Circles Records and Tapes

One of the cooler buildings in downtown Phoenix is Circles Records and Tapes. It was originally a Studebaker showroom, built back in the forties. Inside the round glass front was a turntable floor that would go round and round with cars on it, showing them off to the passing public. A good example of streamline deco design, of which there is not much in the valley. Sometime in the seventies, it became a record store. Unfortunately, with the changes in the music industry, Circles finally closed in 2010. The building is still there but is threatened by the fact that the owners have not registered it as an historic building. You can read more about it at Modern Phoenix. This is a small color sketch I did from a photo I took a couple years ago.

New England Landscapes.

I'm currently working on a piece for Yankee Magazine. Lori Pedrick, the art director, calls me about once a year to illustrate what is usually a wonderfully written personal essay about New England and the author's connection to some aspect of the landscape. The current one is about mending a fence.
This is the piece, about 75% done.

The first piece that Lori commissioned from me was for an article "A Fierce Yellow Light". The author told of her affection for the maligned Norwegian Maple.

Finally, this  landscape was for a description of the end of Autumn and the "coming of another kind of beauty".

Thank you to Lori and Yankee for good assignments. I'll post more of my Yankee paintings later.

Friend Saves the Day

Some years ago, the night before a head painting workshop I was holding in my studio, the model emailed and said she could not come. After a few minutes of vengeful thoughts, I called the daughter of a family friend who I had wanted to paint for some time. She said she would be happy to model. She was only 17, had never modeled and did a superb job. I called her back a week later and shot some photos, one of which is the basis for this study. 

Gouache with pastel

New Windsor Hotel, An Old Friend

I found the New Windsor Hotel shortly after I moved to Arizona in 1982. It's been the subject of quite a few of my paintings over the years.

The first in the mid 80's.

Shortly after that I became busy with other kinds of art work and didn't do much city painting until the 2000's. This was the next version.

Shortly after that, the building was painted a brighter pink color. However, I subdued the pinkishness in this little version here.

Finally, I recently painted this study. It's different from the others in that I worked from the west facing facade as opposed to the front. The late afternoon summer sun is as much the subject as is the building.

The New Windsor has been a good old friend. 

Taco Stand

This used to be a hamburger stand here in Mesa. Over the past couple of decades, good cooks from Mexico have taken over many of these old fast food places so now instead of marginal cheap hamburgers, we have an array of tasty Mexican Cuisine. I went out this morning and painted this sketch of one that I have wanted to paint for years. I’m thinking it may be the beginning of a series.

Urban Bungalow

Another plein aire bungalow.

Yellow

I find I paint a lot of yellow things. I should probably write about that sometime. For now, here is a little sketch I did from a photo I took in San Francisco a few years ago.