"mellow.yarrow"

This is definatively the end of 2007. The last weeks, getting to start to know you have been memorable here. Regards.

10.9.8.7.6.5.4.3.2.1.happy.new.year.

"white.bird.rabbit"

Sampled form New Year's poster - tonight forty years old - it was an all night concert in San Francisco that featured Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messenger Service and Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company. All top rank San Francisco bands, at height of their power - fresh - when San Francisco was all the Hanna Montana rage, and a wee wee wee wee wee less commercial.

9 PM to 9 Am - six dollars and included breakfast.

I have a bootleg of the Quicksilver set, great guitar band, but the audio is terrible.



"three.more"

Image, again, sampled from sample New Year's poster and also from here. Elegant acrylics done with no fear or pretense.

Last night's study was cropped element of this.

Forty years old and three years old - there is hope and there are memories.....together they make for how I feel today. Happy New Year. Peace, everywhere.

"sound.music"

Short study.

"eight.and.one.half.reasons.why"

Another image created from Bobbie's hand.keet.fox vision. Seeking a bit of June splendor as the year winds down...up north and up east. Blue state right now.

Early June leaves are glorious here. The color, their vitality. Overwhelmed of course to most by the burst of flowers.

Lately I have been focusing on the subtle beauty of evergreens.

I have been tagged and asked to write five facts about myself and tag five other blogs:

1) I was born in Havana, Cuba and lived there until after the Bay of Pigs. I have very fond memories of living there - I recall once walking to the end of a small wooden pier, diving in and swimming in a large school of tiny colorful salt water tropical fish. It was a quite magical minute in paradise. I was no older than six.

2) I remember when I stopped thinking in Spanish and thought in English - might have been in fourth grade.

3) I grew up in San Francisco and lived there through most of the 1960's, all the 1970's until 1983 when I moved to New York City to pursue art. I was too young to be a hippie but I remember the Summer of Love and I went to the Haight often but ran away when offered drugs. I just said no. Still, the 60's are my biggest influence and to this day I live my many tenets of that era.



4) I went to law school in late 1970's and I dropped out of one of the best law schools in the country because at the time money and career seemed less important. Blame the sixties.

5) I do not know five other blogers well well enough to tag them...instead I will put out my hand and ask anyone who reads this to tag themselves - Sue's rules here.

For an amazing site for `60's psychedelic posters go here. I still have the poster I pasted above. I used to have over a hundred Fillmore and Avalon posters, now I have maybe eight. I wish I had saved them all as well as the hand bills. Blame the seventies.

"door.stop.start"


"norwegian.would"

Process - started out calm, got crazy and in the end I worked without "save as" because I love having no safety net. With MS Paint you can only undo three actions and then it is set with crazy glue.





Last version, warmer and more saturated - slightly:

"more.than.holding.hands"

Spent today in Manhattan with my family. Insane thing to do because of the holiday crowds. Lemmings everywhere all committing financial suicide by opulent spending, each at the level they consider a luxury. For some, that means carrying bags out of at a discount store, others were grazing at Cartier's on Fifth Avenue.

The highlight was some time in music stores on 48th street where I showed my son some electric basses. A young man was playing Flamenco on an electric guitar and we listened for about ten minutes as he mastered the song and instrument. Quite engaging. What I noticed with musicians is that their art can be social - interactive, an audience is sought or warranted.

"Painting" for the most part has been lonely, but for my recent excursions on blogs here. For a long time I did not reach out or look or communicate. There is a fellowship here and I am drawn to it.

Thank you to those who have been kind and open.

This image belongs to Bobbie - who most graciously allowed me to borrow it - the intent here is to continue the process discussion.

With manipulation there is the ability to push the envelope and create colors that can soothe or jolt. I prefer soothing the palette in many instances because it camouflages the manipulation and keeps the focus more on the created image rather than on the process.

I seek to submerge the process - make it transparent. Here is the original image - my changing the tone makes it less magical, more somber.

I prefer Bobbie's vision, but wanted to show the example...

Later I played a bit with Bobbie's hand.keet.fox.tree and quite by "accident" I defoliated the landscape. Alas. much time in the blender, but still not a Daiquiri.


"remembrance.of.a.hand.keet.fox.tree"

Have a great day.

Process, again.

Simple discovery - inversion created surprise:



Isolated the surprise:



Cloned it, sliced and diced it:



Toned it down (do not be swayed by loud side of the force):

Again, to show process and also to highlight simple cheap trick of inverting colors which creates instant compliment (ying your yang) - like a politician kissing babies or taking a small earnest bribe.

Do not shoot me, I am just the piano player. Movie then an album. Listening to Feist, "The Reminder."

