Two International Salon Competition Semi-Finalists!

I am absolutely honored to say that both my paintings “Choosing Light” and “Sanctuary” were both selected as semi-finalists in the 17th International ARC Salon Competition! This salon received over 5000 entries from 87 countries and I am honored to have my paintings on this list.

I worked so so hard on these two paintings so it feels really great for them to get recognized in this way. The Finalists will be posted on November 20th!

Leading the revival of realism in the visual arts, the Art Renewal Center non-profit, educational foundation, hosts the largest online museum dedicated to representational art and includes works by the old masters, 19th century, and 21st Century Artists as well as articles, letters and other online resources.

The ARC also runs the ARC Salon Competition, which is the largest and most prestigious competition in the world for realist artists painting, sculpting and drawing today with eleven categories and thousands of works competing, culminating in a live exhibition of many of the winning works.

The Wait is Over! Two Brand New Terra Human Paintings!

Hello, I hope you are doing well! I'm really excited to share two brand new Terra Human Paintings with you today! As some of you may know I was not able to finish these paintings in time for the Contemporary Figuration show at Abend Gallery due to a muscle spasm in my neck. So after many many hours of painting I finally finished these two pieces and am so excited to share them with you. For clarity these paintings are available DIRECTLY from me since they were never exhibited at the gallery.

 
 

If you have the time please read my descriptions for the paintings as well, I dedicate a lot of time and energy into writing thoughtful descriptions for every painting I make and these are certainly no exception.  I really hope that these paintings encourage introspection and a renewed sense of empathy. Please reach out to me if you want to know more about these paintings (ie. additional photos or videos). They can be purchased directly from my website by using the buttons below the photos. Payment plans are available upon request so don't hesitate to contact me if that is something you are interested in.

 
 

"Same Breath"  |  12"x12" Framed  |  *SOLD*

Painting Description
After wandering the harsh and unforgiving mountains for longer than he could remember he realized that he had forgotten what he was searching for. He was desperately in need of something but could never find it and couldn’t even name it. Not knowing what to do or where to go he stoped in his tracks, kneeled down and reached down into the earth that he had been traversing on top of for all of his life. Feeling something soft among the dirt and roots he used all of this strength to pull a human form from the earth that housed it for so long. He held her in this exact spot for years looking at her in awe and feeling at peace, as if he finally understood something better than he understood himself. And the longer he held her the more he wished to see the world as she might see it.
Slowly every breath he exhaled moved a part of his soul into her. Until he no longer had the strength to hold her but as he took his last breath she took her first and she was able to hold him as his warmth departed. Saying goodbye she slowly lowered him to rest in the mountains as the tress and plants lovingly embraced his presence. In a new form but with the same breath she was now free to walk this earth truly at peace, no longer searching.

 
 

"Harvest Moon"  |  12"x16" Framed  |  $2500

Painting Description
In times of true despair we are the most open to changing our ways. When our hearts are finally empty and our minds exhausted we finally look outside of ourselves to do the one thing we swore we would never do, ask for help. Less than halfway up the mountain we collapse, we lay down our pride and stop ignoring the pain that has plagued us for so much of the journey. With tears falling from our eyes we give in to all that has overwhelmed us, finally acknowledging the hurt and letting it envelope us.
After some time of gazing at the moon for comfort we finally look around to see many others who are illuminated by the moonlight as well, all making the same journey up the mountain. But they all look down as they trudge their way up with the same pains and despair weighing them down. All but one who notices us sitting in the cold dirt and offers an open hand but when we are too exhausted to take it so they decide to sit down with us, staring at the moon and enjoying the comfort of another.

My Interview with Sophie Skelton from Behind the Artist

Hello Friends, I recently was contacted by a very kind art enthusiast/blogger from the UK named Sophie Skelton who wanted to feature me on her website. She has a lovely website that is dedicated to art history and finding out the stories behind a variety of contemporary the artists. Use the button below to visit her website and read the full interview. I did my best to give thoughtful and educational answers so I hope you enjoy!

Lastly I wanted to mention that she also wanted to do a podcast interview in August so please keep an eye out for that as well!

"Choosing Light" Limited Edition Prints are Finally Here!

Thank you for taking the time to read this exciting announcement! I am officially launching limited edition prints of my painting "Choosing Light". I feel so fortunate that this piece had such a loving reception on social media resulting in it being sold to a new collector in Dubai. So I wanted to release some prints of it so that everyone can their own special copy of this unique painting. 

