Luminous Youth

This was done in pencil & acrylic paint (also a little bit of black ink) on a spare piece of hardboard that was the backing of a cheap picture frame at some point (hence the 2 small holes, which are where the hanging hardware goes)...I layered the pencil & acrylic over each other.

Luminous Youth, 2012, pencil & acrylic on hardboard, 12" x 9.5" approx.

The Rise of the Subhumans

This is the finished version of the work-in-progress piece in the previous post (see below). It's more grotesque and surreal than most of my work, still I think it's an interesting piece with a lot of work in it.

The Rise of the Subhumans, 2012, acrylic on Kraft paper, 83" x 57" approx.

Work in progress

This is a new large painted drawing (?) on kraft paper. It's about 7 feet high by 4 feet wide. I hope to finish this tomorrow...

This photo was taking using the camera with flash, so it's not perfect by any means.

Acolyte

I've been meaning to work on a conistently larger scale for a while now...this is a warm-up for that...cardboard & kraft paper are conducive to large-scale work without breaking the bank...

Acolyte, 2012, acrylic on cardboard, 30" x 18" approx.

The Mysteries

A new, somewhat apocalyptic (?) painting on cardboard:

The Mysteries, 2012, acrylic on cardboard, 30" x 30" approx.

Tips for artists who want to sell

I just came across this piece by John Baldessari on Pictify. Obviously, it's somewhat ironic, but it does hold some kind of truth...I've transcribed his painted version into words here:

TIPS FOR ARTISTS WHO WANT TO SELL

• Generally speaking, paintings with light colors sell more quickly than paintings with dark colors.

• Subjects that sell well: Madonna and child, landscapes, flower paintings, still lifes (free of morbid props...dead birds, etc.), nudes, marine pictures, abstracts and surrealism.

• Subject matter is important: it has been said that paintings with cows and hens in them collect dust...while the same paintings with roosters and bulls sell.
  

Of course, transcribing the above does remove the deadpan nature of the original, which is a kind of painted sign.

Off to the studio...this changes everything...

Birth of Venus

Here is my version of a classical subject:

Birth of Venus, 2012, acrylic on cardboard, 18.5" x 16"

My work on Pictify

I recently became aware of a new art web site called Pictify. I have work on many Internet art sites, so many in fact, that in some cases I've forgotten what & where they are...

In this case, Pictify seems good in the sense that it's all about images, & seems to offer a good random selection of what has been uploaded. Often, art websites seem to favor individuals who have gamed the system, either by uploading a huge number of works, or by getting their friends & family to "like" their works, thereby gaining a better ranking.

On the negative side, it also suffers from allowing absolutely anyone, it appears, to upload their artwork. This, as usually happens, leads to all kinds of barely competent and badly photographed images (mediocre nudes & "erotica" seem quite popular) displayed alongside, say, Leonardo's "Vitruvian Man"...which tends to bring things down a few notches. The sublime and the awful, together at last (again).

So, we'll see. I'm aiming to upload my best images up to a total of around 100. Whether they will be lost in the vast haystack remains to be seen. Meanwhile, below is one of my artworks which can be viewed on the site:

The Towers of Technology, 2009, brush & ink on paper, 23.5" x 18".

My Pictify portfolio can be seen at this link.

Another Half Moon Kill image

Here is another possible (not decided yet) image from the follow-up to Shadow Bay (collaboration with Donald J. Rothschild) Half Moon Kill:

Pitt artist pen on paper, 2012, 11" x 8.5".

The Peak

Another tondo painting, this one of a mountain peak. This reminds me a little of Guston and also early Miro...

The Peak, 2012, acrylic on circular canvas, 16" diameter.

Quietude

Figurative, nocturnal tondo.

Quietude, 2012, acrylic on circular canvas, 16" diameter.

At the Summit of Babel

Another tondo painting, this one of the Tower of Babel.

At the Summit of Babel, 2012, acrylic on circular canvas, 12" diameter.

Sleeping on the Mountain

Another tondo painting...

Sleeping on the Mountain, 2012, acrylic on canvas, 12" diameter.

Portent

Another tondo painting for the Apocalyptic series...an oval object appearing in the sky.

Portent, 2012, acrylic on circular canvas, 10" diameter.

The Magician

A small tondo (round) painting of an enigmatic figure amongst some rocks.

The Magician, 2012, acrylic on circular canvas, 10" diameter.

Ayton.net golden home page theme

Once in a while I try to refresh the look of my web site's home page. The previous look was a little dark, so this time I went for a "golden" theme, which I think looks more upbeat:

Also, check out my 2012 Gallery, which is more filtered and curated than the stream of work, presented as it occurs, here on this blog.

Half Moon Kill teaser image

Half Moon Kill is the follow-up (not a sequel) to Shadow Bay with writer Donald J. Rothschild. At the moment, he's tweeting it out on Twitter here.

Half Moon Kill image, 2012, ink on card, 11" x 8.5". To find out what's going on in the above image, you'll have to check out his tweeted novel, at the link above.