Brown Bottle

11"x14" oil on canvas. This piece made its debut last weekend and was much talked of. This is not surprising considering my ability to sit around and talk about the color of air all day. Explaining this painting was tough and all I could forward was that it is, at its heart, an abstract painting. Every little section of the glass is an abstract painting, somehow uniting with the others to form this piece. The challenge with all these abstract spaces is making the painting work as a whole—everything in a painting is relative, even the edge of the canvas. If I risked painting a section in total isolation and it did not work with the whole, I was forced to destroy it. (Note: Destruction, in healthy doses, can be both fun and mutually beneficial.) Better to use a combination of dealing with spaces individually and dancing around the painting—just like the light does—uniting the piece. For being comprised of mainly clear glass, there is a ton of color in this piece. You know me, I couldn't help myself. Maybe it is a genetic flaw.

Report on the Beverly Hills Show
This report may meander on and on, so if you have a pot on the stove, you might want to tend to it rather than read this. • It was a great show! So many friends, family, and collectors. Busy, busy, busy. A lot of artists. I seem to always get a lot of artists in my booth. Many look at my art with their heads cocked sideways like puppies—I guess I confuse them. I actually really appreciate this because it means that I have thrown them a curve ball that they can't seem to hit. How they put up with my preaching I will never know, but they keep coming back for more visual punishment. • Something different this time: I was compared to the Fauvists more often than to Van Gogh. That, along with the millions of questions shot at me, was solid evidence of the presence of art students. • Here is a wonderfully reoccurring statement I heard, "I get your emails..." Any conversation that started off with that was enjoyable. Another reoccurring question/demand: "Where are the flowers? I want flowers." • What made the show a true success was the strategic application of the Spousal Unit. It was wonderful having her there AND she actually sold some paintings. Don't worry, I have come to terms with the fact that 9 out of 10 reasonable human beings would rather talk to her than me. Heck, I can't even stand talking to myself. Don't know if she appreciated having people point at her yelling, "You're the Spousal Unit!" but it was all in good fun. • I want to thank all who visited and the wonderful people who put on the show. Who knows, maybe they will let me into the next one.
Posted May 26, 2011
sold • private collection bradbury, ca