"Vodka Martini with Three Olives"

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

Scotch whiskey and I are old friends. We go back years and years and I still like a wee dram in the evening, after I have put the brushes down, of course, and am reflecting on the day. The peatier the better. I could easily retire to Islay and drink Laphroaig when I'm near the end. Lately however, I have embraced the dirty, spicy vodka martini as my drink of choice. Last year dear friends of mine gave me a bottle of home infused pepper vodka. They are master gardeners and pepper heads and grow some very interesting and uncommon varieties of hot peppers like "Biker Billies" and "Chocolate habaneros." Let's just say the stuff would put hair on your chest. It was not for the faint of heart but right up my alley. This year they gave me a bag of assorted capsicums and I took them to Lars, my favorite mixologist at the Dogwood restaurant in Baltimore to infuse with one of his organic Vodkas. He keeps it behind the bar for me to have with my short rib meatloaf special on Thursdays. I doubt mere mortals could touch the stuff. It really is wonderful in a dirty martini. This is one of Lars' concoctions.

"Drink Naked"

Oil on archival, museum quality 1/8" ampersand gessobord panel - 6" x 6"

I seem to be bouncing back and forth between reflective chrome and fuzzy puppies. What can I say? I love painting diverse textures and want to keep it fresh. Next up – cold and slimy; by that I mean fish or oysters.

We went to visit the Naked Mountain Vineyards and Winery in Markham, Virginia last year. They make extremely good wine and we bought a case of their excellent Chardonnay. I might have gotten a case even if the wine was just so-so because of the corks. When you open the wine, the cork reads “Drink Naked”. That appeals to my decadent sensibilities. Indeed, I picked up a tee shirt at the winery with that slogan on it. I get a lot of smiles from people when I am wearing this shirt. Once, Forgetting I had it on, I went to take some mail to a friend in rehab. I got some real dirty looks from the counselors…oops, my bad?

These tools of the trade were fun to paint.

Bombay Sapphire martinis

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Oil on archival, museum quality 1/8" gessobord panel - 5" x 7"

I don’t know whether I am feeling particularly patriotic today or if I am caught up in the red state / blue state political rivalries that are dividing our country, but the red, white and blue palette of this piece can’t be denied. Since I am an independent, moderate, it is a good thing that purple is my favorite color. Certainly 2008 is going to be an interesting year that may require more than one of these martinis before it’s over. I am a scotch man myself although I wouldn’t turn down a good dry martini. "Here's looking at you, kid."

I was hesitant to try this composition on a bright red tablecloth as I thought that the subtleties of the pale aqua tones of the gin would be lost. To my surprise, the bottle took on a deep cobalt/ultramarine hue. Painting the Harley last week only whetted my appetite for more chrome, so the cocktail shaker was a good fit. My biker brothers say “chrome won’t get you home” but I am a sucker for the stuff. Now where did I put my shades?