XMAS vacation...pt 2

Here is one of the pet portrait commissions (+ reference photo):
Reference photo:

"Samson", acrylic on canvas, 11"x14"

How I spent my XMAS vacation...pt 1

It's been quite a while since I posted...I've been busy working on commissioned portraits for Christmas. I couldn't figure out how to get all the photos together in a manageable way in one post so I broke this up into 3 pts. Enjoy ;)

"Hula", oil on canvas, 16"x20"

I just met a really talented animation artist at Thanksgiving dinner last night. Here's a link to her website: http://www.SarahDraws.com

Check out some of her numerous blogs and other sites as well...my favorite is a blog dedicated to the pursuit of the perfect candy... http://www.TheCandyEnthusiast.com

Stepping Stones

16" x 20", oil on canvas board ; $650 USD

This is a tranquil spot at the end of a creek bed full of boulders and small waterfalls in Chester County, PA called Saint Peter's Village. I've done several paintings based on photos taken while hiking around this area. It's one of my favorite places because of the peaceful energy there.

Still Standing

18" x 24", oil on canvas. Finished studio painting. $850 USD

6"x8" study, based on reference photo. I included the study to demonstrate the process that goes into a studio piece. I usually start by taking reference photos and making small studies from them to get a feel for the composition. It also helps me to get more familiar with the elements and details of the design. Sometimes there are things that get edited out or moved around to make for a more pleasing composition or to simplify the overall design. It's like practicing a piece of music before you play it for others.

Star Wars mural

"Battle of Endor",3' x 5' acrylic mural on canvas

Detail from the mural. This is actually the third Star Wars-themed mural I've done in the last year! I have to admit I was never a huge fan but all this research has sparked my interest (a little bit).

This mural was done in my studio on a sheet of canvas that will be installed on a bedroom wall in a client's home. It goes up just like wallpaper, using heavy-duty wallpaper paste (clay-based); and as long as the wall has been properly primed the mural can be removed in the future without damaging the wall or the mural. In this way it can be re-used and taken with someone if they move. It can even be re-sold on EBAY! I do most of my mural commissions this way...it allows me to work much faster and ship the finished mural to anywhere in the world (so I don't have to limit my client base to my home area). You can see more murals on my website: http://www.AMuralForAllSeasons.com

Just got back from Sedona...

What a spiritually renewing place! This was our first time to AZ (and to a desert for that matter) and we loved it. We hiked every day for a week, took a hot air balloon ride, explored the canyon in a 4x4 jeep, and took a day trip to the Grand Canyon. Yesterday it was over 90 degrees in Phoenix as we were leaving and we returned to a rainy, 50 degree Philadelphia airport! But it's always good to come home...now I can get working on a whole new series of paintings ;)

Garden Path

6" x 6" (15.3cm x 15.3cm), oil on canvas ; SOLD

Springhouse at Valley Forge

18" x 24", oil on canvas ; $700 USD

This painting is based on a photo I took of an old springhouse in Valley Forge National Park, which is not far from where I live. I'm thinking of doing a small series of Valley Forge scenes. There are lots of deer and cabins, but mainly I'm attracted to the vast fields of grass on the rolling hills. They change colors with the seasons and now that Autumn is here I should probably get myself back out there with my camera!

Angus

Just finished this 8" x 10" pet portrait for a client and thought I'd post it. It was done in pencil on high-quality drawing paper. These are always enjoyable to do because I love animals and it's challenging to capture the emotion on their face, especially in their eyes, which is much different than the emotional response from me that I'm trying to capture in a landscape. Pets have their own emotions and that couples with your emotional response to their expression and body language. The best pet portraits should simply make you go "awwwww" when they work well. I'm also adding it to the pet portrait gallery on my mural website, where you can see more more pet and house portraits, as well as murals and decorative painting commissions:
http://www.AMuralForAllSeasons.com

Bridge To Nowhere

11" x 14", oil on canvas board ; SOLD

I couldn't resist that title! I just finished this today... based on a photo I took while hiking in a gorge near Ithaca, NY last summer.

Belvidere Castle, Central Park, NYC

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3cm), oil on canvas board ; $95 USD

This was painted from a reference photo I took in Central Park looking across the lake from Belvidere Castle. At this size the castle can only be suggested. However, I plan on doing a larger version of this composition which would have more detail. This study captures the feel quite nicely though. I find Central Park to be a magical place, mainly because of the way it was designed.

Breaking the Silence

36" x 48", oil on canvas ; $1,800 USD


This is one I've been chipping away at for a few weeks. I finally finished it and think I'll stick to smaller canvases for a while ;) I used a photo reference that I took a couple of winters ago on a bridge not far my home (SE Pennsylvania).

Butterfly

18" x 24", mixed (acrylic + oil) on board ; $650 USD

Cascade

12" x 24", oil on canvas, framed ; $450 USD

Buttermilk Falls

30" x 40", Oil on canvas ; $1,500 USD

This painting is a larger version of a 6" x 8" study I posted earlier ("Ithaca Falls"). It was inspired by a trip to Ithaca, NY that my wife and I took last summer. It is an amazing place and I highly recommend seeing it for yourself. It's one of the most magical locations I've ever hiked.

Hazy, Hot and Humid

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3cm), oil on canvas board ; $125 USD

This painting is a roadside scene near my house. It has been very hot and humid lately and I hoped to capture that feeling in this country landscape.

NOLA Balcony

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3cm), oil on board ; $125 USD

This painting is based on a photo I snapped in New Orleans a couple of years ago. I was intrigued by how charming a deteriorating facade could look!

King Henry's Swans

8" x 10" (20.3cm x 25.5cm), oil on canvas board
$200 USD

This painting was inspired by a trip to England that my wife and took a few years ago. I recently found this photo that I took while touring Leed's Castle, once a summer residence of King Henry VIII. This castle is located in the English countryside south of London and the estate is soooo quiet and peaceful, with a large hedge maze and sugar mill that highlight the premises. If you ever go to London I recommend a day trip to Leeds Castle.

Lights of Chicago

14" x 18", oil on canvas board ; $450 USD

Woodland Path

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3cm), oil on canvas board
$125 USD

Ithaca Falls

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3cm), oil on canvas board ; SOLD

This is a study I did for a larger painting (coming soon) of the falls in Ithaca, NY. There are several gorges in the area, carved into the mountainside by the retreating ice of a glacier after the last ice age. They are the most beautiful and peaceful places I've ever experienced! Each gorge has what seems like hundreds of waterfalls, some very small and some very high. The magical thing about them is that as you walk up the man-made trails along each gorge you are constantly rewarded around each new turn with a series of falls more breath-taking than the ones before. If you're looking for an amazing place to hike this is it!

Untouched

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3 cm), oil on canvas board
$125 USD

Rooster

6" x 8" (15.3cm x 20.3cm), oil on canvas board
$125 USD

Roost: - n. A perch on which birds sleep or rest; - v. To rest or sleep on.

St Peter's Rocks

11" x 14", oil on canvas; $350 USD

There is a beautiful area not far from where I live called St. Peter's Village. It's basically a tiny artist colony nestled in the woods next to a creek. The unique and amazing thing about this area is that there is an enormous concentration of large boulders, both in the hills above the creek and in the creek itself. There is a long stretch of the creek where the water is cascaded through the rocks forming countless tiny waterfalls and tight passages. This is a scene I captured with my camera one afternoon while hiking. I'm planning on doing a series of paintings inspired by this area.