I enjoy music. Oh yeah, it's no secret. All kinds of music. ( I have even been known to play a little guitar and drums) It's been the subject of many a painting. Well, anyway, I was working away this evening and happened to be listening to some old Django Rheinhardt (Swing From Paris) and was daydreaming about being able to play guitar like that. I figured since I can't play like that, I would pay a little tribute to old Django and the others who can make thier instruments sing. So, here is to breaking out of the usual and trying something new. Here are three guitars...Enjoy!

 
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I get blue. I think most of us do at some time. Don't we? I used to think that it was important to not ever be blue. I would even get blue about feeling blue. Our culture teaches us that it is not OK to feel blue. Turn on the TV and every commercial shows us ways to stop us from being blue. Over the years, I have realized that feeling blue is OK. Embracing the blue can lead to alot more of NOT feeling blue. (There might be a Zen quote in here yet). I have also learned that this blue is an important part of who I am and none of this artwork would probably exist if it wasn't for the blue. So, with that, here is to being blue and embracing it and letting yourself be blue and knowing it is OK and when it's over all the other colors will come back to you... Enjoy!

 
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"Once you have given up the ghost, everything with follows with dead certainty, even in the midst of chaos" - Henry Miller, Tropic of Capricorn. I was 15 or so when I read that opening sentence of Tropic of Capricorn. At the time, I don't think I fully understood what exactly he was meaning but when I applied the words to my own life at the time it felt more like a mantra. Well, here and now, there is no giving up the ghost. Completely the opposite if anything. So, here is a small painting to remind us that all things move forward and if we let ourselves, we can all move forward as well...Enjoy!

 
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This is one of those songs that extends beyond the realm of music. So much so that I almost don't think of it as a song. It makes me think of childrens toys, maybe more specifically those old Jack-In-The-Box toys where you would crank the handle and you never knew when that dang clown was going to pop out and scare the bejesus out of you. (Sidenote: Websters says the official definition of "bejesus" is: "Used as a mild oath") Anyway, this is another one of those classics that carries memories of childhood with it. Something different for us all. I guess in the end that is what music is all about and even songs like Pop Goes The Weasel can mean more to us than just the simple words with simple notes... Enjoy!

 
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Our street was full of kids. Lower middle class kids in a lower middle class suburb of Midwestern Michigan. Most of us kids rode hand-me-down bikes and we wore hand-me-down clothes and we handed down jokes that we overheard from our older brothers. We were old enough to know what kissing was and young enough that we all still had to lie about actually doing it. We would all put old baseball cards in the spokes our bicycle wheels and ride up and down and up and down the street. We laughed and had races and someone would always wipe out and skin a knee and quickly get up so the other boys didn't think he was a wimp. Well, here is to the old days, when things were as simple as a baseball card in the spokes and when your days were filled with being friends and that was enough to get you through it all... Enjoy! (Story included on back of card)

 
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I have mentioned in previous paintings that I really enjoy history. I also enjoy old marketing and design techniques. Occassionally, I try to bring back and promote those old techniques that have pretty much been killed off by computers, Photoshop, Illustrator and countless other programs. (Don't worry, I use those programs every day and love them). Anyway, here is to old school design and the simple beauty of line art and black and white and no matter how many years you move forward its always good to stop a moment and look back at where you came from. Enjoy!

 
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I was on the couch watching TV. I was about 8 or 9. One of my older brothers came running down the stairs with a few friends and they grabbed me and through me in the car and brought me to his friends house. I remember thinking the parents must be gone because everyone was so unihibited, laughing, jumping around. It was marvelous. We ended up watching The Holy Grail. After that I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. My brother. On Christmas eve, my oldest brother would have a get together at his house and we would all exchange books, talk about music, drink, talk about art, drink, talk about books, drink, and talk about other things and drink some more, play ping pong and drink some more. After that I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. My other brother. I could go on telling stories but all of them point to this; we all have people that we look up to and admire. We all have friends that we respect. It is not often that two of those people end up being your brothers. Here is to you guys! .... Enjoy!

 
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We were talking about music again. This is not the first time music this has been the subject of a painting. Well, at least one of mine. Long story short, after mentioning the old Jazz Butcher song, The Devil Is My Friend, I thought, it's time for another devil. I still remember the words to the song (Well, most of them at least) I also remember that in school, people thought we worshipped satan and songs with lyrics like that didnt help the cause. (that is the subject of another painting) Anyway, here is to sitting around with friends and talking and remembering lyrics to songs that you have forgotten existed.... Enjoy!

 
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This is #3 in the limited edition button series. This is the limited edition of a recent painting called The Things We Abandon When It Doesn't Stop The Crying. (ACEO #334). 

Story:  I sat in my seat on the plane drawing most of the way home. There was a mother with a small baby in the seat in front of me. The baby was not particularly excited about being stuck on the plane. (like most of us, I suppose) I turned my headphones up to drown out the crying and worked away on some pictures. I sat back and was thinking about what to draw next when I saw the baby's pink, stuffed bunny wedged between the two seats in front of me. The mother must have abandoned it as a method of getting the baby to stop crying. Well, you know the saying; one crying baby's loss is another painters gain. So, here is to all the things that we abandon when it doesn't stop the crying...

Only 25 of these buttons will be made available. Once these 25 button are gone, that is it. I have worked with the printer to make sure that each button is individually numbered to reflect it's placement in the set. (If you are the 5th person, you will receive button #5 of 25.) The first four designs in the series have already been created and they will be released over the coming weeks. (FYI, the first two sold out in 24-36 hours.) The next 4 are already in the works... Enjoy!

 
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