It was back in the mid-1980s that I first saw Polaroid SX-70 manipulations. They were created by exposing an image onto Polaroid's Time Zero film via their SX-70 or a 600 series cameras. A Daylab slide printer or even an enlarger could be used as well. After the image developed, the film emulsion remained pliable for about an hour or so.
Read more -->

California's Gold Country is a region of California that includes the foothills of the western Sierra Nevada mountains and many historic towns that date to the 1849 California Gold Rush. Thank you Wikipedia. The area is a fairly easy reach from our neck-of-the -woods, depending on where you're heading. Roughly 3-4 hours. The Sacramento Delta is even closer at 2 hrs and change.
Read more -->

METAL NUDE
127cm x 82.5cm x 7.5cm (50” x 32.5” x 3”)
Mixed Media on Canvas board
Oil, cold wax, acrylic, graphite powder, nylon bolt & nut, rubber gasket, styrofoam discs, plexiglass and pvc board

The frame was a bigger project than the mixed media art piece. It had to be built with lightweight materials considering the large and hefty 3/16” cutout plexiglass front and the archival clear cover plexiglass behind it. Next it had to be securely glued and assembled - which the adhesive fusion of plastic to pvc board backing frame accomplished. It also had to be archival in the sense that it could be reversible (backing components could be disassembled on the back side to swap out different art pieces). Time and material costs demanded this. This was the prototype and I messed with various materials and construction methods for nearly 6 months. But with one down, I hope I'm off 'to the races' for future work in this format.

A planned, yet somewhat out-of-the-blue hankering for some immersion into city life led Carol and I to Seattle, WA and Victoria and Vancouver, BC. For the record, more my request than hers. We've visited these cities before but this trip allowed for a deeper dive with three nights in each place and easy walking distance to all three city centers.
Read more -->

Westport, CA (population 200 and change) is about as sleepy a town as it gets along the Northern California coast. 120ish miles due North and 2 hrs, 40 minutes travel time from home — depending on your angle of attack. The scenic, jogging and twisting inland route or straight up the edge of the continent on California's iconic Highway 1.
Read more -->

I requested and received these two lamps in a barter with friend, Sculptor Bruce Johnson. They’re tremendous…and for a sense of scale, the floor lamp is 6’ feet tall. The bases are carved from solid Cedar…and yeah, they’re heavy. As impressive as the carved bases are the Japanese-styled lanterns are the pièce de résistance. He hammered and formed their frames out of flatten copper then wrapped them in a heavy mulberry paper. If that wasn’t enough, both lamps feature a 3-way touch control for on/off and brightness control (via the copper).

Anyone who lives or even traveled in California would be familiar with the In’n Out Burger fast food chain. 10 or so years ago, while traveling through Los Angeles, I tracked down a very unique one-off In ’n Out restaurant designed by architect Stephen Kanner. He called it his homage to the ’50’s Jet Age’. When I saw it (along with a Burger of course) definitely got his “Jetson’s Vibe’ from the place. I took a few shots (see small pic below) and recently dug ‘em back out and produced this digital illustration. Rendered in a silkscreen style with only 15 colors, perhaps it’s my own homage to long time LA artist Ed Ruscha - who still champions classic retro works.



February 24, 2022
A lifetime of Landscapes






January 5, 2022
Deja Vu in Newport Beach