About Me

Q. Where are you from?

I grew up at the edge of what used to be “The Great Swamp” - in New Jersey.

Q. Where are you now?

As I am writing this I am in a city north of Omiya, which is north of Tokyo - which never seems to end. A month from now (June 2008) I will be living somewhere near the southernmost tip of Kyushu.

Q. Where have you visited in Japan?

I’ve visited the northernmost coast of Honshu, and what is called “Mt. Fear”, the Bay of Pine Tree Islands (Matsushima), the Five Colored Ponds (Goshikinuma), the waterfalls in Fukushima and World Heritage sites in Tochigi and Nikko. Also a wild monkey hot-spring and the old Olympic ski runs in Nagano. The ancient capitals of Kyoto, Nara, and Kamakura several times each. Assorted islands in Okinawa plus one of Tokyo’s far distant outlying islands. Nine or ten of the coolest old castles plus countless temples and shrines. I’ve climbed heaps of mountains. I’ve walked and sketched all 34 of the temples of the Chichibu pilgrimage. I’ve lived more than 6 years in Saitama, Nagano, and Kagoshima prefectures (in small cities and one very small town). I`ve lived on the side of an active steamy volcano, and across the bay from an active ashy one.

Q. What do you like about the country?

I like the shape of the land. Craggy mountains, rocky coasts. I like all the old weathered temples and carved stones you find on top of those mountains. I like the rock gardens, the carpets of moss, the many varieties of Plum Blossoms, Cherry Blossoms, Azalea, all the other flowers and flowering trees I don’t know the names of, plus the new leaves in Spring, the old leaves in Autumn. It should also be said that the people are generally nice, and the tofu is cheap!

Q. What do you like doing in your free time?

Painting, cycling, hiking, vegan cookery. I’m a mean dancer, although I don’t get out to do it very often.

Q. Anything else you would like to tell us about yourself?

It’s probably in my blog somewhere and I’d be happy to answer any questions you have.

About My Art

Q. How did you first get interested in art?

I don’t know if it’s accurate to say I am interested in art. I like art. I like to look in art museums, but on a sunny day I’d rather be outside with the crickets. I’m interested in colors - perhaps because I spent my adolescence reading American comic books. I’m interested in nature - because everything is nature, and it has such a wild variety. The reason I go outdoors alone so much, is because once I nearly died - I can remember seeing my own body get taken in an ambulance before I woke up in a hospital. Now I try to make the most of any time that I have. Painting is how I can show you how to look for life as life is going on.

Q. How do you select your artistic subjects?

When I’m not painting, or sleeping, or other things I do, I go exploring (hiking and cycling). I look for clues / signs / hints / things that will tell you that this is life - it is here - and now - and I use all the color I can manage to help show the people in their homes what I have seen.

Q. Have you learnt anything through art?

I’ve gotten better at art. It’s likely improved my problem solving, analytical / aesthetic thinking processes. I do 90% of my work outdoors so I’ve learned how best to pick flower petals out of a painting and what to do when a sudden rain storm blows in.

Q. How do you feel when you have completed a piece?

You never really “complete” a piece. There’s always some detail, small or large, that you think you need to adjust or improve. You do what you can. Then you do a little more. And more. Then there’s a time where you have to force yourself to stop and say this is how it will be. Some pieces you finish with, and they can easily be said to be good or bad. My favorite ones are the ones that confuse me when I can‘t keep going.

Q. Whose art do you admire?

I like Cezanne - he was good at what he did. I like Dali because his pictures often imply a story which you can never be certain of. Caravaggio - for his shadows and theatrics. Edward Hopper - for the shadows and emotion. Edward Munch - for the colors and emotion. Grant Wood - did a lot of nice pieces with an interesting skew.

Q. Anything else you would like to tell us about your work?

I never do the same thing - the same way twice. I have a large hiking / camping back-pack which I keep filled with paint and whatever canvases I can fit inside. I go looking for scenic spots on rainy / cloudy days, and I go back to paint them when the weather is nicer. Sometimes when the wind gets too strong or the sun sets too quickly or it starts to rain, I'll take a partially finished painting inside to finish. The quality of the indoor lighting is important then. It's harder to see the absolute quality of the pigments under some kinds of lighting and if the lights are too strong the glare from the light in the oil (of an oil painting) will make it difficult to see the colors properly. Again I would be happy to answer any other questions you might have.

©2008-2010

Website by Tokyo Web Designs