Nathan MacKinnon

Nathan is my friend Bubba Tays' nephew. We went to watch him play in the 17 and under tourney last year where as a 15 year old, he was definitely one of Atlantic Canada's best players as they got slaughtered by the powerful US team. Here he is trying to evade one their players (Seth Jones). I took about a hundred photos and found about two that were paintable. This is pretty loose for me, and I really enjoyed the way it went down. If you are a hockey fan, watch for this kid. He will make it to the NHL, and with any luck, we may see him playing with the Jets.

oil on board 

10" x 8"  

In Front of Grand Central

I finally tried one of Lee Brown's wonderful challenge photos thanks to a prompt from Dana Cooper. This was a fellow reading in front of Grand Central Station in NYC. One of these days I'd love to visit New York.
oil on canvas board 10' X 8"

Deciding On A New Coat

On a rainy afternoon at the Helper, Utah workshop, under Doug Braithwaite's suggestion, we all set up in the studio area to create and paint our own still lifes. There were all sorts of props and stimulating articles to choose from, and I decided on this longhorn skull which I attached to a dressmaker's mannequin. Don't ask me why. The dramatic lighting was very interesting and we all soon got busy on our own projects. Of course the time flew by, and I never did finish the piece until last night. I've looked at this painting for several months and really couldn't decide what to do with it. Sometimes you just have to wait, or talk to someone like Dominique Eichi to get the ideas flowing again. Thanks Dominique. Because I didn't photograph the setup at the time, it was from memory that I completed this piece. I must admit, that I was struck by some of the colour/shadow nuances that we don't pick up on when painting from photos. Even the photo I took of the finished painting does not reflect these.

Note to self...DO MORE PAINTINGS FROM LIFE!!!
Another note to self...DO MORE PAINTINGS!!!

"Ninety percent of life is just showing up." Woody Allen"

oil on board 9" x 12"