I did a few paintings this Christmas as presents.  I did one for each of my roommates, and one for my parents.  I naturally waited until the week before leaving for my trip back to Indiana before starting these paintings.  I did three paintings in three days the week before Christmas.  The one for my parents was done on a 16×24 hardboard.  I stole a few idea from looking around the East Side Studio Tour and the 12×12 Box Art Show and started masking a border around my paintings.  It makes them look a lot more complete without a frame.

The paintings that I did for the roommates were both 24×24 with a 4 inch border done on 3/4 inch plywood.  I lifted that directly from something I saw on the studio tour.

I also participated in the Austin Figurative Gallery Winter Opening Show.  I have several paintings hanging up at the USAA.  During the show we did a live painting demo.  It’s always fun to paint in front of a crowd.  Usually it’s done alone.  We did four fifteen minute poses of models in costumes.  We got my favorite models, Drea and Waverly for the special event.  I asked them for space outfits, and they delivered with some great outfits.

It seemed to go well.  Spiderhouse opened the bar in the USAA so we had drinks available.  The music was excellent and we had a good amount of art up in the place, including some incredible photographs by a guy named George.  Unfortunately hte rest of his name eludes me.

I just finished a painting of a street scene of Austin.  This is East 6th Street, somewhere around Rio Rita.

So it’s been a while since I’ve posted.  In between my last post and now I’ve taken a trip home and changed residences.  I’ve been busy and couldn’t find my camera for a while.  So I have a fair amount of stuff built up to post.  I’ve continued the acrylic paintings and drawing sessions.

So here it all is.  I’m just gonna lay it out here.

I was pretty productive today.  It was one of the first Saturdays in a while that I’ve woken up without a hangover.  I went painting at the Austin Figurative Gallery from 1-4 today.  Then I went for a run.  Then I did web stuff at Café Medici.  They have a superior latté.

I may be harming the drunken artist image I’m trying to cultivate online with all this talk of running and lattés.  I’m going to have to stop before I reveal myself as the yuppie douchebag that I’ve become.  I need a 40.

So I started a new series of paintings.  They are called “Grocery Bag Paintings”.  They are called this because they are done on grocery bags.  They are very similar to the “12 Pack Paintings.”  The only difference is that the paintings are done on a grocery bag instead of cardboard from a 12 pack.  This has some advantages.  That the paintings are bigger is an advantage.  It’s a more comfortable size to work, and after I throw them into a frame, obscuring the fact that it’s a painting on a grocery bag, the bigger size affords a higher price.  That is, if I ever try to sell anything.

Another advantage is that if I go into a painting session with a bunch of grocery bags, as opposed to 12 packs, nobody feels the need to have an intervention.  Now, if anybody is considering an intervention, the answer is no, I don’t need one.  Because only losers quit.

Sunday there were one hour poses at the AVAA.  I took the acrylics and one of the paintings turned out really nice.  I think it’s the most successful painted portrait I’ve done so far.  I think the key was a fairly detailed under-drawing.  That’s something that 15 minute paintings don’t afford me.  Time for drawing.  Here’s the painting big, because I like it.

The rest are from tonight at the AFG, except one that was done the same day as the portrait.  I don’t like it as much so it goes on the slush pile with the rest of them.

This website is starting to look repetitive.  I think I need to spend some more time on something to make sure I haven’t forgotten how to draw.