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In the midst of the tornado/train/vortex/-insert metaphor-, there is some unadulterated good. Tomorrow night, at Portland City Hall, there is a reception celebrating 10 years of Portland Open Studios. More than 80 artists are participated with artwork 10 inches and under (in other words, small and relatively affordable). The menagerie of works covers the spectrum of medium and subject matter.
A new radiant little life has joined our family. Jane Elliot Conary was born on January 13th at 3:57pm. Any baby makes a huge impact on the family. Jane decided to make an even bigger one.
 The doctor's eyes were wide and red. His voice and hands, with fingers spread wide, shook. Our daughter, a scant two days old, needed to be transferred to Doernbecher Children's Hospital. She had a rare and...
I've been a little remiss in posting to the blog for somewhat understandable and consuming reasons. My wife and I -insert sound of trumpets and angels singing- are having a baby, our first. This exciting arrival in our lives will, we hope, occur after we finish the complete gut and remodel of our house. A little too much to bite off all at once? You may be right.
While we're out of the house...
I dream of painting figures dancing with goblins and wolves. And so paint barns instead. Landscapes, like still lives, are easy to mock but I love them both. Fueled by a vacation to sunny and warm Seattle, with another deadline looming, I painted hill, grass, tree and building.
Island, 48" x 36", Oil on Canvas  Sinking, 24" x 24", Oil on Canvas  Amity, 40" x 30", Oil on Canvas  (the photos...
Included in a show opening tonight, along with a half dozen or so other pieces, is this, the final version of a painting I've posted several times recently:
Pennsylvania, 48" x 36", Oil on Canvas  I may like it a little too much - It's looseness coupled with a strong geometry, the fairly subtle shifts in color between planes of the buildings against the strong contrast of the buildings...
Pennsylvania, 48" x 36", Oil on Canvas - work in progress
 By late morning I'm on my way to the studio. I scrape the palette clean, admonish myself for never cleaning brushes, move solvent around from jar to jar (removing the sediment), and wonder who convinced me that I had any talent or skill or whatever. Someone with talent wouldn't be scared of a little patch of white canvas. I...
Yesterday I woke with a jaw aching from habit and stale useless worry. I woke remembering that I didn't need to clench my way through another day. The big project that I'd worked on for more months than I have teeth in that sore jaw was finally complete. Since the holidays I'd poured countless hours into it. Many a night the past year was interrupted with anxiety over whether or not the finish...
My wife is laughing at me right now. I'm staring at my computer with too many thoughts. What does she know? Does she know that abstract and representational work are flavors of the same beverage? Does she realize that when DeKooning was throwing paint, he was on the same path once walked by Velazquez? The path may be well worn, but I might need a better machete to clear the brambles (those...
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