
The first segment here is how I prep my boards. I start with birch plywood, measure it, cut it, brace it with pine (which includes measuring cutting, gluing, clamping, unclamping, nailing, and probably a few other "ing"s I am failing to mention), sand it, rout it, sand it, plaster it, sand it, gesso it, sand it, and gesso it again. And voi-la! Ready to paint.

Cleaning the studio...

It seems that after every large project, or mad rush to meet a deadline, I end up surrounded with the detritus of obsession. Diet coke cans, fermenting cereal milk, 6 - 10 half empty cups of water, piles of paint tubes, bottles of failed color mixes, frayed brushes, mounds of displaced tools... basically everything, everywhere it's not meant to be. And to boot, the place is covered with a not so fine layer of dust. Hence the need for what you see above (please excuse my apparel, painting clothes are rarely flattering).