CUSTOM ART | COLLAGES Custom art is an important piece of my art business. There are countless scenes and objects that I’d really enjoy painting or drawing, but in 33 years of earning a living with art, I have come to understand that people want what they want, not necessarily what I want. Therefore, I […]
It’s June
This is Hume Lake as seen from the footbridge that crosses Ten-Mile Creek on the end of the lake toward the dam. For the past eight summers, I’ve had an idyllic reunion with a childhood friend at her Hume cabin. It is modest and rustic, and our times there are a real bright spot in […]
Postal Thoughts
Are You Kidding Me?? I ordered a box of Springville’s Hospital books to be shipped to the author’s wife. When the notification of shipment came, it was shipping the books to MY BANK IN THREE RIVERS!! WHAT? HOW? WHY? I didn’t recognize the address so I looked it up on the internet. When I saw […]
Answers to the Terminus Dam Questions
Ranger Tim replied to the questions I asked after our dam tour. You can see that blog post here: Terminus Dam and Lake Kaweah. Great Questions! Thank you, Ranger Tim! We love the pencil drawing! That is down at the outlet where the water comes out of the 12’9” pipe and flows into the stilling […]
In the Think Tank and Other Work Thoughts
Sort of Working Having finished the oil painting commission, priced paintings and cards to sell at Silver City, all this while believing that I have finished enough paintings for the entire summer (possibly delusional about that), it was time to consider how to next spend my work time. I pulled weeds at church (not work), […]
It’s May!
Pencil drawing of Kaweah Lake, 11×14”, $375, unframed. (This is the May picture in my 2026 calendar.) Reminder I can help people write books and get them printed. The books that I have shepherded from idea to publication but that I don’t sell can be found on this new page: OTHER PEOPLE’S BOOKS. This includes […]
Beginning a 10×20” Commissioned Oil Painting
The real estate customers chose the panoramic shape. Good thing they know I can paint. (Well, duh, that’s why they commissioned me.) This is similar to my current favorite subject to draw and paint, but there are blueberries and avocados rather than orange trees. There is also a distinct lack of snow-covered mountains and no […]
The Hardest Part About Being an Artist (accompanied by a random selection of pencil drawings)
Anyone want to guess? Guesses Maybe you are thinking that it is difficult to paint according to people’s instructions (called “commissions” or “commissioned art”). That might be true for some artists, but I am not one of them. I’ve said for decades that I’d rather draw an ugly house than be a waitress. Maybe you […]
Drawing Lessons
Since 1994 I have been helping people learn to draw. Some people already have an inkling about drawing but want to increase their skills. Some have always wished they could draw but didn’t know how to start. Some have been told they are terrible at art (such mean fake “teachers” out there in the public […]
A Difficult Drawing | But I Have Experience
During my most recent pencil drawing commission, I contemplated how this would have been difficult in the past. There was great satisfaction in putting this together with confidence, knowing that I was exceeding the customer’s expectations while meeting a tight deadline. Not bragging, just relaxing into the sense of work done well because of many […]