Since these are limited edition I will only be printing a total of 200 copies of this painting and after that the edition will be over. But here is my favorite part! Each copy is a canvas print so it has the beautiful canvas texture and additionally is ready to hang right out of the box! I spent a lot of time ordering and reviewing several different test prints to find just the right look for this piece and when I took the canvas version out of the box I knew this was the right look!
IMPORTANT: This is a limited time drop! These prints will be available to order starting today Wednesday May 8th until Sunday May 12th.
More details below

Each print is priced at $100
Each print is 18"x24" 
Printed on canvas
Comes with a hand signed Certificate of Authenticity
200 Prints will be created in total

Final Note: The First 5 orders will receive certificates with a brief paragraph of my hand written thoughts on the painting.

My Interview with Raindrop Incorporated

Hello! I just wanted to share with you all my most recent podcast interview with Deb and Sara from Raindrop Incorporated. This episode is a part of their Inspired Artist series and we delve into my personal background as well as what it means to work as a full time artist. I hope you enjoy this excellent conversation we had and I really hope it can help any artists who are looking to do their art full time someday.

Three New Paintings for the Holiday Miniatures Show

Hello All! Thank you for your patience while I completed these new paintings. I’m very excited to share three brand new pieces with you that I’ve created for the 33rd Annual Holiday Miniatures Show at Abend Gallery! I worked on these paintings for several months and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Two out of the three pieces have already been sold so be sure to use the link below to see my available gallery paintings.

"Among the Stars"  |  8"x10"  Framed  |  Sold

If I am nothing but a tiny ripple in a vast ocean, a speck of light in an infinite sky of stars, how do I matter? And if my time on this pale blue dot is only a microscopic blip on the timeline of its existence, why should I live with purpose?

As she contemplated these thoughts the universe asked her to lay her head down. And as she did this she was shown the people that she loved and how her existence altered them, microscopically shifting their life path just by being herself and loving with her full heart. And then she saw how her influence in that person altered another person. And then her impact on that person influenced another. She was shown the spread of her impact again and again, a light that spread further than she could ever imagine, until it finally stopped and her presence in the world was not longer. Even though her impact was great eventually all memory of her would fade and her mark will eventually disappear.

The universe told her even though her wave would eventually return to the ocean as if it had never existed in the first place, it did exist in perfect beauty in the exact right moment and it will find its resting place back in the collective of the universe.

"Hunter's Gaze"  |  8"x10"  Framed  |  Sold

One of my favorite animals while growing up was the barn owl. I found their look and demeanor to be so unique and thought-provoking and I really loved reading about these creatures and discovering what made them unique. I especially enjoyed drawing them and trying to render their unique faces. And I always found their eyes to be incredibly mesmerizing and attention grabbing. These incredibly dark eyes hold so much expression and intensity which I hope that I captured in this piece. It gave me a lot of joy to capture this graceful creature in a painting.

"Witness to the Unknown"  |  8"x10"  Framed  |  $1500

Gazing up at the night sky in a time long before our own. We begin to see subtle green lights moving across the impossibly dark sky. The longer we look the more the colors seem to intensify and brighten as they form into amazingly long curtains reaching up to the heavens. In this time before scientific explanation this incomprehensible phenomenon ignites a spark of wonder in our hearts. A feeling of genuine humility while witnessing the absolute beauty of the planet that we live on.
And because we are human we choose to create beautiful stories and mythologies to explain this unimaginable wonder. Passing along these tales as a way to connect with one another and to find a semblance of understanding in vast unknown.

A Painting of My Wife

I started this piece two years ago but didn’t have time to photograph it and come up with a description until now. I posted this painting on February 17th to celebrate my wife’s birthday.

From the first moment that I met this person I could see that she was different from anyone I had ever met. Her level of self knowledge and confidence immediately drew me to her. From our first meeting I saw that she strongly knew who she was and not afraid to hide her values or identity from anyone.
Since our meeting I have had the pleasure of knowing this person and living life with her for 11 years and she has never ceased to impress and inspire me. Her relentless commitment to self-knowledge and self-improvement inspire me everyday to be a better person and to look out for the ones I love. And her excitement to learn about herself and the world around her makes me admire her even more. This person moves through the world with passion and vulnerability, while effortlessly encouraging others to do the same.
This is the strongest person I know and I am honored to share my life with her.
This piece is titled “Apricity” meaning the warmth of sun in the winter.

"As One" has been SOLD!

I am so honored to say that my painting “As One” has been sold! This piece has been so special to me for several years now and I’m ecstatic that it found a new home.

For me, this painting served as a giant leap forward in my skill level and confidence as an artist when I made it back in 2019. While creating this piece I had to silence so many doubts and trust myself and the final result allowed me to keep pushing with even bigger and better paintings.

And while I have you here, I want to encourage you to use the button below to see what paintings and prints are available in my online shop! Artwork can make for such meaningful holiday gifts!