“What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?” Vincent van Gough

For us San Franciscans it has been a very cold and foggy summer. Not that this is totally unusual, yet, I swear it's been really really colder this year. Such a San Francisco thing to do, complain about the weather... it's either too hot or too cold.

On our Saturday dog walk meander I took this photo on 18th Street, just as a reminder that it really is still summer. My thoughts were with Vincent.

Last Friday I had another sighting of that mystery romantic artist's work in the Mission. The others (see posting July 27) have already been taken down, so I was glad to come across this one on 19th. This one is "Fools rush in were angles fear to tread".

It's always a bit disruptive when changes happen around the studio. Not unusual that artists move in/ out just prior to Open Studios.... have met some new friends and said goodbye to some. Some are off to Europe, but thankfully some are just up the street and we can still have cafe breaks together.

With all the moving going on around the studios I decided to do a project I have long put off. I got a hold of some large sheets of foam core board to cover up the interior window/wall between my neighbor and myself. It is so nice to have finally completed this project. Makes the space brighter and provides more hang space.

The other studio project this month was to get oil paint ready. I have put off going back to oils because of concern for Taxie. I bought a fan, a childproof door divider and a low impact turp substitute. The studio door can now be open with the fan outside blowing air through and out the window. So far so good.

I have been working on a couple of small paintings to get used to oils again. Neither of these are complete, but has been very fun. Oils are such a different feel than working with acrylic. One big difference is that the paint "stays wet" and is a far more forgiving medium in some ways... don't like something, wipe it off or blend some more color in.

One is from a drawing of my balcony and the other the stools at Wiz Burger.

The cool thing about oils is that you do have wait time which makes it easier to have several projects going on at the same time.

I am starting a new very minimal/ abstract painting from a photo I took on the hill in Bernal Heights. Here is the photo and my initial layout. Hope to get the actual painting started today.

Random Barbi, Ken and friends sightings

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that Barbi and Ken seem to be all over town these days? Here are a few recent sightings. Kind of creepy weird if you ask me.

Notice Hipster Barbi with her dogs. Love the "Barbi falls off her bike" in the new Valencia Street bike lanes.

And then there was the 4th of July Ken in the Castro?

And this poor guy in the Mission just ain't got what Ken's got.

And, well, Hipster Barbi Mom keeping buff.

Isn't San Francisco just the strangest place on earth? Gotta love it!

Draw local, treat your chalks humanely

Rumor has it that Michael Bruton put out about 700 pieces of art chalk last Friday night on Valencia Street near the Post Project by Michael Arcega.

The concept, as I understand it, was that the sidewalk would become an extension to the pole project extending the messages.

The good news is that it is quite fun to walk up the street and see the total chaos in non-permanent graffiti. And yes, there is the usual downside. People who did not seem to get the concept of the project insisted on writing on the sides of buildings.

I enjoyed reading all the messages and expressions that will wash away come the next rain. Looked like all who participated had a great time.

Walking up Valencia I saw these small picture frames (approximately 10" or so) with a message.

And on 20th Street near Florida I spotted two more. I am sure soon someone will identify this elusive artist. Cool project. I like it!

Taxie generally gets the last word... and here she is studying the latest painting. I can always count on her for a constructive critique.

The painting of Pacific Atlas is close to being finished and I am starting to prep for the next project.

I have decided to start working in oils again. Looking forward to the change in medium.

“If I didn't start painting, I would have raised chickens.” - Grandma Moses

Friday (July 9) evening started out with a cocktail and Brie Crepe at Ti Couz on 16th before venturing across the street to the opening reception of Escape into Summer at Artist-Xchange Gallery.

As an artist I am always grateful to gallery's for accepting my work and at the same time it is always nerve racking to have your work up on "the wall" for all to see. It's kind of a schizophrenic feeling. You can always tell who the artists are; we are the ones outside of the gallery pacing the sidewalk!

Also, THNK YOU to the Haigheration BLOG for the great write-up!

Afterwards I walked over with friends to the opening of Illuminated Forest at The Lab. The show was really fun, like being given an E-Ticket for a ride at Disneyland or better yet, in the middle of some crazy enchanted forest. Very cool show! Congrats to the artists!

