Ridgewood Chronicles Cover Art

July is always my busiest month of birthdays, graduation parties, celebrating the Fourth, and the lawnmowing, weed pulling, and other lawn and garden requirements it brings. All that busyness creates a productivity freefall in my art and writing projects, including this blog. So, while some of us are sad to see the month end, I … Continue reading Ridgewood Chronicles Cover Art

2012.9.26 Art: Evolution of a Painting

Hi everyone. I’m back at the computer after taking a week off. I hope all my United States readers and followers had a great Fourth of July. This repost features the evolution of a black bear I painted in acrylic on canvas in 1989. Enjoy. It began the year before, in 1988. Black bear weren’t … Continue reading 2012.9.26 Art: Evolution of a Painting

Criticism

Over the years I’ve learned that there are some commonalities between being an artist who paints landscapes and wildlife, and an author who self-publishes his books. First, obviously, is that I “self”-publish my art as well as my books. But more importantly, both my art and my books go into the world and are judged. … Continue reading Criticism

A Look Back

This little blog will turn one year old in a few days, so I’d like to look back at some of my favorite posts. Almost all of them are about my artwork, which makes sense since I’ve always been an artist first and foremost. My earliest memories are crayon drawings and fingerpainting with my mom … Continue reading A Look Back

Painting and Fixing the First Draft, Part 2

Previously, I wrote about ways I develop first drafts of paintings, then transfer elements I like from the first draft and create a better second draft painting. This time, I want to show how I correct the first draft without making a new painting. The oil painting above shows a whitetail buck drinking at a … Continue reading Painting and Fixing the First Draft, Part 2

Painting and Fixing the First Draft, part 1

As a writer and an artist, I see similarities of writing stories and poetry, and painting paintings. For this post, I’m including double photos of some of my paintings, showing the “first draft” of an idea, and the final draft of the painting. I almost always begin the construction of my paintings from a series … Continue reading Painting and Fixing the First Draft, part 1

Fantasy

I write a lot of fantasy fiction. It began when I was in high school. I like fantasy because it’s about what’s not possible. My journey into fantasy didn’t begin with writing, but with art. Fantasy allowed me to explore my imagination—there was no limit to what I could draw. It could get silly at … Continue reading Fantasy