09/2016 - Untitled

• Life is moving forward regardless of my opinion of it. Kids are older. I have a son in high school now, and my youngest is two. She brings a lot of energy to our house. Almost as much as she takes from us. She follows me to the basement when I go down to paint. At first she just watched and played in the area. Then she started finding some chalk and permanent markers to draw on some of the cardboard boxes in the basement. I knew the day would come when she wanted to do what I was doing, and I have anticipated that she would carry that out on the canvas on which I was working. Surprisingly she didn't. She asked to paint and so I put out some acrylic paint from some old tubes I had around and gave her some old brushes I had. She has been very respectful of my materials and a few weeks ago we went and bought her very own paints and brushes. She has been very exctied about those and has spent many nights down painting on top of her cardboard box table. My older daughter, Scarlett, who has always been very interested in horses, is now taking riding lessons each week and plans to enter riding competitions. Artistically, she has began drawing horses in a realistic style. I see her talent developing and she does very fine work. I'll have to post some of each child's work on here. Bransen, my first born, dedicates much of his time to skateboarding. We built him a quarterpipe that he wheels out into the street infront of our house and spends hours skating it. He has entered two competitions in the last two years and took 3rd place this summer. He hasn't been drawing as much as he once had, but is taking Art Honors in his high school this year. I have never pushed them toward drawing or art, but have encouraged them when they do engage in it. They are all very talented and seem to enjoy art as a escape and method of relaxation. My wife is back teaching 2nd grade for a local area school. She is a talented teacher and her students love her. She has been very engaged in yoga. Any chance we could find this summer we have loaded the paddleboards and kayaks on the Eurovan and have headed out to local lakes, reservoirs, and ponds. We all love being in the water and it has been a great time to be together as a family. As for my art, it has taken a bit of a back seat in the past two years between having a young child, house projects, and my full-time work, but I am finding ways to free up more time to paint nowadays. I will post images as I get them.

01/2014 - A New Year

• It's disheartening to see how long it's been since I have given any attention to my website. I must admit that I stopped having a lot of my painting photographed. It's unfortunate, but a majority of the time I am in such a rush to get the piece finished and off to the gallery that I just don't allow time to have it photographed. With that said, I am making it one of my New Year's resolutions to have my work properly photographed.
  It has been a incredible past couple years. My family and I are doing great, the kids grow so fast. My wife and I are expecting another beautiful child next month. A Girl!! It will be different to have a baby in the house again, it has been 9 years since the last baby. I look forward to a new baby keeping me young. It's Dayna's first, so it is that much more exciting for both of us and the older kids will make fantastic older siblings.
  
  Lovett's gallery has been gracious enough to have me down for a show in March for which I am very excited. I am in the process of finishing 8 new paintings for the show. It has been a little difficult as I am finishing our basement at the same time. I am fortunate enough to be able to do much of the work myself and blessed to have a few kind and skilled friends in the areas I am not.
  This month also dons the commencement of another large scale commission piece for Joshua James. This is the second piece we will be working on together, and it is always a very exciting and stimulating process. I will post some pictures of the last one and the process of this one as I can.

  5/2/2010 - Mid-Year Update

  • I'm home watching the NHL Playoffs and decided I had better give a brief update.
    Dayna and I were married in February and enjoyed a great honeymoon in Costa Rica. We were able to see and experience great things there and very much enjoyed the vacation. I am really enjoying marriage with Dayna. She is an incredible woman and makes all the difference in mine and the kids lives. We love having her around. The kids are doing great and we're all excited to spend a few months of the summer in Minnesota with Dayna's parents.

    I shipped 4 pieces down to the Lovetts Gallery at the end of March and they were successful in selling 3 of the 4 pieces within the next weekend. I will be sending another 4 pieces down this coming week. I am really pleased and excited to see where our relationship takes us.

    I am really enjoying being busy keeping pieces in the galleries and getting new works ready for the Show in September.

    1/23/2010 - A New Year

    • You know its been a busy year when you haven't made one blog entry for more than a year. Its hard to believe that I have had this website that long. Quick update; I am currently engaged to be married on February 20th to Dayna Groom, a very amazing woman. She's a 1st Grade school teacher and the kids and I enjoy going to her softball and ice hockey games. Although she can more often than not beat me in a game of P.I.G., I've got her whooped in the drawing and painting department. We make a good team and balance each other very well. The kids are doing great. Bransen is in 3rd grade and goes to Dayna's school. Scarlett started kindergarten this year and is already reading very well. It's nice to have her at home in the mornings. Eventhough I don't get much painting done, I appreciate that I have the opportunity to spend that time with her.

