NYC Apartment for Rent

................................sold
................."NYC Apartment for Rent"
............................8x10
..............................oil

The Great Giveaway, Part Three--- Just what are we giving away? On art, nuclear fallout, and our planet

I dread the visions I have of the future, especially if we let right-wingers hold sway...do they want to see us dyeing in the streets of painful disease, young and old, together with children,decrepit, sick, homeless, those who are still able predatorily taking advantage, while the rich who have taken all for themselves die in underground bunkers clutching the money they saved from closing down mental hospitals, health care, jails, police, fire departments??? After they did this nuclear deed to all of humanity, all other life on Earth? This is what I fear, it's been going in this direction far too long. If we shut down our willingness to engage about it, we cannot plan for a better future---and we must. We must begin now to plan compassionately for the massive die-off. And we must plan for knowledge of finding a way to end the nuclear nightmare, so that it is not ongoing for the next million years, with or without us. I don't think most people even realize that nuclear fission means never-ending.

      What goes through my mind about this beautiful planet, her waters, her air, her bodily self is so complex I barely know where to begin. I find myself in the old existential dilemma---whether it's better to face what feels horrific about our world, and all the most difficult feelings attending, or whether to do as I do in most of my life, and find a way to remove myself from the angst of our human condition---I mean the ones that we have created as humans---the nuclear nightmare, and the global warming conditions that threaten the existence of all we hold dear on Planet Earth, Earth herself. My feeling is that if we continue as a species to ignore, we are doomed.


      Now that we have opened Pandora's box and faced the worst consequences of meddling with nature, essentially playing God, we have a responsibility to make certain Earth does not "throw us off" as one put it to me lately in her explanation of how she sees recent nuclear catastrophe at Fukushima, Global warming events as Earth's revenge for our poisoning of her, her waters, her air. She said "if Earth wants to throw us off her, she will, and Earth will be fine without us." Would that it were that simple! Think of the result of Chernobyl's continuous nuclear fission under the sarcophagus there, and the 15 years overdue new covering over the old one. The billions it will cost to build it are not nearly paid, it will be as high as the Eiffel Tower, 500 (?) yards long circumference, and will last 100 years. Thud. 


      In geological time it is barely the blink of an eye. If we do not continue as a species, how do we maintain Chernobyl and the rest of the nuclear power plants around the world? All of life on planet Earth is at stake. To all of you who love life, animals, water, air, Earth, I ask you if you believe there is a way for a critical mass of humanity to get to the point of expanding beyond merely maintaining the tiny status quo of our little lives and find a way toward apology and care for our Mother Earth, at (long overdue) last?


      To be alive is to think. Most in our culture repress thought too much, and untold damage results. Yet, we can not help but think, even if it is "...McDonalds...gambling..heroin...shopping...who can I hurt...air freshener...TV..." all manner of trivial drivel that might hold it all together somehow, for a while, but keeps individuals and everyone else in perpetual ignorance...when we could have been so much more! By using our brains for more than just survival, by embracing art (and the love of it), love for writing, reading, true philosophical thought, how to make the world a better place, how to treat children, how best to feed our bodies, get out of addictive cycles, affect politics toward the betterment of all of society, the environment, away from all the selfishness, the greed, the infantile need for leaders, even bad ones...if only we could have used our minds to lift ourselves up and out of the mess we're in...maybe we never would have been in this mess to begin with. Ever since we got Fooked, I cannot be other than real, as real as I can be...I'm so outraged by the fact that it finally happened, and once again the world shuts down thought, stands by, lets it happen. Better to my way of thinking, we would think and discuss our way to solution, or at least psychological grappling with it... The Joseph Campbells and the Buddhists are all well and good, I suppose, but what about you and me and the rest of us?

     
     Gandhi said anger is energy. If nothing is done with it it can kill. If it is used for the good of all, to the very best of one's individual and collective ability, there is no end to the good it can do, for self and world.

     First comes horror, fear. Then comes the anger as a defense against the terror, and galvanizing of the human spirit to do do one's best to rectify if at all possible. And if this intense need to create solutions goes unsatisfied, well then when the time to die comes, one goes out knowing that as much as possible to fix was carried out by the individual, possibly there is personal peace in that. I have not given up all hope.

       Another thought: I think that given the state of this world, no wonder people can't easily tune in to one another. Maybe it is understandable given all the problems, and given that this does indeed look hopeless. I would say that probably there is no hope, but I am one that needs to feel that there is, in order to keep on going as long as I can. Part of the hope I need to have is that somehow less damage can be done, some can survive, someone can fix it, somehow. I see how ridiculous that looks, given what we know, or probably know, but I am probably one who would have gone to my death in the concentration camps believing all the while it wasn't going to happen. This terror that they unleash on us from the inception of the insanity of nuclear knowledge, as surely as whatever was done to us by violating parents, societal violence, war, illness makes many of us to some degree crazy, including the craziness that has kept people in ignorance and denial of it all from 1942 on.

