"Find a Seat #10" - acrylic painting of an antique chair (18"w x 24"h) - $275

There is something compelling about a chair. When I first started painting chairs, I felt removed from them. I chose to place them in an empty space, but didn’t crop in on them too close. Here, I have taken a closer look. These paintings are portraits. Just as any person would be immortalized with a portrait, so it is with these elegant antique chairs.

These paintings for sale for $275 each. If you’d like to purchase them, please contact me.

"Find a Seat #8" - acrylic painting of an antique chair (18"w x 24"h) - $275

Find a Seat #9 - acrylic painting of an antique chair (18"w x 24"h) - $275

These paintings will look great in your living room.

I designed this poster for my sister’s wedding. Instead of having a program at her wedding, she wanted a poster that recognized everyone that helped with the wedding preparations.

Ever wonder what fonts are used in movie posters? I used Trajan for the title of the poster. Trajan has been used for hundreds of movies such as Troy and I am Legend. There’s a humorous video about this font here. For the movie credits on the poster I used the font Panther. The serif font is Arno Pro.

"Exterior Paint" - Acrylic on canvas (24"w x 18"h)

I frequently get asked what kind of paints I use. Typically, I use Winsor Newton acrylic paint – the good stuff. But there are exceptions.

When I start a painting, I coat the entire canvas with an underlying base color. I’ll use just about anything when I do this. It’s not unusual for me to use Liquatex Basics, because they are fairly inexpensive. Or I use old tubes of paint that are starting to dry up. I’m just going to cover this layer up with another coat of paint any way. Why waste the good stuff?

I work in layers, applying several layers of paint and tissue paper. I keep building up my canvas and distressing it until I have the right underlying colors and texture. Once I start painting my subject on the top layer, then I switch to the high quality acrylic paint. Once I finish, I add a protective varnish coating over the entire art piece.

It’s important to me that the paintings last a long time. It’s important to the people who buy my paintings too. But in reality there is little difference between the cheap paints and the expensive ones. Acrylic paint is an extremely resilient medium. Unless your painting is in direct sunlight continuously for many years, it will never fade regardless of the type of acrylic paint used. The main difference I’ve found with the professional grade paints is that certain colors are brighter and easier to use, especially red, orange, and yellow.

You can rest assured, that if you buy one of my paintings, it will last a very long time. This painting, entitled “Exterior Paint”, is 24″w x 18″h. It’s for sale for $449. If you’d like to purchase it, please contact me.

"A Table for Tulips" - acrylic and mixed media on canvas (22"w x 28"h)

This is my first painting of a flower vase. Frankly, I avoided undertaking a flower still-life painting for a long time. I’ve always found the idea rather passe and boring. I’ve changed my mind with this painting of a vase with tulips. The textures and colors I’ve incorporated redeem it by enhancing the realism. I incorporated several layers of tissue paper in this painting to create most of the unique texture you see.

You must see this painting in person. Unfortunately, I didn’t do the best job of photographing it… this picture has some glare that I couldn’t get rid of with my current camera setup.

The price for this painting is $549. If you live in the Seattle area, I’d be happy to arrange a private viewing before purchasing. Currently I am only selling the original painting. If you are interested in purchasing it, please contact me.

"La Tour Eiffel de Nuit" - Acrylic on canvas (11"w x 14"h) - $185

The Eiffel Tower is probably the most recognized man-made structure in the world. It’s more than a symbol for Paris – it represents romance.  More than 200,000,000 people have made their pilgrimage to this temple of love since it was constructed 1889.