      Some really GREAT News! I'll now be represented by the Lovetts Gallery in Tulsa, Oklahoma in addition to the A Gallery in Salt Lake City. The Lovetts Gallery will be very promising and I look forward to them pushing me in my work.

      A few of my pieces will be going down to the Annual Sear's Invitational at Dixie College. Show opens February 12th, President's Day weekend.

    Dayna and Me:
    

    6/29/08 - 25th Anniversary Show

    • The gallery's 25th anniversary show was spectacular success. Jennifer Rasmussen had some new brilliant paintings. I really like her work. Also, Greg Stocks had some wonderful new pieces and one in particular. He used a green that pushed up against this blue in these trees he had painted. A new combination I had never seen him use before. It was so striking, I just stared at it for a few minutes.

    Something inpiring happened on the way to Vernal

    • It was late Friday night, about 1230 am to be exact. I was going up to help my step-dad move shops. The drive to Vernal has often been a time for introspection. I was thinking about where I am in life, what I'm doing and how it's working out for me. I have been thinking alot about this same matter for a couple weeks now. I realized as I often have I need to be doing something in art and something more with my own art. Just then a brilliant thought came to me and my mind began to turn with all the potential and great many possibilities. At one point, I had to pull over to write down all the ideas. Eventhough it was after one in the morning, I was so electrified with these thoughts that when I finally got to Vernal the first thing I did was sit down at the computer and email an acquaintance with my idea before I talked myself out of it. I will be meeting with him this coming week to discuss the idea and the possibility of actually making it happen.

    6/03/08 - New found inspiry

    • I took three paintings to the gallery Thursday and have one more I'll be taking up to complete my contribution to the Summer Show. This last one I'm particularly very excited about. Here's why: other than a large scale commissioned piece of a Lake Powell landscape, I haven't painted any other Southern Utah landscapes. This one is a large scale 60"x18" vertical piece of the Upper Emerald Pools Waterfall in Zions National Park. It was photographed while there with my family a week ago. The landscape composition was inspired by one of the great western painters of our time, Frank C. McCarthy. Thanks Frank. I was looking through one of his books and came across this amazingly striking composition. I couldn't get it out of my head, so when we went into Zion's the next day I was bound and determined to find something with which I could paint a similar composition. I wasn't exactly sure if it would turn out the way I saw it in my head, but I must say I'm pretty pleased. I'll have it photographed and up on the site soon. In the meantime and for the real deal come to the gallery opening on June 28th.

    5/15/08 - I've had a lot of things going on in life lately:

    • I have been working unceasingly in both real estate and painting.
    • I had a long converation with Robert Doak, painter and supplier of fine artist materials. I don't know if he means too, but with his east coast personality and bluntness, he was cracking me up. I'm sure it was annoying to him. I think he wanted to hang up on me many times. At least twice just for using Maroger medium. He is sending me some of his products with which to experiment.
    • My kids are doing great. Bransen is excelling in school. He is at a third grade reading level in the first grade. Scarlett, my little pony, is as full of life and personality as ever. They are wonderful children and keep me busy.
    • I took three paintings up to the gallery last week. Show opens tonight. I have two weeks to get one more painting finished and then I'll be taking three more up for the big 25th Anniversary Show on June 28th.

    4/18/08

    • It's been two months since my last blog. It feels like last week. Time really goes by. Some new things in my life. I got custody of my two amazing children about 6 weeks ago. It has changed my life, so much for the better. It's a lot different having a daily responsibility for two young children from just looking out for oneself. It has made such a positive and incalcuable difference in my life. It's opened many opportunities for me.
      I have been working on getting as many pieces done for my gallery's, the "A" Gallery, Summer Solstice Show which also happens to be their 25th anniversary Show. It opens on Saturday, June 21st from 6 - 9 pm. So far I have two pieces and hope to get two more done by then.
    Here is a pic of my kids and me:
    

    2/20/08

    • I'm going to start a blog here. There are a few different things I want to incorporate into my website, so I'm still trying to decide whether to make it all part of the blog or to make them separate.