It may be the middle of summer...

Springtime for The Mammoths...But these guys are still in fur. Here's a new painting(it's not for sale) I did of some mammoths....it started out as one thing and turned into something else. And, then, I realized I had a story behind it for a kid's picture book. Stay tuned on that. It's 15 x30 inches, a great format and size to work with and done in oils. I started it some time ago and stopped...waiting for what I needed to kick it in the butt and move on. I saw the film ICE AGE 2 and, then, the FANTASTIC trailer for Roland Emmerich's new film 10,000 BC due out next March which has...mammoths. Seeing all this got me moving again. The idea is that the new Spring is melting the Ice Age and, the mammoths are coming out of that....to a new world, one that sadly, they won't continue on in....

The Light of Turner....

Castle of The Surf(8x10 oils, SOLD)I'm starting to put together, thank God, some smaller paintings to take to Japan. I will be doing about 8 or so if I can. Much like what you see above in terms of size and spontaneity. After watching Simon Scharma's Power of Art show on Turner, I came away moved and really fired up. Turner was a character indeed, a real rabble-rouser constantly pissing off the "establishment". I knew why he's such an inspiration. Interestingly, in 1840, he lived in strangely familiar times- economic ups and downs, a social split between classes of people, idealogies and politics....and an unending war(with Napoleon). Like I said, familiar. Rather than feel daunted by such a master as Turner, the program showed me what my instinct has been telling me-I'm on the right path. Not there yet, but working on it. In Turner's work, he often showed the sky lit up, in hues that were "like the color of sun hitting the blood of your retinas when your eyes are closed". I tried a bit of that here. And I tried to loosen up some as well. The old "illustrator" touch of "define, define,define" kicked in....Turner used his fingers in his paintings, scratching with a fingernail, the details...I'll get there one day.

That time of year...

Thunderclouds(8x10, oils, $SOLD) Thunder heads are fascinating. They seem to build up out of nowhere and fast...you can look and subtly see clouds beginning to spiral together, so carefully, on a hot summer's day...and they just build and tower upward...and all Hell breaks loose under them...I have been trying to loosen up, again...I got myself kind of caught up in being tight again. So I did this one from a photo I took, but, rather loose and fast....

Paintings for Japan...

Spike Dragon(5x7,oils, SOLD) This little painting, is part of a bunch I am doing for the Nippon 07 World SF Con, we're going to next month in Yokohama. Should be alot of fun. I'm making some "small" works that will be all framed and in the artshow. Small works are easy to carry and, Japanese tend to have limited wall and living space, so smaller sized paintings will work best. Hence, no price on this because I have to have some work for sale there!!!!

After a FUN weekend....

Just a quick update.

I always stress artists should take their weekends off. Enjoy the outside. Eat BBQ'd meat. Go to movies. Go to the ocean(if you can). It separates one week from another and you meet the next Monday somewhat refreshed. We were getting cabin fever as the last few weekends I did have some work to finish.

Had a fun weekend starting with Friday when we met some artist friends over in Bristol, RI for a late dinner after a quick trip to a local literary fantasy conference...then Saturday had a BBQ with friends locally here, and Sunday shot up to Cape Cod to Dennis Mass to see an artist demo by Michael Whelan and Michael Mariano, at the Cape Cod Art Museum(I didn't know there was one!). Nice time catching up with Mike Whelan, I just finished the bio/appreciation of him for the Japanese Worldcon book. A good spirited show of these two guys painting on the spot. Homework for me, as I will be doing the same thing with Whelan in Japan at the Japanese World SF Con in about five weeks!

Oh, tonight at 10pm on PBS, Simon Sharma's Power of Art....features J.M.W. Turner, my #1 influence and inspiration.

More pictures soon....

Buggy cover....

This is a cover I did this week, for a Neal Asher book for Night Shade Books, probably due out in the Fall sometime... had alot of fun with it, did it in gouache-a designer's water based medium. I like the atmopshere alot in this one and I'd even say it came out about 95% of the way I saw it in my sketch.

Turner thinking....

The Engaging Sea(8x10, oils, SOLD)
I really have had Turner on my mind these days...can't wait for The Power of Art on Monday night....

