3 Alarm

3 Alarm | 24 x 36 | oil on canvas

I was very generous to myself over the holidays, and I gave me permission to paint nothing until the first of the year. I really needed to recharge my batteries, and "tried" not to even think about art for a couple of weeks. It was great just to spend time with family, eat decadent food, go to the movies, read, etc. Now it's time to get back to work.

I found this toy Fire Engine on ebay, and paired it up with an old Zippo cigarette lighter I've had for years for my first painting of 2012. Onward to number two . . .

Happy Holidays 2011

I just wanted to say Happy Holidays to everyone, and thank you all for visiting my blog and FaceBook page, and for leaving such wonderful comments throughout the year. I hope everyone has a great holiday season, and a terrific 2012.

See you all again next year!

View-Master

View-Master | 18 x 18 | oil on canvas

I've really been out of the loop for quite a while now. With the Thanksgiving holiday, and family in from out of town, my attention was diverted from my career. Which was a good thing, because Karen and I really needed to get out of the "work all of the time mode", and chill a little bit.

My brother Doug was here from New York, and he convinced us to get a Christmas tree this year. We don't have much space in our house, so we usually just decorate the mantle of our fireplace, but with some creative rearrangement of our furniture it worked perfectly. We had a great time decorating the tree, and it looks great. Thanks bro!

With the first round of holidays over, I've been working on some new stuff, the first of which is this GAF View-Master. These devices used to blow my mind when I was a kid, and I thought it would be fun to paint one. Now I'm deciding on the dimensions of my next piece. I'm thinking of going overscale with it, but haven't made up my mind just yet. I think it could look really cool big. I hoping to make a decision today.

I've had some good sales in the last few weeks. I shipped two paintings to Tree's Place Gallery which were marked for the Boston International Fine Art Show. One sold as it was being unpacked at the gallery, and the second sold at the show. Mason Murer Fine Art sold two of my large paintings. Mule No.2 sold a couple of weeks ago, and they sold my B-25 at the Miami Red Dot Art Fair over the weekend. Karen should have a nice Christmas this year.

Speaking of gifts, I'm thinking of asking Karen for a new ball head for my tripod for Christmas. If there are any photographers out their with a favorite model or brand, I'd appreciate your suggestions/testimonials.