Drinking glasses in hotel bathroom during summer business trip to San Francisco. I miss San Francisco, grew up there.


"half.full.half.empty.who.knows"

Prior steps in process:

Irene asked for demo of process.

I can amplify as desired. Basically I like Microsoft Paint although wish they would enhance it. Biggest problem is you cannot reduce under 100 percent to hard to work with large files. I have old versions of Corel Paint, Photoshop - I just love Paint and the fact it is so limiting. I also use pocket cameras - nice baby digitals good for family snapshots. Wanted to buy high end Cannon, then life happened...

Photo of church floor near Wall Street, Manhattan. George Washington used to attend services there and they have his pew. It is situated less than a block from the World Trade Center:


This is a image - bad draft held in reserve - used green elements below:


Played a bit, created bones:


Another image used for elements:


Modified colors using Photo Manager:


Flipped and cropped, (spare the rod, spoil the image, grandma always said):


Words, title:


"global.warming.credit.rate"

"so.many.no.hitters"

"outside.my.window.is.a.tree"

Disraeli Gears, when I was young and new.everything.

Bigger, brother - one "save as" removed.


"good.and.bad"

"edit.ed"

Number of images cropped further, above and below. Used to need to do full frame compositions. Poorer camera and lens - these shot with son's 200 dollar pocket digital - require cropping.

"larks.flown."


"past.the.flight.of.horned.larks.(before)"

All these photographs have color and contrast manipulated - breaking rules of most photography.

Oddly emulating painting, something scorned on since time of Edward Steichen. Edward Weston, my idol, would toss in his grave - like Jacob Marley of "A Christmas Carol" fame.

"harrier.flight"


"harrier.overhead"

"stars.of.wonder"

"light.wind.haven"

"sound"

Cropped.

"sunset.eve"

Went with mid afternoon walk with my boys - to Jones Beach West End. Brought binoculars and my son had his camera which I kept borrowing.

Picture of dunes, color and contrast adjusted.

Saw three horn larks on grassy field. Glorious day, but for the winds which kept birds hunkered and out of sight.

"walk.puddled.rain"

"house.sparrows.house.arrest"

May be my last picture before the holidays. All the gifts are bought, lights and tree are up, need to wrap, cook, and be merrier. I have been creating more lately - on a roll and it is hard to stop it.

This image sampled from both entries here.

I have really enjoyed borrowing these kind cups of sugar from my new neighbor- looking and "stealing" - I am a visual pick pocket out on parole, maybe on the dole. Sort of like exhibiting "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue."

"Looking for adventure and whatever comes my way."

"one.piece.of.world.peace.please"

Went back to the "saved stages of creation" and this one leaped forth, like Prancer or Blitzen.

Less is more - sort of like the first sampled in this Texan string. It happened clear and fast - zombie like. Other quilts require a mid wife or an epidural - and because of the effort at first seem more "earned."

I like this one now. Putting it on the sled...

"mind.never.mine"

I see this as three pictures - the composition on the right, the one on the left, and the combined.

"rust.seldom.sleeps"

Again, sampled from the great peaceful state of Texas, hopefully with implied permission.

Working for years with high caliber Manhattan corporate lawyers has made me a deliberate weasel. Life sentence in dog years.

"feathered.tulip"

Somehow the fragmented tulip leaves suggest feathered wings and tails to me.

Generated from manipulation of clones of "internet for sale" bulb snapshot (catalog image with appeal to avid Zone 7 gardener, as I am when I can.:



For me seeing spring bulbs emerging feels like I felt when I was a seven year old middle class kid on Christmas morning. Life is good. My favorite flowers are species crocus and daffodils. Daffodils get stronger every year.

"tin.draft.man.board"

I have tagged this as "sampled" and "draft," because it is a first embrace, a tenuous dance. The photo sampled is this photograph of a blue tinted tin wall with roof, tongue of a sky and wondrous semi-dormant vine. That moment does not exist but for a well situated mind and shutter. Here is the image - photo one. Debi is a photographer and her blog shows vision and you can share in her delight in the day by day journey.

I don't know. I like to sample, to re-work and process something that draws me. I saw this Texas wall on my blackberry and it soft echoed as I commuted.

I love seeing blog art blackberry sized. Then on a good monitor. Two worlds, one or two mindsets.

"more"

Confessions typed then hidden, obscured. Like thoughts in our heads or pure maybe vapid impulses. I smudge, therefore I am.

Who does not want "more?" Maybe, me?



"less"


"least"


"more.or.less"

Today was a transitional day. Met my former model who is leaving town, sadly, and met with another friend about an opportunity. Change - it is going to be good.