Kinzie St. Train Bridge

February 09, 2015 in Artwork, reference photos, watercolor

I'm behind in posting new work, but here is a bridge in the center of downtown Chicago which I finally figured out I should paint. It's easily accessible and slowly deteriorating. nI usually like to view things close up for more drama, so I stood at the bottom of the stairs and looked up. It took 6 photos sown together to fit the whole bridge in. The reference photo I attached is one of the 6, along with my 8 hour pencil drawing.

Ogden, Utah

March 22, 2013 in Artwork, reference photos

I'll be displaying my work at the Ogden Arts Festival on June 7-8. It's at the train station where I have taken many pictures and drawn inspiration for some of my work. Utah seems far from home, but I'm staying with my art friends, Scott and Amy.

Centennial Mine #3

February 20, 2013 in Artwork, reference photos, watercolor

I was dismayed to find my favorite copper mine in ruins on New Year's day. Historical Artifacts in the Keweenaw Peninsula are disappearing fast. cenntenial-mine-3-backside

Osceola Copper Mine

July 23, 2012 in reference photos, watercolor

This is one of the newer mines left standing on the Keweenaw peninsula. I used the existing pile of rusty old parts, but moved them around and turned the building so it was looking at us.

Another Train

May 07, 2012 in Artwork, reference photos, watercolor

This is a train in front of the Ogden, Utah train station. It's in great shape, but I felt like making it look run down, rusty, and very cluttered. I made two changes in the train for compositional reasons, and I bet train enthusiasts would find them right away.

Dental Office

February 23, 2012 in architectural illustration, illustration, reference photos

Here's a simple idea that I fleshed out to express the possibilities. We had a logo, basic dimensions, photos, and a tooth.

No.3 shaft house stairs

February 16, 2012 in Artwork, reference photos, watercolor

My watercolor, No.3 shaft house stairs, has been accepted into the Transparent Watercolor Society Annual national show! I usually throw in some opaque color and computer work to get the composition I want, but this one is pure transparent watercolor. The composition depicts my inner conflict of wanting to see what’s inside, and acting like an adult who doesn’t injure himself climbing an obviously dangerous structure. Copper mining website

More Towers

February 03, 2012 in Artwork, reference photos

I keep painting images of these towers on spindly columns, which would fall over within a day if someone attempted to build them. The idea came from a trip to Yellowstone, were I ran across a vein of columnar basalt along the road. Basalt is a volcanic rock that forms into hexagonal columns as it cools. The expose rock looks like a dense series of columns holding up a huge mass of rock. I like the scale and variety of textures, which I transformed into a row of towers, but I like the depth and uneasy balance created by seeing through the columns, hence the spindliness. I spend so much time drawing things that need to make sense in reality, that I purposely created something impossible.

House Portrait in Palos Hills

January 11, 2012 in architectural illustration, reference photos

I created this image for a client that wanted it for a gift. The site has trees running rampant, and a common challenge is to prune and organize them to guide your eye to the house, while still giving a lush feeling.