Painting #10 - Cows
7" x 5"
Oil on Canvasboard
5.31.12
SOLD

Between us, we drive by the cows probably 10 - 15 times a day. The small farm where they live is on the semi-rural road that connects us to basically everything, so we get plenty of opportunities to slow down and see how they're doing. There are between 2 and 6 or 7 cows at any given time, and over the almost 6 years we've lived here, we've seen several generations be born, grow up and, well, go wherever cows go after that. I'd like to think that, like the older brother Chuck after the first season of Happy Days, they go off to college and that's why we don't see them anymore. But we all know better. It is nice, though, to have our own little bovine reality show and watch the whole circle of life play over and over again.

Painting #9 - Big Wheel
7" x 5"
Oil on Canvas Board
SOLD

We rode them on driveways. We rode them on sidewalks. We rode them down embankments and off homemade ramps. We would put pebbles in the holes that would eventually be worn in the back tires to make us sound more menacing. We were the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and the only people we knew who wore helmets were Evel Knievel and the professional football players we all wanted to be when we grew up. We were young. We were fierce. And the world was ours.

Painting #8 - Strawberries
7" x 5"
Oil on Canvas Board
SOLD to Adam Tucker

We've lived in the Pacific Northwest almost 6 years now, and there are a million things that I love about it- the ocean, the mountains, everything. But one of my absolute favorite places is called Kruger's Farm on Sauvie Island in Portland. Berry picking, live music, and picnics for the whole family during the summer, corn mazes and bonfires in the fall, and amazing produce whenever it's in season. If you live in the Portland/Vancouver area, please check out http://www.krugersfarm.com/, and go often. Berry Jam, 'A Celebration of Oregon Strawberries' is Father's Day Weekend, June 16 and 17. We're going. You should, too.

Painting #7 - Baseball
7" x 5"
Oil on canvasboard
5.20.12
Purchased by Matt Campbell

Up until last year, Portland had a minor league baseball team, the Portland Beavers, that played in the middle of downtown. It was a charming, throwback brick stadium, complete with a human-operated scoreboard. You could see the guy scurrying around like a Keebler Elf, changing the green tiles that denoted runs, balls, strikes, etc. We left a game early one afternoon, and in the course of walking back to the car, passed behind the scoreboard. It was between innings, so the guy had a second to catch his breath. We smiled and waved as we walked by and he told us to wait for a moment. He came back with a home run ball that had landed somewhere near the scoreboard at some point. With a smile, he tossed it over the fence to us. It wasn't a foul ball or home run ball caught in the heat of the moment, but to Sean it was close enough.

Painting #6 - Tulips

5" x 7" 

Oil on Canvas Board

$6

Purchased by Deanna Dahlen

Painting #5 - Adirondack

Painting #5 - Adirondack

7" x 5" 

Oil on Canvas Board

$3

Purchased by Michelle Van Tress

Before we moved to the Pacific Northwest, the one warning I got from multiple people was 'Beware the Gray.' It rains a fair amount here in the fall and winter (and spring, on occasion). Apparently this is a cause for concern and a potential deal breaker to some who considering relocating out here. I have two things to say: 1, I lived through 13 Minnesota winters. I can do 'The Gray' standing on my head. 2, when I experience a pitch perfect day like today and know that I have roughly 5 months' worth of similar days ahead of me, it makes The Gray seem kind of insignificant and, in the big picture, well worth it.

This could have been yours! Just sign up for my Mailing List above to get the first crack at original art, priced to move.

 

Painting #4 - Max

Painting #4 -Max

5" x 7" 

Oil on Canvas Board

$3

Purchased by Andy Miller

Sean was almost a Max. When I was a kid, I didn't know if I would ever be married, or even if I would have kids someday. But I knew that if I ever had a son, I wanted him to be Max. It turned out that Angela, from the same age, wanted the same name for her son. When the time came, and we saw that little spot on the ultrasound, (I had to take the nurse's word for it) we knew that we had a Max on our hands. As we got closer though, we noticed that the name Max kept popping up. When Angela's mom suggested Sean Patrick, we knew we had our name.  And so Max became Sean. Which is a good thing, because he is Sean through and through.

I've had 'Where The Wild Things Are' on my mind this week with the death of Maurice Sendak. It was always on my bookshelf as a kid, along with the Seuss, Uncle Remus, my Bible stories and everything else. But Sendak was always down on the end of the shelf along with Roald Dahl. They were kids' books, but they always made me feel a little older when I read them. Sweet, but a little spooky and sinister at the same time. The musical equivalent was hearing 'Rikki Don't Lose That Number' for the first time when I was 8. There was something going on there that I didn't fully understand, but I liked it, and it made me feel a little more grown up.

Maurice Sendak 1928 - 2012
Requiescat en pace.  

Painting #3 - Kiwis

 

Painting #3 - Kiwis

7" x 5" 

Oil on Canvas Board

$3

Purchased by Kay Khrin

Sometimes the subject matter has a rich narrative or a poignant personal

connection. Sometimes it's just a snack sitting on a favorite plate. In this
case, the polka dot plates that go with the bowls that we got at Target.

Painting #2 - Kermit Pez

#2 Kermit Pez

5" x 7" 

Oil on Canvas Board

$2 / SOLD

I bought the first Pez when Sean was very small. I can't remember now if I saw it and thought he might like it, or if he was with me at the grocery store and it caught his eye. One led to another, and another, and another. One of those silly little traditions that take on a life of their own. It continued when Molly came around, and now, almost 13 years (yeesh) after I bought that first Fred Flintstone Pez, we have well over a hundred. You wouldn't necessarily think of Pez as subject matter for a still life, but once I picked one up and actually looked at it, I thought it would be interesting to paint. Turns out it is. And, now that Sean and Molly are getting older, they remind me of that very short period of time when they were small. There will be a number of Pez in this collection. And Kermit is the first.

Painting #1 - Happy Birthday to Me

#1 Happy Birthday to Me
5" x 7"

Oil on Canvas Board

$1.00 / SOLD

52 Weeks 100 Paintings

 

I celebrated my birthday the other day and decided that this year I am going to paint and sell 100 small paintings. (Approx. 5" x 7")  The first painting sold for $1*. The second painting just sold for $2. The third will be $3, the fourth, $4, and so on. When the paintings become available, (roughly twice a week) I will notify the people on my mailing list first, then post them on this blog and my Facebook page. The first person that responds can purchase the painting at the price listed.

Owning original, good art has never been easier or more affordable.

Sign up today here.  (Also, it wouldn't kill you to like the page while you're there.)


P.S. I got this idea from my new friend, Jolie Guillebeau. She does amazing work that can be found at https://www.facebook.com/jkgpaintings.  Please check it out.

*Shipping and handling for this painting, and all paintings in this series will be $5.