I was invited to paint live at wom, or word of mouth, an underground downtown art and music party in Echo Park. I brought a square canvas and art supplies and let myself go with the composition and color. The lights were constantly changing color in the room so the only way to capture the feeling was to paint like everything is opal! I never know where these underground parties are so there's always the fun drawing the place out. I designed a composition what felt like the space, but also had plenty of room to add lots of people. I went between painting on the painting, and drawing people in my sketchbook to add to the scene. A bright young kid who was the son of one of the people who threw the party gave me "updates" on what was cool going on so I didn't get totally lost in the canvas and knew when to be in the crowd and have my sketchbook out. There was this crazy band called the
radioactive chicken heads that played, there were fire jugglers and performers, stilt walkers and trapeze, body painting, artists doing their thing. People there really dug my painting and enjoyed seeing the party remembered in a unique way. oil on canvas, 36 by 36
Appropriately named! This was another canvas I worked on yesterday in Joshua Tree. The morning that I painted the previous post, I was in another spot thinking it was going to be good but I would check back later in the day because while I liked the drama of the scene, I thought the light was dull. I went back before sunset and check and it still wasn't interesting. Oh well, at least the afternoon painting that day turned out awesome! So the next morning I took that canvas to Jumbo Rocks, found a very exciting motif, and sacrificed the previous image, I like doing that somehow. My painting turned into a photo shoot for a photographer who ran into me there, it'll be cool if he sends me some of the images. I didn't get to this spot in time to finish the painting in one go as the light moved way too fast. I liked that it forced me to be simple and direct to try to get as much as I could, but I intend to take this canvas back in a couple weeks, earlier in the morning this time, and go at it again. oil on canvas, 24 by 36