The “Iron Lady”, as she is called, claims numerous interesting and unbelievable facts. Did you know that…

• There are over 2,500,000 rivets embedded in the Eiffel Tower.
• Every seven years, the entire structure is repainted to prevent rust. It takes about 50 tons of paint to do so.
• The Eiffel Tower was nearly dismantled and sold for scrap metal in 1909. It was saved by a telecommunications company which used it to broadcast signals.
• On Febryary 4th, 1912 an Austrian tailor, Franz Reichelt, jumped from the Eiffel Tower while testing a wearable parachute of his own design. The winged contraption failed to deploy, and he crashed into the ground at the foot of the tower.
• The Eiffel Tower was the tallest structure in the world until the Chrysler Building was built in 1930.
• The tower used to feature the tallest advertising space in the world. From 1925 to 1934, huge illuminated signs adorned three of the tower’s four sides.
• In 1956 a devastating fire destroyed the top of the Eiffel Tower which was later reconstructed.
• In 1984 Robert Moriarty, a former marine fighter pilot, flew an airplane through the tower’s arches.
• A.J. Hacket illegally bungee jumped from the top of the Eiffel Tower in 1987.

If you would like to purchase this original painting, please contact me. Sorry, at this time printed reproductions are unavailable.

"Maple Tree at My Window" - Arcylic and mixed media on canvas (56"w x 30"h)

This art piece was commissioned by a dear friend and colleague of mine. She had very specific criteria for this large painting. She wanted a picture of a window that looks out onto a large lush tree with foliage that was so full that you could barely see the sky. I named the painting “Maple Tree at My Window” as an homage to a Robert Frost poem.

Tree at My Window, by Robert Frost

Tree at my window, window tree,
My sash is lowered when night comes on;
But let there never be curtain drawn
Between you and me.
Vague dream-head lifted out of the ground,
And thing next most diffuse to cloud,
Not all your light tongues talking aloud
Could be profound.
But tree, I have seen you taken and tossed,
And if you have seen me when I slept,
You have seen me when I was taken and swept
And all but lost.
That day she put our heads together,
Fate had her imagination about her,
Your head so much concerned with outer,
Mine with inner, weather.

Puente de Triana - Acrylic painting on canvas (14"w x 11"h) - $175

Upon returning after a year in Seville, Spain, my sister brought home hundreds of photographs. How could I resist painting them? This is a painting of the Puente de Triana, located in Triana, a neighborhood in Seville, Spain. This iconic bridge is also called by its popular name Puente de Isabel II. Built in 1862 by Gustavo Steinacher and Ferdinand Bennetot, it was Seville’s first  permanent bridge across the Guadalquivir, one of the largest rivers in Spain.

In this painting, I explored a loose painting style. Painting impressionisticly doesn’t come naturally to me. I tend to obsess about the details. This time, I forced myself to not overwork the painting. However, it is true to my nature to pick strong contrasting colors. This painting is no different. I planned from the beginning to use a palette rich in magenta and lime green.

This painting would be ideal for anyone with a European theme in their home. While any painting is best seen in bright natural light,  this painting would be especially good for a hallway or room that is not well lit. Contact me directly if you are interested in purchasing this painting. My best price for the original is $175. Sorry, prints are not available.

The Rusty Incumbent of Ilwaco - Acrylic painting on canvas (18"w x 14"h) - $265

I took a picture of an old boat while I was in Ilwaco, Washington. My wife and I were on a road trip on the scenic highway 101. We had started our adventure in Hoodsport, WA, and we had just passed through Long Beach, WA on our way to the Redwoods of California. In Ilwaco we had stumbled upon a small market fair. Vendors in tents stretched up and down the walkway along the water. Boats were resting in the water like watchful observers of all the bustling activity. I stopped at one street vendor and bought a pocket knife. Then we ventured off to take pictures of the boats. A boat called the “Never Level” stood out. It was awkwardly out of place among the nicer boats. It seemed tired and neglected. It had worked hard without complaint. I hope this painting gives the “Never Level” some long needed attention.

This is the last violin painting in a series of five! I rarely have the attention span for five paintings of the same subject! I am ready to move on to other subject matter. Landscapes, perhaps? I have a ton of pictures of Europe from my sister who is currently living in Spain. You might be seeing a totally different style to my work in the months to come. I’m always experimenting and always learning something new. I have to keep the my work interesting.

This is a small 10″w x 8″h painting that is meant to compliment the other violin paintings in this series entitled “Fit as a Violin”.