 

Tree Spirit, owned by Meena Antonia Miller
The Animals, owned by Aki Sasaki
Out of the Depths, owned by Aki Sasaki
Hand Book on the Out of Hand (Pandora's Box), owned by Terrry R. Flowers
Sink or Swim, owned by David Stuart Rose
Gandhi, owned by Rahela Ranjbin


Yes----failure of imagination, that is exactly the trouble: http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/6404

Unspeakable reality voiced on Australian 60 Minutes, CBS:
http://www.worldwidehippies.com/2011/08/18/fukushima-now-radiating-everyone-unspeakable-reality/


Jellyfish may be to the rescue: http://hken.ibtimes.com/articles/177027/20110709/millions-jellyfish-invade-nuclear-reactors-japan-israel-2011-power-plant-shut-down-unusual-growth-tr.htm

Sunflowers, too: http://www.care2.com/causes/sunflowers-may-heal-fukushimas-radioactive-soil.html

From Dr. Helen Caldecott on radioactivity in the U.S. following Fukushima:http://www.nuclearfreeplanet.org/news/2011/07/12/radiation-levels-in-northwest-rain-were-up-to-130-times-drinking-water-standards-following-fukushima-japan-nuclear-reactor-explosions.html

And in the United States: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/27/nuclear-flood-nebraska-fire-us_n_885534.html

Recently uncovered and written about by Annie Jacobson in her book about Area 51, called Area 51: http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2011-05-13/americas-secret-nuclear-test-revealed-in-area-51-by-annie-jacobsen/4/

Grab a cup of coffee or tea, sit back comfortably for about an hour and listen to the voice of reason, Dr. Helen Caldicott:
http://worldstreams.org/past141.html


An excellent organization, on facebook, too: http://www.beyondnuclear.org/home/2011/6/1/check-out-and-download-our-new-ad.html

Worse than a meltdown at three reactors from The Guardian:http://m.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/08/fukushima-nuclear-plant-melt-through?cat=world&type=article

A good compilation on the latest news out of Japan: http://www.infiniteunknown.net/2011/05/12/japanese-officials-admit-for-the-first-time-nuclear-meltdown-at-fukushima-plant/


A warning to stay out of the rain, good links at this blog, and some interesting discussion: http://stokereport.com/rant/radioactive-rain-california

About your milk and fish: http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/radiation-in-milk

The Nuclear Engineering site from U.C. Berkeley provides some interestin discussion indeed: "The one thing I do know is that the EPA has been less than truthful (I'm being kind), concerning information on their website. They've removed and changed information and ignored important facts that should have been posted. And along with that, I don't need some happy, little colorful map. I learned to read when I was four. All I want is the truthful findings from their tests and some unbiased background information pertaining to those tests. I'm not a moron or a child that needs government lackeys to draw pictures for me and tell me everything is going to be ok."
http://www.nuc.berkeley.edu/node/2347


Setback at Fukushima: http://www.euronews.net/newswires/921253-japan-readies-new-tactics-for-fukushima-after-setback/?sms_ss=facebook&at_xt=4dd00a1934f450df%2C0

Architectural plans for new "safe" sarcophagas at Chernobyl: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvEDVuGOJ6Y
Protest of NRC: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/apr/28/anti-nuclear-protest-planned-at-nrc-meeting/ 


Burning radioactive waste debris for fuel in Japan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVKHCK0DvnI
A man living in Tokyo who wants the truth and tells us we should want the same: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pHwvRWw7kY&feature=related

Yuko Noguchi on NPR about Japanese people burning debris from Tsunami with unknown asbestos and radioactivity: http://www.ideastations.org/npr/135770675-one-big-obstacle-to-japans-recovery-trash

"One of the most monstrous medical cover-ups in history" Helen Caldecott, M.D.
http: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ITrXVJMKeQ&feature=related gundersen

Arnie Gundersen on NPR Democracy Now with Amy Goodman: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5mxi1HJP7Q&feature=related

"Bury it!" from Michio Kaku: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DkCD5IInMY&feature=related

An interesting spiritual perspective/meditation on denial and compassion from Portland, Oregon:
http://www.gaiaworkshops.net/fukishima-fallout-and-the-spiritual-challenge-of-nuclear-disaster/

Great radio programming around this and all environmental issues: http://www.tucradio.org/

Very good article by excellent journalist, Alexander Cockburn on California nuclear dangers from plants: http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/76471,news-comment,news-politics,alexander-cockburn-another-fukushima-in-america-not-if-but-when

the Alex Schaefer Hour

go ahead, give a listen! put it on while you fold laundry, or pay the bills, or better yet, get creative! I'll post the accompanying artwork soon. Here's a shot of the painting worked on during the show, oil on canvas, 30 by 40 CLICK HERE TO ENJOY THE SHOW!

