"Hammie"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

This is Hammie, the pot-bellied pig. He lives in Hampstead, MD with a menagerie of his friends. He is the lone pig among a host of llamas, donkeys, goats, sheep, chickens and cats - lots and lots of cats. Hammie has a face only a mother could love (and his human mother does, dearly - in fact this porcine portrait is a surprise birthday gift for her so those of you who know her please keep it to yourselves), but as the saying goes, "He has a winning personality." Indeed, you might call him a stupendous pig.

"Amy smoking"

Oil on linen mounted on wooden panel - 8" x 10"

It's ironic that that act of lighting up a cigarette has been elevated to fetish status. It wasn't that long ago that "smoking or non-smoking?" was a question asked before being seated in restaurants and on airplanes. How times have changed.

(This was another painting that didn't photograph well. It is quite nice in reality but the subtle hues in the flesh are lost and the glare in the hair spoils the piece. Arrrgh!)

"Tujaque's Sazeracs"

Oil on linen mounted on panel - 6" x 8"

In honor of Mardi Gras, I have painted the bartender at Tujaque's Restaurant on Decatur Street in New Orleans mixing up one of the Big Easy's most famous cocktails - the Sazerac. Made with rye whiskey, bitters and absinthe, it is an acquired taste. I just happen to have the ingredients on my bar so I may just have to make myself one. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Sazerac cocktail:

• 1 cube or 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 4 dashes Peychaud Bitters
• Splash water, about 1/2 teaspoon
• 2 ounces rye whiskey
• Splash Herbsaint (or Pernod), about 1/2 teaspoon
• Lemon peel for garnish
• Ice

Tools of the Trade - Diana Moses Botkin's Art Challenge - February 2012

"Tools of the trade - Bartender"
Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

As I mentioned in my previous post, I am flattered to have been asked to join the Diana Moses Botkin's Art Challenge Group. The February subject was "tools of the trade." Since it need not have been one's own trade, I choose the tools of a profession I very much admire. Having the proud distinction of having a cocktail named after me at The Dogwood, one of Baltimore's best restaurants, I have had occasion to see these tools put to good use. The drink is the "Mark Adams" martini:

Mark Adams $11
spicy and dirty: Serrano pepper-infused
vodka, shaken and served up and dirty, garnished
with olives and pickled okra (not for
the faint of heart)

Also, as a Harley guy, I am partial to chrome. There is a biker saying (which I don't subscribe to): "Chrome won't get you home!" After a few of these a cab will get you home.

Here are my fellow challenge artist works for February:

"A Painter's Handful" 10"x8" oil

©2012Mary Maxam



Barber's Tools

6"x 8" oil on hardboard
©2012 Diana Moses Botkin

"Paints" 6"x6" oil
©2012 Becky Joy



"Bluebird En Plein Air"

oil on panel, 4x4"

©Vicki Ross




"Tool of the Trade"

Oil on canvas
10"x30"
©2012 Suzanne Berry

"Ruby"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 8" x 8"

As you will see in my next post - I have become a new member of fellow daily painter Diana Moses Botkin's "Art Challenge Group." Challenge groups like these are very beneficial in exercising the little grey cells. Once a month a new subject is chosen and explored. The finished works are kept secret from the other members of the group until the day they are revealed and posted. This month's topic was "tools of the trade." As you can imagine, some of the group did not venture past the tools at hand in the studio. A wealth of material is there to be sure. I guess technically I, too, did not leave the confines of my workspace, but how many artists have a fully stocked bar in their studio? It's a good thing there is no Guinness on tap or I would get even less done than I do.

What does all this have to do with little Ruby here? I'm glad you asked. I almost used her as my "tools of the trade" painting. You see, Ruby was a tool of the trade, a casualty of a puppy mill. A retired breeding bitch, she was cast off and sent to a shelter after her usefulness as a breeder was gone. Her teeth are non-existent. Her jaw was broken and poorly set. Her tongue, with no teeth to hold it in, hangs from her mouth in a sad, but smile inducing sort of way. (I painted her "good" side, but she is adorable on both) Weighing in at a mere 8 pounds, even for her breed she is tiny. The shelter reached out to an Italian Greyhound rescue group and my friends down in Texas fell in love with their first Iggy. Ruby could not have asked for a better forever home.

"Louie"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

I still had a bit of paint mixed up from the previous night's session and thought I could put it to good use. Whoever it was that gave me the tip about freezing the palette to retard drying - thank you, thank you, thank you!

