Marching off to Illuxcon

 This week I will be heading to Allentown PA for one of my favorite events of the year, Illuxcon. Once again I will be showing new work in the Showcase section on Friday, Sept 13 and Saturday Sept 14 at the Holiday Inn, Allentown from 8pm-12pm. For anyone interested in Imaginative Realism, Illuxcon just can't be beat. I hope to meet some new people and I know I will see some amazing art. If you are in the area please come by and if not this year plan on getting to next years event. You won't regret it for a second.
Above is a detail from one of the pieces I will be showing for the first time

Grendal

WENT he forth to find at fall of night

that haughty house, and heed wherever

the Ring-Danes, outrevelled, to rest had gone.

Found within it the atheling band

asleep after feasting and fearless of sorrow,

of human hardship. Unhallowed wight,

grim and greedy, he grasped betimes,

wrathful, reckless, from resting-places,

thirty of the thanes, and thence he rushed

fain of his fell spoil, faring homeward,

laden with slaughter, his lair to seek.

Then at the dawning, as day was breaking,

the might of Grendel to men was known;

Oil on masonite, 8" x 10"

Creature Double Feature

Mechanical titans and an eastern black dragon this month.
Photoshop & Painter

A challenge in so many ways

This is by far the most difficult post I have ever written for a number of reasons. Todays post is of a piece I was working on for an artorder challenge in February. On February 24 I received news that my father had fallen at home and was in the ICU in my original home town of Schenectady NY.   When I arrived in NY the medical situation was unclear and we hoped he would regain consciousness and recover quickly. Unfortunately it soon became apparent that was not going to be the case.
 What does this have to do with an art challenge?  As I stated earlier I had been working on this piece but with the situation as it were I had very little time or energy left to get it submitted by March 3. There were many moments when I decided to give up on any idea of getting it submitted on time. During those most difficult days however there were also times when I needed to do something to keep my sanity and so I continued to work on it during the evenings. My mother and brother provided me with some helpful critiques.  I knew in my heart that it was not going to be the greatest thing I had ever done and the results likely would not win me any awards are garner many accolades but I also could hear my fathers voice encouraging me not to give up and to finish what I had started. Words of advice he had shared with me many times in the past. And so I did. I submitted the piece as required on March 3. On March 4 my father passed away peacefully surrounded by our family.
 Looking back now I realize that having this little comic book page to focus on at times was very valuable to me and despite its many shortcomings I know that I did the very best that I could under the circumstances. That's what my dad would have wanted me to do.
 I try to keep my blogging very light hearted and and hope this is not too heavy but it is now a very personal piece to me with more meaning than I ever could have anticipated. Thank you to TheArtOrder for the most significant art challenge I have ever faced. Sometimes a challenge is what we need to keep us going through a difficult period and this was certainly one of those times.

Happy St Patrick's Day

I wish everyone a happy and safe St. Patrick's Day. 

From the archives, a daydream of the Emerald Isle. Circa 2002?

The Valley of the Dragon

Over the years a number of aircraft had disappeared in the area earning it the nickname the Valley of the Dragon. Although nothing unusual ever appeared on radar there were a few audio recordings of missing pilots who sounded like they were being chased by some sort of winged demon. Then.. nothing.

Dark Water

A limniad's environment is a precious thing. Unfortunately it is not as important to land dwellers who often forget the consequences of there actions.
 Digital submission for TheArtorder nymph challenge

Digital doodles

Here are a few recent pages from my digital sketchbook. New finished oils coming soon.

Back to the drawing board

One of the most important lessons I took away from 2012 is the need to get back to figure drawing from life. Luckily I found a perfect situation, an open figure drawing session the first and third thursdays of the month and it's only 10 minutes away! It has been extremely rewarding so far. I'm not expecting any masterpieces but there is already a difference in the way I'm looking at things back in the studio.