8-bit mona lisa 2.0

I was asked by someone interested if I had any prints of the first 8-bit mona lisa I did or if there was another version because they loved the painting and wanted one of their own. There wasn't another version until today when I got done with a new one. I actually liked the concept of painting a new version on a number of levels so I took up the challenge. It's an entirely different painting in every way compared to the first one I did, but it's still the mona lisa. I painted it in oil nice and thick over a past work that didn't go anywhere which I thoroughly scraped and sanded so it has a nice dense surface. I used a very limited palette of pigments and it's just about the same size as the original, 36 by 24



Buy all kinds of 8-bit mona lisa products. I suggest a mousepad or coffe mug! ahahaha! www.cafepress.com/8bitmonalisa

Elysian Park

I went out to Elysian Park today with a couple other painters, Jose and Laurie, and fell in love with all the views! I brought this 18 by 24 canvas and had at this one. I kept the painting brushy but the paint was very watery with lots of gamsol and liquin. I used the color shapes to feel out the composition and then started drawing lines to refine things. when I got back to the studio, I fixed the lines down with more diluted liquin and a mouth atomizer.

McSorley's

.......................................sold
................"We were here before you were born"
.....................................8x10
............................... oil on board.
No trip into NYC is ever complete without visiting McSorley's and grabbing a couple of beer.
Abe Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt to John Lennon have passed thru that swinging doors. Women were not allowed entry until 1970.

the Alex Schaefer Hour, April 20th

Broadcasting LIVE Wednesday, April 20th at 1pm from the Hive gallery through coagula.com it's the Alex Schaefer Hour! We have a special guest, poet, medium, art psychic, tarot card reader, and astrologer to the Hive: Seraphime! Would you like her to channel your favorite dead artist? She will! Questions about love, creativity, the future? She'll take it all on. And on the painting side of things, all questions technical, aesthetic, historical, compositional, pictorial, conceptual, or otherwise will be fielded. There will be art supplies, painting, aesthetic talk, kvetching. Local drop in guests are welcomed and calls are encouraged: (949) 203-4726 join the fun!

Click here for a link to listen to the Show! Seraphime channeled Jimi Hendrix, we talked about world peace, we painted on the painting. We had fun getting things done. Here's how the painting looks at the moment, the same and totally different. Better? Worse? does it matter? we'll get there...

Central Park Snack Stop

..........................................................sold
"Central Park - Snack Stop" 8x10 oil on hardboard.
I'm thinking about to add some action to my paintings and put people in the picture. I hope hard winter day was profitable for this street vendor from the busiest area of NYC. It's Plaza Hotel - Central park.

Drawing at the Dragonfly

I was invited to the "hollywood art walk" which is a very small walk as it takes place inside the Dragonfly nightclub! In all these years in LA I've never been to that club, so it was cool to see it for the first time with art supplies handy. I doubt in any other circumstances they'd let me in with a french easel and my work clothes. So I found a good spot, we found a clip light to work by, and I spent a few hours improvising this composition... mixed media on paper, 18 by 24

Broad Street Station

..........................................................sold
"Broad Street Station" 8x10 Oil on board.
Trinity Church Wall Street

 

Soho Loft

..............................................sold
"Soho Loft-IV" 8x10 oil on bord. 
All new 8x10 paintings are dry and ready for new home : -) Here is the first one.

art in the streets

Maybe it was the opening at MOCA or the perfect weather but a bunch of artists decided to paint outside the Hive gallery during artwalk yesterday. I took the riot scene I'd started a couple weeks ago on the Alex Schaefer Hour and used it as my excuse to paint something, looking at the expressive underpainting and starting to make more refined moves and shapes, it's evolving in an interesting way! oil on canvas, 24 by 36

from memory, from life

I took the portrait of Kim for the first time back to the location and worked on it from life. I'd started it from a drawing and blocked it in from memory of the colors and light. It had gained such a momentum and direction from memory, so it was interesting to take the painting and work on it from life. I'm still working on it but it's looking good and I'm enjoying it! oil on canvas, 30 by 30

The Great Giveaway, Part Two

Chandra, here the entire poem is. 
 Did you see "The Queen Of The Sun?"

Last night, as I was sleeping

by Antonio Machado (1875 - 1939) Timeline English version byRobert Bly Original LanguageSpanish

Secular or Eclectic 20th Century

Last night, as I was sleeping,
I dreamt -- marvelous error!—
that a spring was breaking
out in my heart.
I said: Along which secret aqueduct,
Oh water, are you coming to me,
water of a new life
that I have never drunk?

     Last night, as I was sleeping,
I dreamt -- marvelous error!—
that I had a beehive
here inside my heart.
And the golden bees
were making white combs
and sweet honey
from my old failures.

