An Old Artist who Lived in a Shoe

"In the Clear" - 5" x 7" - oil

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This past weekend I put aside an hour of time to work on my painting inventory. In the past all of the information about my paintings or their whereabouts was tucked away in the dusty part of my brain. Keeping all of that info in my head was like keeping up with a school full of kids single handily. As often as I paint I'm surprised at how long I've been able to keep up with all of these kids...I mean paintings.

Since I've been entering more shows and competitions, this spreadsheet thing seemed helpful. I'm certainly not a spreadsheet guy so for some assistance I hired/forced the services of Cindy, our local spreadsheet guru. Now I know where my paintings are, what's sold as well as how many pieces I've painted since last year (ridiculous). Hoorray for Spreadsheets!

For all of the Marywood alumni, checkout the back page of the recent alumni magazine before it finds it's way to the trash.

Blue Dogs, Degrees and Warrenton

This past weekend I received my masters degree from Marywood University. Like most social events, I went kicking and screaming. I believe at one point I was on my hands and knees pleading my case to "the little lady" not to make me go. Obviously I lost that debate as she is also part of my graduating class(same program same degree). The peer pressure (kids stay off drugs) from the rest of my classmates really sealed the deal.

Following the Hooding ceremony on Saturday, my classmate Alison gave everyone "The Blue Dog of Happiness." Gifts like that seriously mean so much to me. The picture above is from my seat at the graduation. We were the first row of graduates so there was no way that I could doze off with the cameras in front of me. The ceremony was very similar to grad school, long and tedious (just give me my paper).

Looking back, it was a busy weekend ...two families, three cars, a tour of Scranton, PA, two graduation ceremonies, eleven crazy classmates (smile), an awesome cookout (thanks Amy) and Mother's Day (hi mom). Good times (scratching my head). I can't believe that it all worked out.

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"Warrenton, VA" - "5" x 7" - oil

Although hectic, everyone seemed to have a good time which is the most important part but I couldn't wait to get back to the studio. Road trips always inspire me and after a total of twelve hours on the road and several hundred photos later, I was ready to throw down some paint. This particular painting stems from the ride back through Warrenton, VA, after making another stop at Art at the Mill.

"Grazing #2" - Painting a day

"Grazing #2" - 5" x 7" - oil

For the past year, I've felt this enormous pressure to get a "real job." I've been fortunate enough to teach part time for the past five years and continue my career as an artist but the pressure is still there to do more. As an added reminder of my need to "make something of myself " I'll be receiving my official MFA degree this Mother's Day at the Marywood University graduation. The only way I know how to deal with all of this is to completely engulf myself in my work. Painting is the only thing that takes the pressure off...even if it means painting a cow.