Psyche Sleeps and Psyche Dreams

 This could be the final piece of the Psyche series...but probably not.

Psyche Sleeps and Psyche Dreams, 2020, acrylic on plywood, 14" x 11".

Destroyer

Another painting from the "Book of Revelations" series, this one done in basically monochrome hues. The giant figure looming over the world theme is one I've dealt with several times before...

Destroyer, 2019, acrylic on panel, 20" x 16"

Seven Deadlier Sins

One of my more successful series of images, if visits to this blog are any indication, is the treatment of the Seven Deadly Sins that I first envisioned in the form of drawings about 5 years ago. Last year (2017) I produced a series of quite large paintings on unstretched canvas which were intended to be the definitive version of the images...however, I never really felt that these were the final pieces...but good & interesting enough to post here, perhaps as a placeholder for the actual final paintings. Maybe in the new year...

The Seven Deadly Sins, 2017, acrylic on canvas, each panel is approx. 65" x 36"

The image posted above has been composited from 2 separate photos & also slightly modified in Photoshop (and the lettering was superimposed over the photography).

Avaricia / Greed (7 Deadly Sins)

This is the sixth out of seven (see below) small sketch-paintings of the 7 Deadly Sins. Only one left to go...

Avaricia / Greed, 2017, acrylic on board, 12" x 9"

Invidia / Envy (7 Deadly Sins)

The latest (5 out of 7 done) in the series of small sketch-paintings. I think this one is my favorite so far...the grasping tendrils of envy...

Invidia / Envy, 2017, acrylic on board, 12" x 9"

Gula / Gluttony (7 Deadly Sins)

Continuing with the Seven Deadly Sins painted series...these are intermediate painted sketches on a fairly small scale (inspired by the series of drawings I did back in 2013). When these are done, I'll try & synthesize between these & the drawings to come up with a large-scale series of paintings (or drawings?).

Gula / Gluttony, 2017, acrylic on board, 12" x 9"

The Isle of the Cyclops

Continuing the island theme (see postings below), here is a small tondo of the fictional Isle of the Cyclops...inspired in part by Böcklin's Isle of the Dead, but with my own twist.

The Isle of the Cyclops, 2017, acrylic on plywood, 6.5" diameter approx.

Small Monochrome Medusa

I was going to use this small (6" x 6") gesso panel from the art store, the last one I had left in this batch, to make something vaguely festive to put up here. That didn't work. Instead, I found myself with this Medusa painting, which came out quite well, I think. One of my rules of painting/making art is that if you keep on going long enough, something worthwhile usually appears. I also did the microwave oven trick to dry the paint quickly, but I don't really recommend that—on a small piece that I don't care too much about it's OK. With a small work like this, it doesn't take that long to paint in the areas available, so rather than waiting 10 minutes or so for the paint to dry naturally, 30 seconds in the microwave cuts the time down a lot. I've heard of art bursting into flames with excessive microwavage, but 30 seconds seems safe (for me) on a piece this size. If you're going to do this (& probably best not to), proceed with caution. Happy Holidays!

Festive Bonus Link: More Medusas

Small Monochrome Medusa, 2016, acrylic on panel, 6" x 6".

The Isle of the Dead

After the Maximilian Pirner-influenced The End of All Things, here is my version of Böcklin's Isle of the Dead. This is a very small painting (5" x 7") done on hardboard last night. To accelerate the process, I gave each coat of paint 30 seconds in the microwave oven to dry it out. I don't necessarily recommend this (I've seen other artists use hair dryers to speed up an artwork when on deadline), but it worked out pretty well in this case, as far as I can tell. If, years from now, the painting disintegrates, that will be sad. But unlikely. I did this from memory, and I omitted the boatman, as you can probably see. It came out quite well, and retains something of the air of mystery of the original(s)—of which there are four still in existence (one other was destroyed in Berlin in WWII).

Return to Böcklin's Isle, 2016, acrylic on board, 5" x 7".

Blinded By Rags

Another new monochrome acrylic painting, from the new series tentatively entitled "A Warning"...more to come. Watch this space.

Blinded By Rags, 2016, acrylic on board, 14" x 11".

The Alchemist's Dream

Another small monochrome acrylic painting, painted over an earlier & similar image. Also, I did a digital remix of this one, presented below.

The Alchemist's Dream, 2016, acrylic on hardboard, 14" x 11".

The Alchemist's Dream, digital remix.

The Survivors

This is the largest piece I've done in quite a while...it relates to other series I've done, such as the Black Paintings (1999-2000), the Holocaust Series (2005), and of course The War Room (2003-2004). It's good to be working on a large scale again...

The Survivors, 2015, acrylic on unstretched canvas, 66" x 72" approx.

Alive Inside the Egg / The Arrival of the Alchemist

A new large-ish monochrome painting on cardboard. It occurs to me that achemy is a good metaphor for creating art, or maybe creating art is a good metaphor for alchemy...

Alive Inside the Egg / The Arrival of the Alchemist, 2015, acrylic on cardboard, 48" x 36".

Young Minotaur in an Arena

From an occasional series of images of Minotaurs...see also the previous posting.

Young Minotaur in an Arena, 2015, acrylic on cardboard, 48" x 36".

The Ruins of Babel

Here is a new painting of the Tower of Babel...I've done quite a few over the years (you can see some of them here). Also, I tried to photograph it last night, but it was too dark, so I took the underexposed image & played around with it in Photoshop (second image below).

The Ruins of Babel, 2015, acrylic on gatorboard, 14" x 11"

The Ruins of Babel, digitally modified in Photoshop

Lost Carcosa

A painting on cardboard in b/w that relates to the King in Yellow piece:

Lost Carcosa, 2014, acrylic on cardboard, 48" x 36".

Nocturne Ascending

A simple monochrome painting on Kraft cardstock...this one almost painted itself...

Nocturne Ascending, 2014, acrylic on card, 11" x 8.5".

Side by Side

A new monochrome painting on cardboard in a more expressionist vein.

Side by Side, 2014, acrylic on cardboard, 18" x 28" approx.

Salvator Mundi

Another quite raw piece on cardboard:

Salvator Mundi, 2014, acrylic on cardboard, 29" x 16.5" approx.

Ruined Angel Falling

This is a painting on a piece of black foamcore that I found in the garage the other day:

Ruined Angel Falling, 2014, acrylic on foamcore, 28" x 22".