Not anything like finished, but I really like this one. Thin gouache from the olden days. I took my paints to the Norton Simon and tried to see what I could do in the great out-of-doors. This was done in preparation for a monumental "Painting Tour" of Italy we'd signed up for.
(Re: Italy: WHAT A DISASTER.)

I'm looking at my (pathetic) posting over the last few months, and feel I should point out that I was working hard at helping restore the car above. A 1957 Chrysler 300C with original convertible top.

Just sayin'....

I really like the little brass corner-protectors on the faux luggage in the foreground--felt-tip really worked for those.
Same trip as yesterday's.
Yes--2005!

Felt-tip of same kid. From the way-back machine.
(You can see where I cut him in Pho-Sho and nudged him over...all for fit, dear viewer)

Took these photos before I was done, but it gives you an idea of where it ended up. Whole project of resuscitating a 6 year old piece was interesting because I was putting new oil paint on top of old, completely dry paint.

[Fer instance, I repainted all of the boy's face except his nose (and after this photo, all of the hair), and on the man, the hair plus all the features--a very extensive repainting.]

This is an issue because normally when you paint over "dry" paint, you have to worry about the new paint drying flat; why this is, I'm not sure. On other pieces, I would counter this by covering the old paint with this obscure medium called copal--it's like super-thick linseed oil. Copal worked well, but it's icky and dries really slowly. This time the paint was so dry, I figured I'd risk it and just prep the old paint with a little spray varnish. on't know if it worked for a month or so....

But it's kind of a moot point--I gave the painting as a gift, and the recipient (and family) just looked on in confusion and not a little discomfort and said, "Uh, thanks." And with that, they deposited it in a corner.

You never know how people will react....

Been painting the last three days. Found this unfinished portrait in storage last week and decided to finish it. The kid depicted is practically a teenager now!

Fun to lift a brush again. And boy, oils are a forgiving medium--you can just rub it right out and get going again.

For 15 miles of the drive home yesterday, I was followed by a hearse....

Curious, I slowed to let it pass and saw it was a Lincoln Town Car, stretched and reconfigured for coffin transportation. They'd done a good job modifying the body--the rear fenderline was particularly graceful when enlongated.

But all I could see of the driver was an enigmatic outline--and a very casual, confident hand resting atop the wheel.

Who could be piloting this thing? In late afternoon traffic, the question seemed significant, so I maneuvered for a closer look....

He had a great Magnum P.I., devil-may-care vibe, (cigar, baseball cap, mustache, Ray-Bans).

And this made him seem all the more believable as Death on a Mission.

Ship mates.

Dear Wife broke down and clicked "follow" on this blog. YEAH!!

Spotted while crossing the channel to Catalina...on our 10,000 hp hydroplane ferry: an oil pump station masquerading as an atoll, and a sailboat about to do some serious wake-bobbing.