After our little jaunt up to Tahoe it was back to the Studio. I continued to work on some drawings. (pastel drawing of Tuscana, Italy)

I have been avoiding starting a new painting and not sure of exactly what I wanted to do. Today I just jumped into a painting of a very industrial building that I have been intrigued with, well forever, on 17th Street. I always find it interesting how it just happens. One moment you are not sure what to paint and the next you are painting.

In this painting I am working on pulling together my drawing style with my painting style and then just let it all happen. I got the color and composition laid in. I am looking forward to tomorrow when the painting really starts to happen.

The heat is back on again... submissions coming up and Open Studios (speaking of tomorrow... have to go over to ArtSpan to approve the image proofs) are just around the corner.

"I thought of that while riding my bicycle." - Albert Einstein

As the heading on my BLOG states, I sometimes get side tracked with ramblings about dogs and cycling.

This past week Ms. Taxie Cab-ernet took some time off from her duties as Studio Pup and went on a squirrel chasing, hiking and bike riding adventure to Lake Tahoe. And for a Terrier I am sure it does not get any better than that!

Above: Tahoe Pinecone pastel drawing

For me it's been "about the bike" as far back as I can remember, from that first tricycle to the now hand built custom road frames. Grow-up? NEVER... it's just too much fun!

With the adoption of Taxie all cycling came to a temporary abrupt stop. No more city commuting, no more distance road rides. When you take on a rescue dog it's all consuming to move them through the issues, build the trust and there is so much to learn. It is a huge commitment. We do not know what her history is, all we know is that she wound up in the Modesto SPCA and was rescued the night before she was to be euthanized. She was less than a year old. We adopted her the following day. Poor pup was very scared. The reward? Simple. To see a happy dog and that unconditional love that comes with it.

Taxie has moved into a cycling family, so she needs to learn how to "be on the bike".

I have never pulled a trailer, but being determined to be able to take my dog with me I started the research. I decided on the dog specific trailer, the Tail Wagon, manufactured by Burly.

As I could not find any store in San Francisco that had one I placed a special order. It was a gamble to see if Taxie would adapt. This also meant that a bike had to go, so I sold my Santa Cruz mountain bike to make room.

When it arrived I brought it into the house with the wheels off and made a game/ trick out of getting into her "bikie". It did not take long before she was climbing in on her own and taking naps... became her favorite dog bed. That's when I knew it was time to hook it up to my city bike and give it a try.

My city bike is a relatively inexpensive Cyclo-Cross frame, the Double Cross by SOMA Fabrications. It is a great all round frame, steel and well suited for city streets and hauling the trailer. Bradley at American Cyclery helped me build this bike up; his shop is a great resource for a wide variety of city ride frames and hard to get Campagnolo parts. BTW he has a wonderful collection of classic Stingrays and tricycles... it took about a month but I finally got him to part with a little 1950's tricycle that I gave to my partner as a birthday gift. Every grown-up should have a tricycle to keep life in perspective.

For my road bikes I use and highly recommend Bespoke Cycles. Stefan Paske is, in my opinion, one of the best "wrenches" in San Francisco and an all around good guy.

We had a very fun time and Taxie is now officially a "Roadie", she has ridden Tahoe! Photo is at our break in Tahoe City... she found a really good stick, now that's one happy dog!

Every space is a blank canvas

Summer is here! And with it comes the wanting to get outdoors.

I am an inner city dweller, and as such incredibly lucky as I have two great outdoors spaces to develop container gardens, a small lower level terrace and a roof top deck.

San Francisco being located between the bay and ocean creates this incredible wind tunnel with heat and fog making it quite challenging to figure out what plants will survive.

With the help of the staff at Flora Grubb we have found some great solutions to both wind and drought tolerant plants. Many of our choices are either from the European Mediterranean or African zones and they seem to be (after much experimentation) surviving. They also helped us pick planters made of lightweight composite materials.

We are so proud of our little olive tree, she is doing great (we won't be producing olio di oliva anytime soon though). We special ordered the tree, wanting a small, double trunk and slow growing variety; we waited for about 6 months for delivery. The olive tree was a perfect choice, being able to take the heat and winds of the Mediterranean climate.

For our roof we went to TAP Plastics and for under $500.00 put up a small plexiglass windbreak. The key was leaving spaces for the wind to pass-through, taking into consideration force and weight and keeping it under "legal" height. We also hired a plumber to bring water up.

