31st B-b-b-b-b-birthday

Today (March 4) I turn 31, thus begins my slide toward 40 and middle age spread. I like to take stock and review things on my birthday rather than New Years Eve. I don’t mind getting older. Aging has much good to be said for it.

The thing about aging is that the list of things that excite me is pared down to the bare essentials, so instead of pursuing a bunch of things half-assedly, I focus on just a few prime interests.

Another benefit of aging is the realization that I am just a small speck of shit in the vast sewer of life. I have no particular genius or gift. I will have no legacy when I am gone. This does not lead me to conclude that because life is pointless there is no joy in living. The acceptance of a mundane and inane existence is liberating; do things you want to do. Which brings me round to what I intend to take stock of in this post, the paintings I completed worked on in year 30 of my life. These are in chronological order. In the next year, I’d like to simplify my abstract stuff and the take my figurative work in a more detailed and technical direction. I recently checked out Andrew Wyeth’s “The Helga Collection” and was blown away by some of the effects he achieved using a dry brush technique to layer, scratch and build the paint into a rich color texture. I will also likely work back on a lot of these pieces, some of them are just terrible and need a lot of work.

Sister Mayhem, Oil on canvas

Captive Audience

Art of the Alamo. oil on canvas, 26"x24"

God,Flag,Country(after Dali). oil on canvas, 34"x36"

Martyrs of Mass Production. Oil on canvas, 56"x34"

Scrappers. Oil on canvas, 48"x40"

Love and Delusion. oil on canvas, 35"x41"

Commitment to Sparkle Motion. oil on canvas, 48"x60"

Atmosphere I. oil on canvas

Bad Matador. Oil on canvas, 35"x38"

Lineages. Oil on panel, 16"x20"

Atmosphere II. oil on canvas, 35"x30"

Atmosphere III. Oil on canvas, 30"x35"

Chicken Scratch. Oil on canvas, 18"x18"

Atmosphere IV. oil on canvas, 30"x40"

Sisyphus destroys the artist's pretentious metaphors. Oil on canvas, 38"x35"

The Art of Destruction. Oil on canvas, 44"x34"

Chicken Scratch II. Oil on canvas, 17"x17"

Alchemical Sisters (water, air, fire, earth) split hares over evolutionary theory, Eros offers an (vegetarian) alternative. oil on canvas, 30"x40"

Chicken Scratch III. Oil on canvas, 18"x18"

Female Torso. Oil on canvas, 20"x8"

Heavy Metal: Red mixed media. oil on board with copper wire 8"x4"

Mr. Fix-It Goes to Washington. Oil on Canvas, 71"x48"

Heavy Metal: Orange. mixed media, oil on board with copper wire 8"x4"

The Fly. Oil on Canvas, 18"x18"

Relics of War. oil on canvas, 39"x30"

Distance (in intimacy). Oil on canvas, 8"x8"

Jane. Oil on Canvas, 32"x24"

Snow Day. Oil on Canvas, 30"x30"