     Last night, as I was sleeping,
I dreamt -- marvelous error!—
that a fiery sun was giving
light inside my heart.
It was fiery because I felt
warmth as from a hearth,
and sun because it gave light
and brought tears to my eyes.

     Last night, as I slept,
I dreamt -- marvelous error!—
that it was God I had
here inside my heart.

                                                   -an email from my friend Lemora Martin

                                                   -artwork, For Van Eyck,  owned by Lana J. Rose

the Alex Schaefer Hour

Here's a link to the good times had on April 13th. Live from the Hive gallery through Coagula Radio. For visual reference, here is a shot of the painting I was working on during the show, before and after.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE SHOW!

From Street Painting to Murals

   Between street painting and workshop events I've been working on a mural at a private residence.  It is something that made sense during my pregnancy as I didn't have to crawl around on the ground so much ;)  The wall was brand new and had just been coated in a warm bordeaux plaster so It was just asking for something to liven it up.  I worked with my client for several month on theme, colors, and some 'must haves.'  Some of her 'must haves' were grape vines, lemons, Italian potter, structures / architecture, and a bistro...All with an overall rustic feel.  We worked through several revisions before agreeing on this design and it was well worth it.  

   Working around the ornate fountain I designed a series of arches leading out to rolling hillsides and a La Cinque Terra inspired hilltop town.  Grape vines tangle around the columns with a burst of violet and green.  Then to the right of the fountain, a small flower shop leads you down a tiny alley-way behind the romantic Bella Donna Bistro.  

In the beginning stages of the mural... completing weathered rocks and columns around the fountain.

 The mural spanned 37 feet of the clients 9 foot backyard wall and it really added to the tuscan atmosphere.  Below you can see the completed left side which can be seen from the clients living room windows and backyard deck.  The entire project took about 3 months to complete.  Definitely slower then usual but I had an ever growing belly to compete with which made the 9 x 37 foot wall a bit overwhelming at times.  Especially those days on the ladder :)

  

The left side - complete with arches, grapevines, rolling hills, canal, and hilltop villa.

Bella Donna Bistro and Fiori (Flower) Shop add a cozy area between the clients giant eucalyptus trees.

A few dragonflies emerged amongst the grape vines to add a little of my signature.

Stay tuned - I have a few more murals in the works.  One of which is the Nursery for our baby boy to bee...with an adorable Bee and Frog them.  More to come!

Bridge Café

"Bridge Café" 18x24 oil on linen.

This painting is almost dry and I feel it’s ready to be posted. Also, I've been working on some new 8x10 covering a variety of New York city scenes. I’ll post them here soon.

The painting is available here

portrait of kim

Today as an excuse to paint and talk about something on the Alex Schaefer Hour, I spent more time on the portrait of artist Kimberly Zsebe. Last week I worked with a limited value range and only used colors from white to tints mixed to the lightness of yellow ochre, and no darker. I worked to block in large flat areas of local color, like white walls, skin tone, grey shirt, black leggings, tan carpet, etc.; because I only allowed myself to get a certain amount dark, the lay-in was very high key. This week I used the same middle value tints which were the darkest I let myself go last week, only this time they're the lightest I can get and I blocked in all the areas of shadow. I still tried to express the same feeling of all the different local colors of things, but now they're in a low key. With the expanded value range I feel there is a greater sense of 'realness' It's an experimental adventure in portraiture but I'm liking it and enjoying the process. Here's how it looks so far and a digital composite of the painting and the drawing. (p.s. the audio on the show was terrible today, we are sorry. technicians are at work solving the issue)

hustler

this canvas has had quite a journey. It started out as an acrylic lay-in of an image found in an old issue of Hustler Magazine. I liked it ok but it didn't go anywhere and I decided to paint another painting over it, with a clown and showgirl and some rainbows. Don't ask! But that was sucking as well so I decided to go back to the original image. I think that the roundabout journey made for a good painting after all! Here's a composite of the painting in progress and a shot of the painting as it looks right now. p.s. for fun I'm also posting a composite of where the painting went before I went back to the original idea. oil on canvas, 30 by 40

red dot

Well yesterday was the opening reception for the California Art Club 100th Gold Medal Juried Exhibition and when I walked around the corner to see my painting I saw it was sold! woohoo! I've gotten paintings into the past seven shows and this is the first time I sold anything, I'm excited about that! I was told it was sold online before the show even opened, thanks internet! And thanks to whoever bought it. Here's a shot of the dot.

the Mezz

I was back with drawing supplies at the Mezz bar in the Alexandria Hotel for the Circus Maximus variety show. The drawing was a hit, one of the people from the hotel bought it on the spot! I got a decent photo of it on my camera before it was gone so to me I still have everything I wanted from the drawing. It might be a nice start to a painting!