Do not look behind the curtain.

New look, same guy behind the eyes. If you pull back the curtain you will see it is just the human OZ. 

Latest News

I will update the website but I thought I would post it here first.

I have a few pieces in a new gallery this month.

The Gallery, which is also a cool little shop too with shirts, jewelry and art, is located at 5226 Main Street, Downers Grove - IL and is called Poe M. Art House.

The paintings will be there all month (JANUARY 09) and I will be there at a reception (Jan 17th 6pm - 9pm) to which all are welcome even if we have to take it down the street to Emmett's or Ballydoyle's for a few drinks. 

JC

Welcome guys

Welcome to my latest followers (Dad & Robyn) and hopefully contributors to this blog. Hopefully you guys are feeling better now and we did receive your package today.

Is the cat still hanging around???

Love you guys and talk to you soon.

Hey Carol

 Welcome Carol. 

I just noticed you on the followers list. Pretty cool to be the first and only follower of this BLOG. I better publish it or let people know, maybe it would create an environment of sharing our creativity and open new doors of expression for all of us. 

I hope you, Ed and the family had a great holiday.

Talk to you soon.

... at least I am not just talking to myself again!

New work complete and a life incomplete

I am putting up a few quick captures of the last work I have just completed. I ended up titling it Left Standing I believe more to my feeling of how we have not lived up to our part of the bargain when we inherited this earth. I feel we all have lost site to the nurturing, consciousness and physical care that is required in a mutual relationship. Our relationship with the planet that currently sustains us has been and continues to be that of a one sided affair. We all know how those relationships tend to end up when one or both parties are only functioning from their own ego and perceived needs.

Anyway I felt the trees - also the hills and mountain range - were only left standing after the progress not out of care or responsibility, but only because it was the easiest path.

If we wanted it down (trees, hills or mountains) we humans would justify it and take it down.

The mood in this painting - which is from my creative imagination - is one of majestic beauty in nature and its being and our connection to all of it , but also sadness for all we needlessly and subconsciously destroy of which is a part of us.

Sorry about the flash and lower quality photo, I will have better ones eventually for my website.

The second part of my heading - life incomplete - is a call out to struggle or frustration that I am allowing to become a partner in my life right now. I will never complete my life which is a good thing, but I am just struggling with finding a way to keep producing my art and financially  stay above water. Which for me is an either or proposition in my head (I can't do both) and working again full time especially in a corporate environment is looking like it will impact my art and my time with my kids . So I am or have been swimming in those waters for a while and I would like to get out of that pool and jump in a pool that has more people, fun, enlightenment and success, so I put it out of my head and into language.

Back to progress

For me progress is not the goal of living, but it helps to have an intention as a compass or guiding star to aid in direction. Conditions and situations will change and challenges will be present and life will unfold with or without me.

These paintings I still have a general feel and direction or an expression that I desire to be conveyed. I also have not worked on these in a couple weeks so intention as well as inspiration gets a little fuzzy for me. The pictures also get a little fuzzy until I consciously connect with the source of creation and inspiration that originally opened the doors for me to sketch these designs on the canvas.

Anyway I am back at it painting these two so I thought I would post the pictures up - especially for you Dad since we just spoke on the phone about it. 

Right now they are acrylic under-paintings from a charcoal sketch on canvas (36 x 48 and 36 x 60). I will start building with oil though to their completion.

Take care and progress may not always look like a step forward - does it?.

John

Being open to joy.

I have a short amount of time and I wanted to get this post out there.

 Attached is a painting I just completed and I absolutely love the mood and grace of this picture.

 The painting which I am titling "silence" was a work in progress that had been sitting for quite a while and was probably to become destined for the "never to see" section of my studio. That was until my brother inquired about it and wanted to buy it. There was no way I was going to sell it because I just was not happy with the incompleteness or the direction and feel of the painting. Well I struggled with even picking it up again, every time I looked at it I was not inspired and I kept telling my self, "I have to get it done for him as  surprise him as  a Christmas gift." The emphasis must have always been on the words "have to" and not "gift", because I left it alone for a month.

What actually happened for me was one day I believe I let go of the "have to" and just allowed the painting to be worked on again. Different for me, but I actually started getting inspired about what was happening and allowed the joy of painting, of "being artist" to take over.

Anyway I ended up with a painting that for me is one of my personal favorites, very difficult to let go of, a lesson in allowing or accepting what is and creating action anyway.

Moral for me or re-confirmation is the joy in anything or just joy is always present, not created, we just have to get out of our heads for a few minutes.

Hope he does not actually see this post, but if you do, Merry Christmas.