The leftover pigment was used to paint this piece. Have you ever known a standard poodle that was afraid of the water? Well, I have. His name is Louie (or should that be Louis?) Whatever. Anyway, Louie has the same enthusiasm for the water as I have for boats. He'll fetch a tennis ball all day, but throw it in a pool, river, stream or estuary and all you get is a quizzical look, as if to say "Surely, you don't expect me to go in there and get that!" This day, my friend was determined to show him how much fun it is and gave him a little(?) nudge into the pool. He was not amused.

The photograph of the painting is not particularly too good. I didn't post it last night, thinking that a wash of north light might help. It didn't. Like people, some paintings just don't photograph well. Here it is nonetheless, just to prove I'm still stroking away.

"Tennis anyone?"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

I wanted to have a bit of fun tonight so this seemed appropriate. I like the abstract quality of the water. The local pool welcomes dogs to come and swim on the last day before closing for the season. There were a lot of happy pups enjoying the day. This guy was no exception.

"Owen and Ellie"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 8" x 8"

I was amused by these little imps sitting on a pile of cookbooks with an empty dish beside them. It's as if they are saying "You don't need a recipe, just put something in the dish please." My boy, JJ, is notorious for sitting on anything I am trying to read. I'm sure none of you ever have that problem {;-)>

"Conch Shell"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 8" x 10"

Ah, the ubiquitous conch shell. Who among us (at least on the eastern seaboard) didn't grow up with one of these beauties in the house? A souvenir from a family trip to Ocean City, Atlantic City or some coastal vacation town, these mollusk shells were wondrous instruments for blasting out a trumpet-like tune and when lifted to your ear you could swear you could still hear the ocean. I understand they are somewhat endangered now. Pity, as I love a good bowl of conch chowder.
If this background color looks familiar it's because I had mixed a bunch of this teal for the horse painting and had some left over. I thought it would make the perfect foil for this piece.

"Jane"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 6"

My friend Debby has a new mare to hitch to her team of draft horses. Her fancy name is Seven Lick Acres Jane. Whether you call her by that hefty appellation or just plain Jane, she is quite a horse. I had fun with the coloration on this small piece. Hey, at least it wasn't another oyster.

"Oysters and lemons"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

Hey, what can I say? Oysters are fun to paint! These guys modeled for me at the Cross Street Market in the Federal Hill area of Baltimore.

"Oyster and knife"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

It's ironic that I love to paint (and slurp) oysters but I couldn't unhinge a raw one if my life depended on it. I've watched the process a thousand times. It looks so simple when my friend George does it, of course he is a world champion oyster shucker. To be fair, I haven't tried in a long while.

This beauty and a host of its siblings were brought to a party I attended recently by a very thoughtful and well received guest. Carried in a joint compound bucket, along with the accouterments for opening them, they were dredged from the river flowing past his backyard. Thankfully he also brought the skill to retrieve the bounty within. Someday I'll try again when the fear of a stigmata has past.

"Lover's Eye"

Oil on porcelain - 1" x 1 1/4" 
I was commissioned a while back - OK, a long while back - to paint a "lover's eye" for a dear friend. For those not familiar - miniature portraits of just an eye, set in elaborate brooches, lavaliers, stickpins or even small boxes were secretly exchanged between clandestine lovers during the turn of the eighteenth century. Eye, brow, perhaps a wisp of hair was just enough to keep one's lover close but not reveal his or her identity. The girl for whom this was painted is quite the jewelry aficionado and I have no doubt she will find the right craftsman to set this properly. As for its ultimate recipient - she'll never tell.

 Addendum:  This is the finished mounting,  created by master goldsmith Lauren Schott here in Baltimore.  Made to wear as a lavalier or a pin, it is a really beautiful setting. 

"Monica's Wedding"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel - 8" x 10"

Technically speaking this was the first painting completed in 2012. However, I have been working on it for quite some time. It was a challenge since the original reference was artfully taken in black and white and I had to transpose the color from a plethora of miscellaneous snapshots from the wedding. The painting was commissioned by my friend Deb who provides the following commentary:

– Monica was married on June 24, 2011 in Penang, Malaysia in a Hindu ceremony. This is an image of her following the wedding in her wedding sari, which is traditionally red. The ornate necklace which can be seen is customarily placed on the bride during the ceremony in lieu of a wedding ring. During the ceremony, Monica’s hair was covered by a scarf, which remained on until the ceremony was completed. When it came off, an elegant braid was revealed underneath. The jasmine in her hair is the flower customarily worn; the smell was exquisite.

