STILL LIFES
These are still life paintings I created over the years that are not associated with any show. They are shown in roughly reverse chronological order.
Taped Flora 1 and 2, Oil on Wood, 10x8, 2021
My take on what life is like with glasses - showing the view through one of my lenses and highlighting the distortion I experience in wearing them. The image is from my studio. I thought it was appropriate to have "The Eye" on the easel.
This piece on the spirituality of imperfection is inspired by Emerson's quote "There is a crack in everything that god made." Nothing and no one is perfect. That's what makes us human.
A retablo for Day of the Dead exhibition organized by Houston's Lawndale Art Center. This piece was part of a large auction to raise funds for this arts organization.
A detailed still life in my studio. Yeah, that's not really peanut butter and jelly with a glass of milk. Think: yellow ochre, alizarin chrimson and titanium white mixed with odorless mineral spirits. This occurred to me one sleepless night when I wondered if I could end my life by ingesting my paint.
Accepted into the Visual Arts Alliance Show, Houston, TX, March, 2018.
Accepted into the Visual Arts Alliance Show, Houston, TX, March, 2018.
Another entry in my series of paintings of dying flowers. This one also evokes images of holiday disappointments.
Derived from my artist's talk from my show Death and Desire from 2015. During my talk, I dumped a garbage pail of my old paintings, removed from their stretcher bars, onto the gallery floor. This was the path I took to get to my present state. Would the work on the wall today be in the pail next time?
I became intrigued with the bird of paradise when I witnessed one growing in our garden. These flowers are characterized by a multi-stage growth in which petals and stigma sprout, wither and die, ma5ing room for the next growth. Thus in one flower can one see the process of birth and death wrapped up in the act of sex. To symbolize this, I added a horizontal image of a nude female in the background.
An homage to my new refrigerator. It's a Maytag!
The basis for this work is a photo I shot at a bar in LaGuardia Airport last year returning home from New York after the death of my father. I ordered the eponymous drink in his honor, as it was his favorite.
Though very personal, the work nonetheless is evocative of the shared experiences of the frequent traveler. The winter landscape adds to the glum mood.
Though very personal, the work nonetheless is evocative of the shared experiences of the frequent traveler. The winter landscape adds to the glum mood.
From a photo I shot at the butterfly house at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Yes, the poor bug actually had this number painted on its delicate wing.
In this work, I have assembled many of the icons of religion from all over the world, plus a few other items from different eras. From the left is seen a Chinese Buddha, a Menorah, Ganesh, Crucified Jesus, Santa Claus, Venus, a Thai Buddha, a Venus figurine and an illuminated Virgin Mary. The Venus figurine lies at the base of the Virgin to connect the two. In the foreground lies a Kennedy campaign button and a Star of David (credit to Gene Hester). The items are illuminated by the Menorah as well as the votive candles – lending an air of reverence in contrast to the Santa Claus and the tacky Virgin Mary.
The items have been arranged in a triangular composition with the crucifix at the apex. In addition to the candles, light is provided from a small blue light from the right hand side – creating the blue shadows and reflections on the left side.
Each of these items was, or still is, worshiped as the one and only. The Kennedy button adds to the mix suggesting that, for some, there are other icons to worship.
By assembling all these items in one space – with Santa Claus near the center – I hope to question the validity of such beliefs. A believer in one is, in all likelihood, an atheist in the others. Thus, in that sense, we are all atheists. Which icon is worshipped depends arbitrarily on the time and place of birth, rather than on any revealed truth.
Honorable Mention, Visual Arts Alliance Show, Houston, TX, November, 2010
The items have been arranged in a triangular composition with the crucifix at the apex. In addition to the candles, light is provided from a small blue light from the right hand side – creating the blue shadows and reflections on the left side.
Each of these items was, or still is, worshiped as the one and only. The Kennedy button adds to the mix suggesting that, for some, there are other icons to worship.
By assembling all these items in one space – with Santa Claus near the center – I hope to question the validity of such beliefs. A believer in one is, in all likelihood, an atheist in the others. Thus, in that sense, we are all atheists. Which icon is worshipped depends arbitrarily on the time and place of birth, rather than on any revealed truth.
Honorable Mention, Visual Arts Alliance Show, Houston, TX, November, 2010
The flower in question is a night blooming cereus, which only booms at night and lasts for just a few hours. By dawn, the flower has wilted. It is white, but I shot the source photograph using both an incandescent and an LED flashlight – thus imparting both the yellow and blue hues.
The challenge as a painting was forming the transition between the blue and orange hues. Being complements, they would make a rather ugly brown when mixed if not carefully controlled. I am particularly happy with the dimensionality of the bright yellow stamen, which seems to protrude from the canvas.
The challenge as a painting was forming the transition between the blue and orange hues. Being complements, they would make a rather ugly brown when mixed if not carefully controlled. I am particularly happy with the dimensionality of the bright yellow stamen, which seems to protrude from the canvas.
This work is a celebration of the 500th anniversary of the masterpiece by Leonardo Da Vinci. It shows a vase reflecting Christ and his Apostles as they are in Leonardo's work, as though the vase were a witness to the event. Contained within the vase are palms and thorns, symbolizing the past (the entry into Jerusalem) and the future (the crucifixion).
First Place, Visual Arts Alliance Show, Houston, TX, November, 1998
Honorable Mention, Art League of Houston Show, Houston, TX, September, 1998
First Place, Visual Arts Alliance Show, Houston, TX, November, 1998
Honorable Mention, Art League of Houston Show, Houston, TX, September, 1998
This still life of pears is arranged as Christ and His Apostles in Leonardo Da Vinci's masterpiece of the same name. The painting is primarily a testament to the genius of Leonardo, since the subject of the painting can be inferred from the arrangement alone. As in Leonardo's work, the point over the head of Christ has great significance: it occupies the center of the painting, is the vanishing point used for the perspective and is the source of light.