"Decorations of the Past", showing soon at the C.A.V.E. Gallery

"Decorations of the Past", oil and crayon on canvas

This is my newest completed painting which will be showing May 1st through May 24th at the C.A.V.E. Gallery in Venice, California. The opening will be from 7 to 11 pm on May 1st, which I will be attending. For this piece I did my new technique combining oils and crayon, and my model was my friend Nicole. I was really inspired by her pink flower headband, and the painting's composition sort of grew around that as a focus. For the background I looked at some photos that I took in Greece this summer of anceient ruins on Aegina Island. The Cure's album "Disintegration" was basically my soundtrack to my Greece trip, and was primarily what I listened to while painting this. I think unknowingly, this painting became a reflection of my time in Greece, thus "Decorations of the Past".

I took my painting in to get framed by my new favorite frame shop just a short distance away. I realize how important choosing the right and best frame for a piece is. Ultimately it's the make-or-break finishing touch, and in this case, I am very happy with how it turned out!

Check out the gallery I will be showing at and a flyer for the Brushfire show at the C.A.V.E. Gallery featuring this painting at:

http://www.cavegallery.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=23

"Entrapment" : a new painting and new techniques

"Entrapment", oil and crayon on canvas

Here are some photos of my newest painting that was featured in the Cannibal Flower show. This painting I consider to be a break-through piece, and is also my first painting I have finished while living in Los Angeles. While I am very satisfied with how it came out, the process was actually quite experiemental. I tried a new technique which combines my two favorite art mediums: oil paint and wax pastel/art crayon. Normally I use crayons alone on masonite board, but I realized that they create interesting textures over oil paint as well. The entire base of this painting is in oil, and then to highlight the surreal elements ( the background cityscape and branches), I went over those sections with crayon.

I like the idea of using crayon for the surreal elements of my pieces, because it relates the concept back to the idea of someone escaping the real world through creativity and the creation of art work ( like when children color with crayons and create worlds from their imaginations). I suppose the question I had after this piece is ; Are my characters the creators of the surreal world they're in, or are they put there by someone/something else? I find that each painting I create raises more questions than it answers.

"Entrapment", portrait detail

Cannibal Flower Group Art Exhibition, March 2009

My friend Nicole modeling the corset I made next to my painting at the Cannibal Flower show. Photo by Nicole Taubman.

I will start my art blog with my artistic debut in Los Angeles! One of my paintings, "Entrapment", was shown at the Cannibal Flower group art show, which is held for one night every other month at a different location in Los Angeles. I was excited to be a part of it! I think it's a great show for emerging artists, and was impressed with the turn-out (Hundreds of people!). Some of my friends made it to the opening, and helped take photos of the event.

My friend Tim and I at the show- My jeans are my latest painted clothing piece ( more photos to come soon). Photo by Nicole Taubman

The wall where my painting was.

For more info on Cannibal Flower visit: http://www.cannibalflower.com/