The sea and a waterspout...

The Waterspout(6x8 inches, oils, SOLD!)
Okay, I said more smaller paintings. I miss doing them,but with all the stuff going on, it's hard. Small paintings "ground" me...center my mind, as it were. Like meditation, or Yoga. Anyway, here I am back at them. I got inspired by Constable and Turner (speaking of, NEXT MONDAY, 7/23 10 PM EST, PBS- Simon Sharma's Power of Art- He's featuring Turner!!!) and did this little number. In fact, Thomas Cole, another great artist painted a waterspout as an allegory for nature over man. Maybe that was on my mind of late too. I long to see some ocean soon and we may do just that on Sunday or so...in the meantime, expect some sea paintings.

A VERY COOL BOOK!!!

This is a book that I am part of, VISUAL JOURNEYS: A TRIBUTE TO SPACE ARTISTS. Edited by Eric Reynolds, for his Hadley-Rille Press, it presents a great concept-art is used by various Sf and space artists, and stories are written *around* the art. Usually it's the other way around! The artists, other than yours truly(who has four pieces inside) include Chesley Bonestell, Ron Miller, Frank Wu, Mike Carroll, Frank R. Paul and Joe Tucciarone(who did the cover you see). The writers include Tom Dupree, Jay Lake, G. David Nordley, Mike Burstein and Tobias Buckell. The book is a knockout, the kind of book we don't see much of these days, and the color repro of the art is first rate. If you want a good book, pick this up. It's available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Visual-Journeys-Tribute-Space-Artists/dp/0978514831/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-3823614-5135319?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1184513745&sr=1-1

In the meantime, I've been busy doing alot of new things. I have some small paintings coming(really! honest!) we've just hit that really intense part of summer that, between dental issues, and deadlines, it's been fairly exhausting. Sorry for the sporadic posts!

More Dragons...

BUSY WEEK! I had to finish the final art to DRAGON DONE IT, a new anthology of magical mystery tales, edited by Mike Resnick and Eric Flint. ALot of fun. Kind of a Sam Spade character, with a girl who may not be a girl, a lurking demon and, of course, a dragon like it says in the title(it always has to relate to the title. This is one of my larger cover pieces(not a painting of the day!) but I had to finish it in record time so it could be sollicted by the publisher-for next year! I gave it this garish, pulp-style color scheme and look, really loud colors. The problem with short story books is always picking an image that best represents the overall book. And, a blonde babe is always good for selling a book. Lots of fun to paint, in oils. Things are going to slow down just a tad, which I am really looking forward to!

More small paintings soon. It's been two weeks of just going crazy with deadlines, and dentist appointments!

The Dragons of 07/07/07

The Dragons of Seven(8x10, oils, SOLD!)
I REALLY loved the way these dragon's wings came out. Very backlit by the sun...people really seem to like these dragons, as you can see, I can't keep them around long. I could paint clouds forever, because they're so much fun. Psyching myself up for another cover to do, with...you guessed it..a dragon...

More pointed rockets!!

The Man Who Sold The Moon(sketch, 8x10,oils, SOLD!)This is a color sketch for The Man Who Sold The Moon, by Robert A. Heinlein-who turns 100 this weekend, had he lived! Done essentially as a guide to do the full painting with. I wanted a 1950's look and feel to it. So...enjoy! And Happy Birthday RAH!

T is for Tuesday and...TRANSFORMERS!!

TRANSFORMERS ROCKS!!!!!!!

Put away those pretentions!!! This film kicks serious ass!! Lotsa fun! They kept to the mythology of it and with equal parts drama, action and wit, pulled it off spectacularly. You will feel like a 10 year old again! Not to say that I ever STOPPED feeling that way....Happy July 4th!

Farmer in The Sky....

I did this as a cover for the upcoming re-issue of this Heinlein classic. Done in oils, 18x24, it ISN'T a "painting of the day" so, it's not the price of those(that only applies to the smaller works). Anyway, this was fun to do, and I wanted it very landscapy and vast. In the book the sky was green but, green is not a good color for bookcovers, they say, so, I made it a more inviting turquoise/blue....and I think it looks better too!