Virginia Splendor

This piece was a challenge, the leaves and the light shining through the leaves was created by layering numerous layers of color. This worked well to create a full look for the trees. My daughter took the original photograph that I worked off of. This piece is numbered as #47, and titled Virginia Splendor.

Art of the Special Moments

Using the same torn paper technique, you can recreate your special moments. I am having so much fun with this medium, the more I do the more challenging my subjects the better artist I become. This medium forces you to really study your subject, and it challenges you to find just the right colors and shapes necessary to recreate your subject matter. I am always surprised where this medium has taken me.

Scavenger Hunt Finding a Frame

Framing is always the last thing I think about, and I never seem to want to spend the money it takes to really show off my work with an expensive frame. It's not that I don't think the work is worth a good frame, it's that I can't rationalize the price tag. I'm sure there are other struggling artists with the same complaint. So to help in my quest to frame my work I was turned onto local auctions. I have now attended two such auctions, with the good fortune of winning some lovely old frames. It makes the purchase so much more satisfying as well as helps with my need to challenge myself. And the frames you find are often unique, I would recommend you try it sometime. But don't show up at my auctions, I don't want too many bids jacking up my price. Enjoy.

Creating Depth with Shadows

I used the shadows and the highlights to create depth in number 59 Wine Still Life. Tearing larger segments of color helps to bring the area up and tearing smaller pieces helps to take your eye back. Placing the two next to each other allows you to create depth. The shadow from the grapes onto the cheese and the highlights on the apple also create a sense of three dimension. Once again I have found a home for this one, I'm a real creature of habit.

One of My Favorites

One of my favorite pictures is the grape harvest, number 20. This picture was inspired by a special day spent with a wonderful group of friends. We spent the day together at a local wine festival, the day was filled with fun, and it's something we will always remember. The fond memories I have of that day make me smile just as the little man offering the grapes up to you. I have this painting hanging on my wall, but it belongs to my very special friend. I will soon part with it and give it to it's rightful owner.

Exhibition on the Horizon

Compiling enough work to display at a show is a challenge for me, but I have agreed to start saving some of my more recent work and will be sending it out for professional framing. I won't be displaying any of the show material on this site as I have been in the past. So with that I want to apologise for the lack of new material posted. I am working on number 60 now. I told myself that I would have a show once I reached 30 pieces but that goal came and went. The hardest thing for me is to hold onto the work, I want to share it with those that like it and I tend to give it away at the drop of a hat. I found a site that promoted art adoptions, this intrigued me, it shows I'm not the only artist out their that finds it hard to be a salesman, and would rather give the work away then sell it.

Finding homes for my work

I enjoy the challenge, I look for the subject matter that I feel a connection to in some way. I look for the complexity in the photographs, the movement the depth and try to recreate the images with hand torn tiny bits of glued magazine paper. Often times I already have a home picked out for the picture, even before I finish. I try and connect the work to the recipient. I find it easy to share the work, giving the pictures away to those who find it interesting and who are facinated with the medium. I run out of wall space in my home so a good purge from time to time keeps me motivated and helps to keep the work fresh and the subject matter in the present tense.

Developing Your Art

I began experimenting in this medium in late 2006. I decided to number each picture, and log each piece of art so that I could track the progress. Working in a single medium allows you to develop your skills in that medium. Over time I have gone from work that looked more mosaic in nature to a more "painted" look to the work. I am presently working on #57. I try to choose subjects that I have a sense of connection to. It makes the work enjoyable and relaxing.

Visiting Artist

I was invited to lecture and exhibit my recent work at an area high school. This was an exciting and exhuberating experience. The students were very receptive and seemed genuinely interested in the work and my process for creating it. This experience is what truely inspired me to create this blog. I want to share with others how this type of medium challenges me as well as how relaxing it is to create. I hope you enjoy the images and if you find yourself wanting to try it, I have some tips posted on eHow for your review.

Art Therapy

Creating art is theraputic in so many ways. This hands on technique allows you to become a part of your work, you are touching your work constantly it gives you a connection you may not get with painting. This work is challenging, your subjects can range form simple to complex depending on your individual and personal choices. The only limits to what can be accomplished are within you. Presently I have created over 55 different pieces of art in this medium, and I truely have only touched the surface as to how intricate the work can be. The harder more complex the subject, the greater the satisfaction you get when you complete the work.

Art Goes Green

What is interesting about this type of medium is the fact that the artist in their small way are actually recycling. Magazines are being used and recycled into fine art. This may never really make a difference in the grand scheme of things but it is interesting, and the work is rewarding. The Art of Recycling, or Recycling is Art, or how to Artfully Recycle, something to think about.