Koan

Sometimes, I throw self portraiture into the mix.  What is it like to put your work 

on display?  Artists open up and lay down plenty of emotions that many people

bottle up.  I think our audience likes to distance themselves and perhaps prefers 

to view this on a canvas as a way of expressing themselves when they display

 our works.  My photo here is something I shot when contemplating a Zen koan. I still 

haven't thought of a way to bring this image to a final concept.  Any suggestions? 

"Master Xiangyan said, suppose someone is up in a tree, holding on to the branches

by his teeth, his hands without a grip on a limb, his feet without a toehold on the 

trunk.  Someone under the tree asks about the meaning of Zen.  If he does not 

answer, he is avoiding the question; but but if he answers, he loses his life.  At 

just such a time , how would you reply?"

Pots and Kettles

The great thing about a few days vacation is the opportunity 

to collect some new photos.  Our trip to Block Island provided

that chance.  The picture I worked on today started as a nice 

little shot taken on one of the beaches.  We found this little

beach called Pots and Kettles.  Over in Photoshop I played

with various filters, blending modes and the unsharp mask.

For the last several months the theme of my digital work is 

to create an 'hyper real' look to my photographs.  Hopefully

it takes a second look to to realize there is something

'odd' to the photo.  

Sorcerer's Apprentice

Four days of vacation are great.  Karen and I haven't been on a 

vacation since last May, when my mom took a bad fall.  Many

changes; way too much medical responsibility; way too much

involvement into her care, wishes etc.  Hint to the wise,

talk early to your children and keep talking.  We finally had 

the space to go and do something for us!  Great beaches, hiking 

nature trails, an afternoon nap; laps in  the pool until the 

grandma squad interrupted us with the daily "walk across " and 

asked us to join in.  Oh well - we swim laps and they bound back and 

forth.  Just giggle and leave: We're never going to be that old - are we?

Enough of that - my post is a photo taken not to long ago of some 

brushes with a mystery setting of tea candles - of course some 

drama provided by Photoshop.

Visual Influence

 Blogging has become a very interesting part of my life since

I started this year.  I have met many online artists that inspire me

to create something each day.  I have to admit that before 

blogging I was in the habit of waiting for inspiration to

hit.  I realize now that slogging through bad days and

nights of the rubbish I produce is a healthy process.  

I was browsing my hard drive for photo's today; trying

to find a thread to begin a digital work.  I was stunned to find 

a screen shot from a video I made back in the summer of

03.  For this one scene I had used marker on a variety of 

flower petal to write on.  In my hand is the word visual and

in the for ground is influence.  Think four years later and

I have run into a very creative person, Sarah Elizabeth, who has 

 a wonderful site, full of creative thinking, that has the 

name Visual Influence. Karen and I are off for four days of

vacation on Block Island, so no posts until Sunday.  

Times Square

Ok - enough of the sumi-e.  Too easy to come up with a little 

sketch each post.  I want to throw something out there 

that I'm just beginning to experiment with.  Solarplates

are a light sensitive material bonded to a metal plate.

You can use these in a variety of ways, but I've been 

making some layers in photoshop and printing on acetate.

The acetate is placed on the solarplates and exposed to 

sunlight. Water is used to wash away unexposed areas.

The plates are inked and can be run through a regular

etching press or a lighter paper can be used with a pin press

or baren.  My "Subway Attire" print is 8" x 10.5" and 

printed with Akua Kolor pigments designed for 

Japanese style printmaking. 

Spring

It is finally starting to feel like spring here in central CT.  

a couple of more weeks and I can actually paint from 

life rather than memories.

Bamboo

I have some antique journals that seem to record financial

transactions.  I've been taking scans of them, then

 combining them with other images in Photoshop.  For the 

most part I've combined them with other scanned objects 

or photographs.  In this instance, I reversed the image,

printed it in on rice paper.  I flipped the paper

and did a quick bamboo sketch.  The numbers and letters

are readable from the front side, faintly behind the bamboo.

When I view oriental scrolls, I am taken with the beautiful

 calligraphy that often make up part of the composition.

I suppose I was trying to re-create the flowing "grass

style" of Japanese calligraphy I am so drawn to.  This

image is 11.5 x 14.5.