For those of you not familiar with Hindu weddings, they definitely know how to party. These festivities lasted for four days and at each event there was wonderful food and drink, with all who were present dressed to the nines in fabulous saris, gowns, cocktail dresses and amazing Indian garb. On the first day, there was an engagement party where the engaged couple received blessings. On the second day there was a Mehendi party where the bride and female wedding guests received henna tattoos on their hands, arms, legs and/or feet. This was followed by a Sangeet, an evening party, held under a tent on the beach. On the third day, the wedding took place under a tent at sunset followed by another fabulous meal. The kilted groom and his family, who are Scottish, were escorted to the wedding site by a group of bagpipers. People hung out their windows to see this sight in tropical Penang. Finally, on the fourth day, there was a formal reception.

The painting was commissioned as a gift for Monica’s mother, Usha, in thanks for her warmth, generosity and hospitality. The original photographs that were used as reference for this painting were taken by Monica’s new sister-in-law, Alicia Betham.

JJ in the Studio

Oil on museum quality Ampersand Gessobord panel - 6" x 8"

Happy New Year! I don't know about you, but I am glad to put 2011 behind me. Talk about the quintessential creative blackout. I won't go into the myriad of negative elements that led to my eight month artistic drought. Suffice it to say that I am climbing out of it and am excited to be back at the easel. Here's to 2012! May it be glorious for us all.

Sammy upside down and happy

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel 6" x 8"

My boy Sammy was vying to be on the blog again so how could I resist? Although my wife disagrees, I think the background looks like a roaring volcano or the flames of Hades. Sam has a little white bib and a white tum with he is obviously proud of, as he is fastidious about keeping it snowy white.

"Piper in the garden"

Oil on museum quality ampersand gessobord panel 6" x 8"

Here it is gang; the first painting since the back went out. I won't bore you with the details - the short form is that I had (have) nerve damage in my right leg which has prevented me from standing for long periods of time. Since I stand at my easel, which I feel is the only way to paint (no offense to the sitting artists reading this) I needed a lot of physical therapy to help regain my strength. A big thanks to Janine at Hunt Valley Physical Therapy for getting me this far.

It is apropos that I chose Piper to be my first subject. She has been my model more than a few times, being the mother of three of my four studio assistants. I haven't painted her since her ear was tipped. Piper could be the poster child for TNR. For those unfamiliar with the program Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) is a method of humanely trapping unaltered feral cats, spaying or neutering them, and releasing them back to the same location where they were collected. TNR is promoted by the ASPCA as a humane and more effective alternative to euthanasia for managing and reducing feral cat populations. When I was finally able to trap Piper and take her to the Humane Society to be spayed she was once again laden with eight kitten embryos. Tipping the ear is a way to signal to other kind souls who wish to help these wayward girls that they have been fixed. Living a few blocks from the Humane Society, we had our share of strays come to call. There are a lot of despicable people in this world, among the worst are the cowards who deposit their unwanted pets on the Humane Society grounds after hours so they don't have to explain why they are giving them up. One such visitor was a little white cat that we called Clara. When we finally were able to gain her confidence, we took her to the vet to be spayed. Our keen-eyed vet noticed the incision scar from her previous spay when she shaved her and thankfully didn't open her up again. Clara was probably someone's pet that they had gotten tired of and dumped up the road. Piper is and always will be feral. She and her wild companion, Bristol (yes, named after the Palin girls) live a good life on the back porch. We live in the country so cars are not an issue, in case you were worried. The girls have a duplex cat house that I built for them which has two heated sheepskin beds in the winter and two hammocks in the summer to keep them comfortable. They prefer to hang out on top, like Snoopy on his doghouse, in this heat. Three meals a day (canned food) and a midnight snack - they don't go too far afield.

It felt strange (in a good way) to be painting again.

Phoenix, Festus and feelin' fine

OK, maybe fine isn't le mot juste but I like the alliteration. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, I am finally on my feet again, albeit somewhat wobbly, not unlike Festus from Gunsmoke. I have this urge to holler "Hey, Marshal Dillon!" Quite apropos, since we lost James Arness this month. This is just a post to say I am NOT dead and hope to stand at the easel very soon. With luck there may be some new art on these pages - Gasp!

"Say hello to my little friend"

In case some of you were wondering what became of me, I blew out a lower disk about ten days ago and have been on my back ever since. The angelic Susan has been my lifeline between this world and a world of excruciating pain.

