It’s probably best to only talk about victories and positive news, to hype myself as a creative genius, but sometimes painting can be frustrating and out of reach. Forming hangs in my living room as a testament to this. This painting has gone through change after change and layers after layer and it is still not complete.

A few years ago Forming looked very different. An unsaturated, sharp background with a drip hyper-colored figure. I hated it. It laughed at me because I couldn’t sleep, thinking about it.

I pained the background grey, chalked in a new figure, and started layering juicy acrylics.

Phone camera picture. The grey background, just made me angry. I’m happy with the figure. If you go back to the top picture, that is how the painting hangs today. Still frustrating and taunting me.

A group of shows coming up.

1. The Feminie at Oswald. I’ve got seven paintings up at Oswald right now as part of their The Feminine show. Some great work there. The show runs through June 2nd.
   The artist’s reception is Sunday, May 19th from 5 to 7. Come check it out.

2. R. Blitzer is having a whirlwind one week, 10th Anniversary show in June. I’ve been invited to hang one painting. They will be open for First Friday on June 7th and the show comes down on June 14th. Wam, bam, thank you Blitzer.

3. I will have a painting in the Pajaro Valley Arts Member Show. First time for me. That runs from June 19th to July 28th. The artist’s reception will be on June 23rd from 2 to 4.

A busy summer!

Let me know if you have any questions about any of the shows.

I’ve got a few pieces in this year’s Figurative Affair show. If you are in the Santa Cruz area this Friday, come direct your eyeballs at some fantastic work.

I’ll be there 5-ish to 8-ish, come say HI.

Click HERE for more information.

Ten of my paintings are up at EyeQ for the next couple of months. Go feast your eyeballs!

Happy New Year everyone.

This year I will attempt to clean up my studio.

The Storm has landed! It looks great.

Thank you to the buyer.

Pretend You Love Me has found a home. Looks fantastic. Thanks to the buyer.

Thanks to everyone who came out to my reception at Solaire on Friday. Had a great time. Saw some old friends and made a couple of new friends.

Art in homes.

I believe this was my only silver painting. Completed in 2014. Love it. Love the black and white Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Hero Clix as well.

My show at Solaire has opened. Take your eyeballs there and check out the paintings. Solaire is located in the Hotel Paradox.

The reception is this Friday, November 10th from 5:30 to 7:00.
611 Ocean Street,
Santa Cruz , CA 95060

Come eat, drink, visit, and look at my paintings.

Thank you

A hearty thanks to the buyers. Looks amazing.

Mapping the Dreamer Fields. Acrylic on canvas, 24"x24"

The Oswald opening was not without some drama. Shortly after I arrived at the reception the owner of the restaurant informed me that Mapping the Dreamer Fields (pictured above) had been stolen the night before. The painting had been hung in the women's restroom.

This created quite a buzz at the reception and my feelings were pretty mixed up. Was this an honor? An outrage?

After the reception, I had dinner with friends and family and as we were leaving an employee walked in with the painting. It had been tucked away, behind a curtain, near the rear door of the restaurant. Employees all had been back there, so, it appears the painting did not fit in with the thief's decor and was returned.

I had mixed feelings about the theft and mixed feelings about its return. My wife reminded me that one of the reasons the Mona Lisa became so iconic and famous was that it had been stolen and returned. So, on a minuscule level, I guess this is my Mona Lisa.

The Oswald staff was professional all the way. My show was the 104th show at the restaurant and they had never had an incident like this. Oswald is one of the best venues in Santa Cruz to show art. AND, it is a fantastic restaurant.

I questioned even writing about the theft, but everyone at the reception left with the impression that the painting had been stolen. Please spread the word that the painting was recovered. Thanks!

A big THANK YOU to everyone who came out to my Oswald reception last night. We had a large crowd and a lot of fun. The night was not without controversy as one of my paintings had been stolen the night before. But just as we were leaving, the painting mysteriously reappeared in the parking garage next door. I guess it didn't match the thief's decor.

Thanks to everyone at Oswald for being so gracious and making me feel like a superstar.

Included is a pic with my bebe and I before the show.

A very fun night.

Hope to see YOU there.

One of the important, little pleasures, of making art is receiving pics of my paintings in their homes.

The art pieces on my walls mean a lot to me. They inspire me, make me laugh, make me sad, make me feel. I hope my paintings do the same for their buyers.

Thank you to all my friends and buyers.

Emerson L. ponders his new painting.

Thought I would share the inspiration for the pose in my latest painting. The model emulated the pose from this Jack Kirby illustration I found online. Like so much of Kirby's work, the pose is striking and powerful.

This was a small painting, 12x12". Acrylic on wood.

Normally, I mask my paintings and go crazy, but the small size made masking impossible for me.

The video would have been longer but I was getting frustrated trying to paint with one hand. Also, Atticus was waiting to go on a walk.