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It always seems whenever I'm at my most down - when it looks like all the odds are finally lined up against me, poverty is unavoidable, and it's time to succumb and get an awful job that would ruin my life and pride forever, something happens that sucks me back into the artistic world. A painting sale, a new student, an odd mural job - anything that provides a bit of cash and requires time and talent to get it done. There's always that hope the next show, the next comic book, the next little interview - will be
just the thing to help provide a constant level of living. Of course, none of that ever occurs, and its back to the pirate's life - scraping, fighting, starving for the next drunken adventure - hoping for clear seas and wishing for an easy trip - with the reality that none of that will ever happen. And so after burning out from painting in the middle of 2007, I've been on a hiatus, instead concentrating all my efforts on the first two volumes of the Really White
Vigilante. The results and reception of the book have both been beyond anything I expected, but I now feel its time to get back to painting and see where everything lies.
And so with the promise of sunny skies ahead, the publication of my second book and a bit of time to relax and breath before my painting show in November, I've picked up my paint brushes again and started to dabble on canvas for the first time in a long time. The first canvas I picked was a moderately successful painting from last July. I covered the canvas in a pattern of pthalo blue and creamy white blocks of color, and started to dig out a composition from there. I'm undecided about adding a couple of
figures, but I'll see where it goes.
In the meantime, I've been brainstorming some new ideas for some larger, new canvases that will revolve around a rebirth of sorts for me. Taking a look at my portfolio from the past few years I've seen some bright spots and some areas for massive improvement. In a very good way, the time off from painting and the intense concentration on drawing has only helped, and surprisingly, the numerous lessons I've taught in my drawing and painting classes have reinforced a lot of the principles that I need to concentrate
on myself.
So stay tuned for a whole new body of work in the next couple of months with a whole show yet to be produced, even if it is partially conceived. And pray for smooth seas and some hard fought treasure for this salty old pirate.
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