Debbie Hairy"

Oil on canvas - 24" x 24"

For over 20 years we have had a sit down dinner party to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. The menu is carved in stone: corned beef roasted with sherry, dry mustard and brown sugar, butter-drenched cabbage, beef braised in Guinness, poached salmon with dill cream, Irish soda bread, champ, and Irish whiskey cake. Each year there is a patron saint. Past years have included St. Patrick Stewart, St. Patrick Macnee, St. Patrick Swayze and St. Patrick Henry ("Give me corned beef or give me death") to name a few. When we started running out of Patricks we started adding Pattys; St. Patty Duke, St. Patsy Cline, St. Patty Hearst and, this year, St. Patti Smith (because the night belongs to corned beef lovers). Though not officially a costume party, our guests usually get in the spirit. St. Patsy Cline brought out everyone's urban cowboy, St. Patty Hearst saw everyone in green berets. You get the picture. So we weren't too surprised this year when two of our guests came in drag as Debbie Harry and Tina Turner. We also had a very convincing Patti Smith, complete with copious amount of spirit-gummed crepe arm pit hair and doves on her fingers. OK, you had to be there. I was channeling my inner Andy Warhol when painting this rendition of my friend, Bruce.

"Williwaw"

Oil on museum quality Ampersand Gessobord™ panel - 8" x 10"

I was recently commissioned to paint this heroic and fantastically fortunate cat - Williwaw. After reading his adventures on the high seas you will agree he is the luckiest of cats

The Story of Williwaw

By Linda A. N.
December, 2008
Rotterdam, NL

Nothing short of a miracle describes the survival of Williwaw. Williwaw (Willi) is our tiger cat who has lived with us aboard our 36' sail boat for the past seven years. We (John and Linda) moved aboard our boat in 2001 and spent the first two years cruising the east coast of the States and the Bahamas. It was in 2003 when we crossed the Atlantic that our incredible incident occurred.

On the third night of the passage we were experiencing the typical fatigue from sailing shorthanded. We were on our way from West Palm Beach Florida to Bermuda. The weather was overcast but calm, there was no moon that night and we were motoring along just fine at 5.5 knots in these conditions. With three hours on and three hours off watch we were still adjusting to our off shore schedule. At 3:00 am John was on watch but had dozed off, only to be woken with a timer that we used as insurance to awake us every 10-15 minutes to check the horizon for shipping traffic. John was ready to change watches with me and noticed that Willi was not in the cockpit where he had been sleeping earlier. He called down below to wake me up for my watch and asked if Willi was keeping me company. I got up, still tired from only three hours of sleep and looked around for Willi. It was not unusual for him to find a warm and peaceful place to get a cat nap. With John on deck and me below we searched the entire boat. I was beginning to panic with each minute that went by and no cat to be found. After several more minutes, we decided that he was not on the boat and we didn't know when or how he could have gone in the water.

There is almost no chance of finding anything in the water in the best of daylight conditions when you are out to sea. We were also about 200 miles north of the Bahamas where there is always a possibility of sharks. Without speaking to each other we knew in our hearts that we would not find Willi. I was overwhelmed and on the verge of shock. It was darker than one can imagine; you could put your hand in front of your face and not see it.

In the meantime, John intuitively looked at the compass course and time as we were searching for Willi. John turned the boat around to follow the reciprocal course. We both knew we would not find him but we could at least make an attempt. We motored back about five minutes. Called out, we heard nothing. We motored another five minutes and called. John could hear something very faint in the distance. It could have been anything but most likely his imagination. We went another few minutes in the direction of the soft noise. Called again, we could hear a muffled MEOW. Now frantic to find him before he drowned or was lunch for a shark we continued to start and stop in the direction of his meow.

Earlier that evening during my watch, I had been listening to the short wave radio to try to stay awake. There was a BBC Nature minute about the reflective nature of cats eyes. Now still in my state of panic to find Willi alive I remembered this and got our strongest spotlight. Shinning it in the direction of the noise, we could just barely see one of his eyes in the distance. Now with a better route to head toward, I put the boat in gear and throttled up as fast as it could go. As we first approached our frantic cat, the boat was moving too fast and could not slow the boat down fast enough. As we passed him, I was sure our boat wake would drown him. We made a second attempt to reach him and after failing again, I threw a cushion into the water, it was one of the few things not tied down during our offshore passage. Willi was able to hold onto the cushion making it easier to both see him and eventually retrieve him from the Atlantic.

The next thirty hours exhausted Willi regained his strength and appetite. It was truly a miracle we could find him and see his eyes shining from the light through the darkness in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

The remainder of the trip to Bermuda was uneventful for Willi. My mom Joyce met us in Bermuda along with several cat harnesses; we still had over a thousand ocean miles to go offshore before our destination of Portugal.

Since then we have traveled from Barcelona Spain throughout the Mediterranean to France, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Malta, and Tunisia. Then in 2006 we pointed our bow to the north and headed through the canals of France to England and now (December 2008) the Netherlands.

Willi remains our devoted companion. He makes new friends wherever we go; his newest ones are the two fifty pound dogs of the harbor master. His Dutch is improving every day!