happy holidays

I know it's kinda early...but is it?

This is the holiday card I designed for 826LA, a nonprofit writing and tutoring center in Echo Park, Los Angeles!  They are super great and awesome.  

I never ever ever work for free (if you ask I'll say no) but when they inquired as to whether I'd be willing to donate some time + energy to illustrate a holiday card for them I said yes.   I just really believe that what they do is fantastic.  

If you live in the area, you can visit their Time Travel Mart store front (the front of the space is a little store, and the back of the space is a big giant room where they tutor the kiddies).  The store is very silly, and very very fun.  If you live in San Francisco you might be familiar with the Pirate Store, it's founded by the same folks.  

Read your kid a book!!!  And happy holidays.

there is just one moon, and one golden sun

....and a smile means friendship to everyone!

This is my piece for the Gallery Nucleus It's a Small World show that opens this Saturday, September 17.  I made a diptych, which is fancy speak for "two paintings that are supposed to go together".  They're both about 10"x20" and acrylic on board.

I wanted it to capture the happy, peaceful, slightly psychedelic feeling that you get from the ride.  I have been on that ride (at Disneyland, and once at Tokyo Disneyland!) a lot of times.  Once, we got stuck inside in the same spot for about 15 minutes, which could easily be obnoxious, but there's so much amazing design to look at that it was actually nice.  Slightly hypnotic, but nice.

Messing with the colors was a lot of fun, and I actually indulged and bought new, non-bargain price paint for this project!  Well, I say "indulged" but most of my paint was pretty much dried up crust in a bottle and not usable.  Plus I've got more gallery shows coming up and I like to be prepared!...or try to be.

Classes at CalArts started today!  I'm teaching a class about making awesome portfolios (a class I wish had existed when I was there).  I'm slightly nervous, more because it's hard to get up in front of people and talk than anything else.  My first class is Friday, so I still have to time to prepare!  I'm going to practice my lecture on my dog.  We'll see how that goes.

Work work work!!

this painting has no name

The finished painting!  I realized as I was writing this post that I haven't yet named it.  I've been trying to stay looser in my paintings, and let go of that holding-your-breath-trying-to-make-it-just-so feeling.  It's bunches more fun if you are not freaked out every time you pick your brush up.

Sorry about the quality of these images.  I don't have a real camera (these are iphone pics) and the painting is too big for my scanner.  Yes I know I could scan it in pieces and all that jazz, but who has time for that?! (I do not...as I type this I ought to be working on something else, but I get excited when I finish something!)

I know you guys like seeing the painting surrounded by the chaos of my table top...

That thing in the upper left corner is my color work book.  I had to paint what felt like a billion swatches of different color combinations, plus shades and tints for each combo, for a painting class I took at city college.  The class itself was pretty useless, but I've kept and used that color work book ever since.  It's a super helpful thing to have, if you  have the patience to make one.  

last post of the year.

One last post before 2009 is kaput.

It's been a looooooooooong year. I think 2010 is going to be about 1,276x better. I have a good feeling.

Hope all your holidays were remarkable and fantastic! Thanks for all the love, blog followers. It really does make me feel good about the things I make to know that so many people (mostly complete strangers!) support it. Cheers!

I promised myself I would update at least twice a week.

Who wants to go to a blog that's all stale? No one. I'm determined to keep updating at least twice a week, although last week I didn't do so good. I thought about updating several times, but it just didn't happen. I'm going to try harder this week! It's only Monday, there's still time!


Here are some designs that I did a while ago for a commercial that didn't get used. The ad was about cell phones and stuff, which is why all these guys have phones.




And here are some children who could have accompanied Mr. Cell Phone.




Meanwhile, here's what I've been up to:

-painting backgrounds for the Swarovski project
-handing out my business cards!
-getting ready for sweater weather and enjoying how much cooler it's been in Los Angeles these days (at least in the morning)
-sketching up ideas for APE like a crazy lady
-reading 2 books at once (not as confusing as it sounds)
-drinking lots and lots of tea
-setting up a flickr account
-preparing for a vacation get-away weekend real soon!


Well, at least I'm not boring.

By the by: I've turned comment moderation on for the time being. I guess someone thought it would be a real fun thing to come to my blog and anonymously sass me, but I don't think that's cool. Nobody wants to read somebody else's out and out rudeness, even if it's not directed toward them. So for your sake, dear blog reader, and for my own, you will have to have an ID of some kind to post a comment AND your comment will be moderated. For most of you that's no big deal, but for people who for some reason think I'm stupider than a head of lettuce and everybody else should have to read your opinion about that: tooooooo bad.