Oceans to Oceans
Artwork
War and Peace
Conflict is inevitable
The Sea sends its navy
To war against the Land
The Fog lays an ambush
Against the Bluer Skies
The Mud launches a ground assault
Against Your Soggy Boots
Warring factions lie in wait
Around every bend
At the end of this trail
Named for a creek
Whose Latin tributaries can be traced
Through blood red thickets
Back to the god of war
Whose thirst for conflict
Is only surpassed
By the mutiny of his forces
Aligning with Dappled Light
and Babbling Creek
And Chirping Birds
and Buzzing Bees
And the Unhurried Lover
In Your Arms
Conspiring
To bring
Peace
Negative Donut
Proof of Concept
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Rose Bush
No Rush
The Distance to Forever
Down and Down and Down Some More
Out to Lunch
It’s All Just One Rock
Teacher of Souls
The Hungry Distance
A Deeper Shade of Maybe
Say Nothing
Pale Blue Eyes
It’s true, that fog just lingered on, and on. Those pale blue eyes…
I saw a burst of blue sky while rounding a bend and thought for sure the fog was lifting. That was my mistake- thinking anything was sure about fog. I should know better. And I generally do, but the scene was truly beautiful so I thought I’d risk it for the biscuit and I barely got a sketch in before the fog went all gray and dark. I could still make out the foreground ok, but mostly just had to finish the piece on that first impression of a memory. All good. It can be somewhat liberating to chase a memory because it’s more of a feeling than a literal thing to look at and compare to. When it works it’s a lot of fun.
Something Not So Easy
If the previous painting of the day was titled Something Easy, well this would be the opposite of that. This place is hard. In many ways. And so was this painting. For a long few minutes, I didn’t think it was ever going to work to get this down the beach perspective. But what a dynamic place to hang and paint on a cool summer evening, I left the beach buzzing.
Something Easy
Not much to say here, just a nice day on the southern California coast. Just a little something easy for those going through some hard times.
The Whole Wide World
Ether
Ever since I’d heard about the remains of this old pier at the bottom of a steep cliff, all covered in graffiti, I knew I’d need to paint the place. The morning fog kept me from being able to paint another cliff top vista nearby so I took advantage of the weather to paint these remains from a close distance where the fog wouldn’t obscure my subject completely. I didn’t know the graffiti would read “ether”. Seemed appropriate to me on this day where even one’s own thoughts seemed to vanish in the ether of fog every few steps. Halfway through painting the sun burned the fog away and a beautiful morning light hit the remains and I went after it.
Nowhere Else to Go
Sorry Not Sorry
The Sea is for “California”
The Sea is for “California”
The Ay is for “Ay, it looks kinda fun out there”
The El is for “Where the El did all these people come from? It didn’t look this crowded a minute ago”
The I is for “I didn’t see you back there”
The Ef is for things I’ve heard out there that I can’t repeat
The Oh, is for “Oh look at this set coming in”
The Arr is for “Arr, that guy seems like he’s getting every wave with that massive log”
The In is for “Hey those guys just went in”
The I is for “I might get a wave or two now”
The Ay is for “ay, it is was super fun out there today”
Cottage Industry
Hot exhaust fumes hardening into tar deposits hanging in the air over the snow cone machines where the tourist buses come to die and pour out their guts just short of the hospital where elderly cottages are kept on life support by the steady IV drip of short-term rental vacation deposits.
This place is bought and sold to the masses as a glimpse back in time to an older California.
Except the older California didn’t have a gift shop.
I just came to paint and move on. It really is an adorable little cove though.
Jacob’s Ladder
No Van is an Island