Our next project is to get some decking for the roof. Again, weight, money and portability (in case of repairs) are important considerations.

What fun this is to plan. Like a painting, it is a work in progress.

After doing the drawing of the Terrace Chair I got inspired to paint the actual chairs. Everything is on the "cheap" these days. We bought the wood chairs from IKEA about 3 years ago for about $6.00 each and with the help of the bees (who chewed off the varnish for me) the sanding and prep was easy. Painting color is always rewarding. It's so fun to look out and see the bright color on our terrace.

The painting Bi-Rite Market is finally finished!

And this Friday I drop off three paintings, Trailer, Motel Pool and Beach Motel for a July show, Escape into Summer at Artist-Xchange Gallery. Opening reception is Friday evening July 9.

And more on works in progress... walked by the Zoltron stencils at 580 Valencia St. I think it is now safe to say that "our boy" won (see my posting on May 27). The stencils on plywood have been preserved and moved behind the newly installed glass storefront. Very cool!

Time out to get back to drawing

O.K., admittedly, this is not my most exciting post to date.

Miss Taxie Cab-ernet and I went to the studio early this morning, having finished the latest painting (well, more on that) I was free to draw.

With shows and deadlines I have not felt this freedom in quite some time. I have so wanted to catch-up on my sketch book and just do what I love the most... chalks and pencil... for me this is that direct connection to art.

I did a pastel "chalk" drawing of my balcony... simple, no statement, just a very satisfying day.

What is it about drawing? I guess it is that direct hand to paper thing. I love pushing around chalks and getting that little kid feeling of making a mess. It's primal, your hands, your fingers pushing around color. I don't get this from painting with acrylic, it by nature has to be more precise, and by nature my work is "loose". Perhaps it is time to go back to oils? But, I do worry about that cute little studio pup and the toxics of oil painting.

As has been pointed out to me by friends and colleagues my paintings are so different than my drawings. The common statement is that there is such a difference in my expression. I agree. How to pull the two together, or do I want to?

As many of my friends are aware, much of my drawing portfolio was lost (a long story, so never mind) and it's been hard for me to go back to what I love. I have wanted to push forward in experimenting with painting and color... I so love color.

All of this said, my next experiment is to blend the two together... is this possible? We will see, time to start painting from the heart.

And as a final note... been wanting to take a photo of this for awhile, so here it is. I just can't help myself to always watch the streets and the art that is right there, if you look.

And back to the Bi-Rite painting. My partner Anne said; "Why don't you put more shopping carts in?". I said; "Cuz I don't thing the painting needs them.". Today fellow artist Kirsten said, well, kind of the same thing. So, I guess it's not done, more shopping carts on the way. Darn! Everyone's a critic!

Following the streets... Europe

The more I become interested in the urban street art, the more I come across some very talented and accomplished artists.

I have been looking at what is going on in Europe; Milano, Berlin, Warsaw, etc. There certainly are some amazing images.

As I look at these images, what seems to strike me the most is unlike in the U.S. much of the work is not based in violence. Political? Yes. But not so much of the “blood and guts” that seems to be the trend here. A great deal of this work is truly done from a basis in painting, how refreshing to see beautiful pieces in an urban setting.

I guess this really is no surprise as the great cities have always embraced public art and expression.

Check out the open-air project Absolut (Yes, the Swedish Vodka) is sponsoring. The project is called wallpaper redesign and reinvent your city and is currently giving space to American artist Ron English, who has been dubbed the father of Agit-pop (famous for his mural on the Berlin Wall’s Checkpoint Charlie in 1989). This one is from the Absolut web page: www.absolutwallpaper.com/who.html

I have also connected with Urban Painting in Milano and have permission to post up a couple of photos from their page (Thank you!): www.URBANPAINTING.INFO/

How amazing is this?! (I think it originates from this web page: www.orticanoodles.com - shamefully, although having lived in Italy, I still do not read it completely… but I can order up a great bottle of vino!)

And another, from the Urban Painting’s summer show; “Italian Street Artist Neve - just 3 hours to do this spray on canvas”.

And, well, WOW! (Again from Urban Painting’s page)

Me… after looking at these what can I say? I am just plug’n along. Finished or almost finished with the Bi-Rite painting and took a diversion for fun… chalk drawing of “Sock Monkey gone bad”.