"Turkish Dreamscape"

Visited Turkey several years ago. What an incredible place. On our trip from Ankara to Capadocia, we saw some truly out-of-this world landscapes. This is one of them. The painting looks much like it did in person--almost like something out of a dream. Someday I'll get back there and will have an opportunity to paint there, rather than from photographs. 

Mamiya2

This is the second painting I did of a friends camera. I decided to do something a bit different with it, and put in on a black granite countertop, He had a couple old rolls of film in the camera case so I included them. When I painted it, it bothered me that the lens wasn't perfect round. But now I kind of like the funky look to it. 

"Summer on Ice"

The ice had formed a thin coating over the fall leaves. The way the low sun cast a long shadow from the tree trunk caught my eye. "This would make a cool painting!" I thought. Well, here's my attempt of capturing the image. 

Mamiya1

A friend lent me his old Mamiya to paint. I traded him the use of his camera for a painting. This is the one I ended up giving to him. It's amazing to me how little some of these old cameras sell for these days. If I had a ton of money, I'd collect a bunch of them. But alas, I can only afford to paint them. Not a bad collection to pursue though. Look for more in the series to come. 

"3TreePO"

I asked a gallery owner a few months ago what sells? She told me barns and birch trees. So I found this photo I did of a some birch trees and did a painting of them. Not that i'm selling out or anything. It's just that they happen to make nice subjects. But I'm also thinking of spending a couple afternoons in the car in search of old barns to paint. 

Rollei2

My daughter inherited this Rolleiflex from my Father-in-law. Not only was it in perfect condition,, the original box was in perfect condition as well. That's just the way he was. Another in my ongoing series of vintage cameras. 

"Pshaw!"

I'm fortunate to live near this delightful bookstore. It's deceivingly huge. From the outside, it looks like a quaint little shop, but in fact, it's over 2,000 square feet--absolutely filled to the rafters with used and rare books! I'm thinking of doing a series of paintings of my favorite area stores and shops, both present and long gone. 

"Ice Time"

Saw this on a hike at Oakwoods Metropark. It was a warmish winer morning, it the mid-thirties, and the ice was beginning to melt a bit. This ice on the shore caught my eye. I tried to figure out how I was going to paint all the little dark dots on the ice and came up with an interesting solution. Why not coat a bottle brush with paint and roll it on the canvas? Well, I had mixed results and had to paint over a bunch of the dots because they were too big. But overall, I think it turned out okay. Whatever works, eh?

"Memories of Nick"

This was one of my Father-in-law's Rolleis. It was his go-to camera for everything from family get togethers to vacations out West. He gave it to my younger daughter before he died, and she's gotten a kick out of using it. It's amazing that they still make film for this format. It's another in an ongoing series of paintings of vintage cameras. I love painting these beautiful pieces of machinery. 

"Not Pachelbel's Canon"

I think I bought this camera to take on my year hitchhiking around Europe back in my college days. I found it stashed away in my closet a few weeks ago and thought I'd add it to my series of vintage camera paintings. It could turn into a nice bunch of paintings. My biggest hurdle is finding old cameras without actually buying them. 

"Glass House"

It was a sunny fall day and I had just taken a bunch of pix inside the conservatory. I decided, what the heck, I've done a bunch of paintings inside this beautiful structure, now it's time to paint its exterior.Now that the renovation is complete, the place looks better than it has in years. 

"Think Pink"

Just a quick sketch-type painting I did of some Christmas Cactus in bloom. The color was so intense it was hard to capture in a painting. Could make a nice Christmas card. Maybe next year 

"Nikon the Icon"

The was my workhorse camera when I studied photography at CCS, an art school in Detroit. I also owned a Nikkormat, which was a great camera as well. This is turning into a series of paintings. One thing I've noticed about painting vintage cameras, is how beautifully designed they are. Totally functional and simple, but so attractive. Small works of art, each one of them. And I especially enjoy painting in a loose manner. Look for more to come! 

"Tool & Die No. 2"

Another building in Detroit's rapidly disappearing Tool & Die district. I took a bunch of photographs last summer, documenting what remains of this gritty area. The buildings are being torn down or being transformed into lofts. It won't be long before it's totally transformed. I'll be working on paintings of these structures over the next year or two.