Let the grande aventure begin -France is in sight


Our grande aventure is back on track. COVID and 2020 put a lot of plans on hold for all of us. On 12 March 2020, the day before the shutdowns began, we were all set to move to La Thebaudiere in Normandy, as I write we are still in Mukilteo, BUT that is all set…

Utah National Parks


We took our first real trip since getting back from France in March of 2020 – destination, southern Utah’s national parks. We visited Arches, Canyonlands, Mesa Verde, Bears Ears, Escalande, Capitol Reef, and Hovenweep in Colorado. It was an eye-opening experience. We started with a visit to the Alaska Boardroom at SeaTac, I was a…

Art with a message, sometimes


Thinking more about why we do art and what, if anything we are trying to say. It strikes me that there are times when I am just looking for something to paint for the sole reason that I feel like painting. In that situation any interesting object will do. Other times the sketch is driven…

Ready to travel – my new sketching kit


It’s getting close, really close. Travel is again in the realistic future, and I am ready. Utah and national parks in just 21 days and confidently we are planning Europe in the spring. Followers of this blog know my compulsiveness about packing light. Tricia and I traveled for five weeks in Scotland, France and Italy…

The Terroir of Sketching


People ask, “What is the artist trying to say?” It beats me. Living artists often give some esoteric reason for their painting, all too often motivated by a desire to be relevant. Dead artists must suffer with academic explanations that assume they know the intimate thoughts and desires of the artist – we are rarely…