Rex

"Rex"  16 x 20 Acrylic / Framed

My son was my inspiration for this one. He's still at that age where he LOVES dinosaurs - especially Tyrannosaurus Rex - and I know he'd love nothing more than to have one as his pet.

Paint Party!

Here are a couple pics from the paint party I led for some really great ladies who stand beside the men who are serving our country. Thanks for the wonderful evening, ladies!

FRG Ladies & their Eagles

My Eagle

Buddhamals

Remember my meditating elephant I posted a while back??

Well, that led to a small series I entitled Buddhamals, which consisted of a monkey, a lion, and an elephant - all meditating in their own unique way.

Buddhamals

Find me on Facebook to see the meanings behind the Monkey & Lion.

But that's not all...

My Buddhamals went on to become the inspiration behind my cousin {and fellow creative soul}, Julie's nursery.

To inspire another with one's work has to be THE best compliment!! Thanks, Cuz!!

Check out the finished product at Build Sew Reap, along with all her fabulous DIY tips and find her on Facebook, too!

"une maison rose à Paris"

I'm extremely proud of my lil' redhead à Paris...

As soon as I posted this one on Facebook, she was SOLD! A fellow designer scooped it up as a birthday present for his girlfriend. 

"une maison rose à Paris"
{a pink house in paris}
16 x 20 SOLD

And he even let me suggest the frame he had to get... Magnifique!

Fabulous frame from Hobby Lobby

Om Mani Padme Hum

I finally took the time to do another painting!!

I love everything about this one: the bright colors, the peacefulness (that I hope it envokes)... Here are some symbolic meanings to go along with it (cause I love me some symbolism):

"The main characteristics of the elephant are his strength and steadfastness. There for it becomes a symbol of physical and mental strength, as well as responsibility and earthiness.

"In buddhism the elephant is a symbol of mental strenth. At the beginning of one's practice the uncontrolled mind is symbolised by a gray elephant who can run wild any moment and destroy everything on his way. After practising dharma and taming one's mind, the mind which is now brought under control is symbolised by a white elephant strong and powerful, who can be directed whereever one wishes and destroy all the obstacles on his way."

-taken from here.

Duo

This painting was sold in a local gallery. When the owner told me who bought it, I was shocked to find that I actually new the proud new owner:  Her mother used to babysit my sister and I when we were younger, and we grew up knowing each other's families.

Small World.

Buddha Nature

Here are two of my Buddha paintings (both of which have sold)...

Psychadelic Zen

This was a custom painting for a friend of a friend. I was given the color scheme and told the recipient liked buddhas... This is what I came up with. It's hard to see, but the white "lightning" marks are cracks throughout the coating.

Tranquility

This painting is another one of my first paintings (2003); it was taken from a picture that one of my cousins took of a buddha statue.

Cloaked in Corked Therapy

My clown obsession continues...

Cloaked in Corked Therapy - my depiction of the affects of alcohol (specifically, wine, in this one). Wine can have many affects on us - make us silly and happy, like a clown... She's waving with her right hand, foot up on the side of the glass - totally basking in the wine. And it can also make us lustful (see how she's puckered up)... But there's a tear on her cheek (for depression) & she's crossing her fingers, hoping no one will see what's really going on inside.......

Ma Chérry

"Ma Chérry" like "ma chérie" in French... [translation: "my darling"]

Boast

Boast boasts the kanji meaning for Pride / Arrogance.

This shot, taken with my camera phone, doesn't do this 8x24 Acrylic painting justice.

This canvas was one of many I stretched in odd sizes while working at a graphic design company. I love the long narrow size of the painting, as well as the red on bright yellow. 

Blasé Blue

This was at the start of my peacock obsession...

Blasé Blue 36 X 48 Mixed Media - DONATED

It was a group effort; My daughter's 1st grade class had an art auction, in which each class was supposed to donate something. Her teachers asked me to work with the kids to create something, and this is what we came up with. 

I had the children make the "eyes" of the tail feathers for me. I instructed them on how to paint their eyes, but I let them do it on their own and didn't alter their work.

We were all really proud of the finished product. I hated to see it go... But I did receive an incredibly sweet email from the winning bidder at the art auction. 

It was an amazing & humbling experience, and I would love to do something like this again in the future!

Naughty Clowns

One of my favorite series... I had so much fun coming up with these guys and thinking up their titles.

Olive Another 8 X 8 Acrylic 

Olive Another, as in: "I'll have another..." This is the first in a series of four paintings I did - all naughty clowns doing something "bad". Obviously she's drunk - stumbling on an olive, one shoe off, and her glass is upside down as she asks for another drink...

Track Star 8 X 8 Acrylic

My second naughty clown:  a heroin addict.

Clashy 8 X 8 Acrylic

My 3rd naughty clown:  Smoking... Classy? or Trashy? "Clashy" (as she ashes her cigarette on herself)

Medicated Smile 8 X 8 Acrylic

My 4th naughty clown:  the pill popper - My favorite aspect of this one is that he looks like he's smiling b/c of his mask, but if you look closely (or flip it upside down), you see that he is actually frowning...

Choose Your Poison

Choose Your Poison 16 X 20 Acrylic - SOLD

This was the very first painting I ever attempted (back in 2003), and oddly enough, it was also the very first painting I sold (almost six years later when I decided to put some of my work in a gallery).

The image was taken from a magazine article (that I didn't read); I saw it, and my obsession began.