Big Junk yard Dogs#7

After painting for almost a year on 12" x 18" formats, I have recently started to paint on tore open cardboard boxes, the sizes mostly 3' x5' or so. This requires a whole new set of muscles and and new way of standing at the easel (or away from it and over the art on the floor). Bigger brushes but still a "disregard" for the surface as long as the image gets its day. I like dealing with the new texture and splits in the surface. I also gouge and tear the surface if I feel like it, and put the paint cans down right on the painting. House paint on cardboard.

Big Junk yard Dogs #5

Sometimes I like to let the painting sorta stretch and bend if it wants to, but this one seemed to be hell bent on exaggeration and (can we say?) cuteness. house paint on 3' x 4' or so card board box.

Big Junkyard Dogs #1

Crazy big cell cardboard! On this painting I used a squirt bottle with acrylic paint along with the house paint from the hardware store. Was I cheating?

Big Junk yard Dog #12

How fun that once in a while there are lables to paint over or around that remind me of the humble material I am using. House paint on flat cardboard box (shipped to a friends health food store).

Big Junk yard Dog #6

I continue to treat the surface in a casual manner while trying to create value through image making, thus making the surface valuable.

Big Junk yard Dogs #9

Some farmer drug this old truck out of the forest to the edge of the highway to sell, maybe 50 years too late. House paint on card board box treated badly.

Big Junk yard Dogs #3

At about 4 feet square, I have gone up in size from the brown bag paintings quit a bit.

Junkyard dog #1

These truck paintings are from a series bases on old utility trucks from the 30's, 40's, and 50's when function and style competed for attention. Trucks seem to last longer than cars, perhaps because they are simpler and taken care of better? I continue to work on the theme of Junkyard Dogs, but the next posts will be much larger and on old card board boxes.

Junkyard dog #2

House paint on brown paper bag.

Junkyard dog #3

House paint on brown paper bag.

Junkyard dog #4

House paint on brown paper bag. this piece is accepted to the Yellowstone Art Auction in Billings, Mt. for January, '09

Junkyard dog #6

House paint on brown paper bag.

Junk yard dog, early VW

House paint on brown paper bag. This series of early autos was inspired by my love of car shows and growing up in the '50s and '60s when the design of a car seemed to mean something. All that "forward thinking" is now rusting away or in a few cases, preserved by car buffs. "Junk yard dogs" are rapidly disappearing as junk yards disappear. I love the contrast between the "space aged design" of the autos and the rough media I chose to represent them in.

Junk yard dog, early Buick

House paint on brown paper bag.

Junk yard dogs, vw in the weeds

house paint on brown paper bag.

Junk yard dog, Merc

House paint on brown paper bag.

Junk yard dog, '49 Ford

House paint on brown paper bag.

Junk yard dog, Early Chevy

House paint on brown paper bag

Junk yard dog, '59 chev

House paint on brown paper bag.

Garden shoes

house paint on paper bag.

Chuck T.

House paint on paper bag. These "shoe" paintings are from a series on foot ware and overall are intended to be a "portrait". I have tried to give a sense of light and space without taking away from the subject of the painting.

Work Boots

House paint on paper bag.

Winter Boots

House paint on paper bag

Running Shoe

House paint on paper bag

Dog #11, Matisse

I received great advice from 2 people, one said to make 100 paintings, then decide what my art will look like. The other encouraged me to investigate alternatives to expensive art supplies which is when I decided on this limited pallet and basic support of the paintings. I have made 67 paintings since last January and when I post more you will see a variety of papers encluding cardboard boxes. These 3 Dog paintings are from a series of 16 paintings of my old english sheep dog right before he passes away last spring.