The Waking Up Series.

I am currently working on a new series I'm calling "...Waking Up". Each piece is a portrait of the person when they first wake in the morning.The idea is that in this moment, when we open our eyes, we are the most vulnerable and real. I am trying to capture this moment when we first wake up. Before we have time to fix ourselves for the days presentation. This is also a moment that almost no one is allowed to see. We usually, without even thinking about it, quickly organize out appearances after seeing ourselves in the mirror. If we are alone we still make some kind of presentation.
The moment for we fix ourselves is the point of this series.

I asked a group of friends to send me pictures when they first woke. I was very surprised how many responses I got. It is not an easy action to take a picture of yourself when you first wake and share it with other people. Especially knowing that that image will be immortalized in paint. This is a special project for me. I have 4 more pieces I am starting starting soon and hopefully more to follow.

If you would like to contribute to this project, please send me you pictures. I welcome them all. But I INSIST that any images sent must never be posed. Most of us sleep with our "future" phones close at hand. I recommend when you open your eyes, grab your phone and take a photo. I will paint it.

The Singleton's Dog

I recently finished a commission for Brad and Alisha Singleton. They own a veterinary clinic in Austin and wanted something to hang in their special consult room. I made this piece on old fencing. I was given complete freedom to do whatever I wanted. They had a few small ideas of what they were looking for. Mostly along the lines of a person and an animal and not too sad but not a happy picture.

I am very happy with how this turned out. I remember painting it in my back yard. I had to build a terrible easel that, in the end, did the job. There was dust, there were leaves, it was hot. I am still very excited about the way the dog turned out.

ARP Laptop

I recently found an old laptop on a the trash. Such a nice find I could not let it go to waste. My initial intention was a little too complicated and I found myself getting bored with the idea quickly. It was to do with a nature scene done in binary code. Sort of predictable.

In an almost spontaneous decision I decided to go with an older but favorite stencil.

Here is what happened with that discarded laptop.