ink & watercolor

Ninja

There's an extremely under-nourished kitten living in our backyard that we've been trying to feed back to health. We decided to name it Ninja, for its uncanny ability to completely blend in with its surroundings: its coloring is such that when it lays flat in the dry grass, you really can't see it if you don't know it's there (and even if you do, sometimes.)  Anyway, I did some ink sketches of Ninja, and here's hoping that it survives.

Labor Never Rests?

This image is waiting for a message to become a socialist poster.

real chicken

So, we've decided now to buy only organic, free-range meats (for many reasons, but having recently watched "Food, Inc." forced our commitment).  I've prepared whole chickens many times in the last few years, but I must say that having the head and feet still intact really affects how I feel about what I'm doing.  Not even having to actually kill it myself, and pluck the feathers, being presented with the head and feet enforces in your mind that this was a living creature that died so that I could eat.  I think this is an obvious, but important, thing to think about when we eat.  I felt like I was handling the bird with more respect somehow.  And while it was being cooked, and I moved it, and the foot broke off, I irrationally flinched a bit in apology.  If we're going to continue to eat other animals for our own benefit, it's important for me now that we don't think of this flesh as just another chunk of matter that comes conveniently processed & wrapped from the grocery store.

bird contemplating corn kernels

gallus gallus

This is one of K's favorites: a large, bold, poster-like image in watercolor and pen.

seated nude

I like how the sketchiness of this oil creates a sort of vibrating movement to it, despite being a static pose.  Also, I like how the curve of the arm rest has almost become one with her arm and hands.

charcoal & chalk

ink bamboo

Bit of a gloomy day today, perhaps a little of that came out in this painting.  Looking at it now, I see that I unintentionally incorporated the "S"-shaped movement in it that an old teacher of mine used to talk about.

Bos Taurus

For some reason, this is one of my favorite things I've done.  It's ink & a bit of color.

profile

Here's an oil painting I did a while back: I've always liked it for the facial expression, and the overall tone.