White House

White House 36x24 acrylic 10-13-2010

This he began with torn canvas' culls. The rectangle in the center he painted white to rid an dark image and it became a white house with wings. Finished at school. The Professor's painting class was empty for the second time this week. He gets to paint a lot.

The studio 10-13-2010

Here is a Winged House from 1973, 72x72 acrylic, glitter and wallpaper on canvas

1974 was an interesting year

Self Portrait 1974

                                                         Singing Skulls 48x108 acrylic on canvas

Landscape with Skull 72x144 acrylic and glitter and dirt

collection of MFAH  This picture was in the Whitney Biannual 1974

The Professor made a lot of ceramics. This was his cactus garden behind his studio on Peveto Street

He had a good time doing them, but they have all self distructed. He liked cactus and skulls.

The Professor hopes to find this one in the archives. He does not remember the title. It has something to do with challenges and over coming difficulties. Charging into the future. ..Going to Big Bend and working it out. It's 60x144.  He did lots of large pictures. He would fill the 4 walls in the studio with 6 x 12 footers and paint them and then stretch new ones do it again. He had lots of energy. He would teach in the day at the University of St. Thomas and paint until 2 am, sleep and then go back and teach and so on..

The End 36x48 acrylic

 He found this rolled in the archive.

He had a show at the Texas Gallery when it was still on Bissonett.

He was the only Texas artist in the Texas Gallery. Three of the pictures he still has.

The big one on the right is the first large picture he painted. It is titled Caring for Oneself is Finding the Way.

The Indian in the center has been reworked a number of times and has been posted earlier. Caring is still to be uncovered in the archives.

Love Stories and other perversions 72x144

He sold this to a doctor . His twin daughters were his students at St Thomas. At their encourgement he came to the studio and saw it on the wall and bought it for $1200. Now it  is for sale at Sandy Parkerson's Gallery in Houston.





The History Lession

The Professor rolled up the large picture he calls The History Lesson and brought it to school where he hung it in the gallery so to see. Could not see it in the studio. He described its making in an earlier post. Not too bad he thought. Here is the photo.

The History Lesson 60x96 09-2010 acrylic

He paints because that's what he does

Someone at school told The Professor that he had a self portrait in a show at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. Sure enough there it was; a watercolor from 1973 of himself holding a cactus. He does not remember it, but the date and image coincide....lots of psychological angst. A wonderful patron of the
arts donated it to the museum: Eleanor Freed.

The Professor met the Doctors Frank and Dale Hill at a poetry reading by Michael Berryhill. Frank bought the first painting The Professor ever sold. He went over to their house and photographed it.

Landscape 54x52 1967 oil on canvas

This probably one of two oil paintings still existent. The rest have fallen prey to the elements. They were kept in his garage and subjected to humidity and temperature changes. He notes that the images and

stylistic manners  are still part of his work. It is circular, he cannot escape himself.

Here is one just finished and  not yet titled.

Untitled 48x60 10-09-2010 acrylic on canvas

Here is another 48x60 that he is doing. Stage 1 0ctober 4th

October 6 stage 2

It has become something else. It is called The Rockery.This had a mind of it's own and refused the first direction.The Professor believes it did not want to look like its predecessor.

the results

The Art History exam  was a disaster. Not unexpected. 23 students.. 1 A , 4 B, 1 C, 1 D and 14 F.
He went over the test and  again explained how to study... he emphasized the material that might be on the test, but did not announce that "this will be on the test." He believes that students in high school are taught the test, not to think independently.
Today's lecture was the first of 4 about Greek art, the foundation of all Western art.  A few asked questions and even participated. One got up in the middle of class and left. Is that not rude? Could he not wait? The Professor is astonished at such behavior. Not that it is the first time it has happened.
Yesterday was good; his design class was full as was his painting class and a student from a few years ago stopped by. She went on to California and got an art  degree and is in a show in Dallas. It is nice  to see students from the past return and share their experiences.
The Professor is working on a painting whose subject is his painter's apron.
In 1971 he did a painting in which he embedded his paint apron in a dirt mixed with acrylic medium encrusted canvas. That year The MFAH decided that they would invest in some local artists and they bought it. They actually exhibited it for a while.

Apron 1 1971 48x48 mixed media (very poor image)

 He saw the show in the San Antonio Art League  of Marilyn Lanfear's work. The show is wonderful. She had some work pertaining among other things to aprons.This provoked memories of his 1971 work and he pursued the idea. Always use what ever you can in your own way.

Painter's Apron 2 42x44 first stage

Painter's Apron 2 42x44 2nd stage 09-29-2010

Painter's Apron 2 42x44 3rd stage 09-30-2010

Misc. Stuff

The Professor be Bloggin

Nice to sit outside and smoke and have a bit to drink and talk at Jay's house. The weather has cooled just a bit. This is the first day of Fall and  a full moon.  No wonder so much craziness is going on. The Professor washed his cell phone again and has a new one to be activated at the cell phone store tomorrow..
The Professor is never surprised after 18 plus years teaching at the college. 3 weeks of classes and his attendance is diminishing. Drawing 1 was down 10 this afternoon, an important class, beginning perspective. One Point perspective is basic knowledge for drawing just  like shading. The next class is 2 point perspective and he wonders how many will be there. Next week is devoted to free hand perspective and those that come back will be clueless.  There will be the usual excuses.
He is always amazed with those who take his Drawing 2 class who have taken Drawing I from other schools who have no idea to how draw...What were they taught?

His Design I class at 8 am is holding and doing very well. Painting class? there are those that are always there and some come once in a while. He has one person who he has failed before, back again and doing the same....not being there. Survey of Art History I has it's first test tomorrow over Prehistoric and Mesopotamian and Egyptian Art, always a sobering moment. Art Appreciation class which was bursting without enough room to sit now has plenty of room; Only one class a week at 7 PM, a ten question test over the previous material that is in the book and covered in the lecture, is down by over 10 students. One person told  the Professor that he just got the text, therefore did not pass any of the tests and  thought it was a drawing class.  He was having trouble... meaning flunking the tests. I could barely understand him, his speech was so poor. As teachers we cannot make them come to class, read the text , take notes or study. How did they get out of High school? The Professor answers " by showing up". It happens every semester.
                                                                           The Professor paints.

Stage 2... fermenting for a while

Here is a 48x60 : Stage 1

Stage 2

The Professor read on Facebook James Surls comment about art critics.  Where are they? Or what is their importance? What the Professor reads are Fluff pieces. Don't offend. He remembers one critic who said of his work that it was "beyond the pale". He liked that, a real opinion, a criticism and a complement. That was in New York. The critics that he liked such as James McKeverly or David Hickey were good as long as they stuck to general theory. He saw a show that Mr. Hickey curated in Santa Fe a few years ago which was to say the least shallow and trendy. One artist was so out of place, Kermit Oliver from Texas a realist. The Professor likes his work. It is very personal and knowledgeable. Ah Santa Fe the self pronounced 3rd largest art market in the USA. A three month market in which to make a profit before the tourists leave and winter sets in. Anyone with enough money and social ambition to open a gallery without any knowledge of art history can open a gallery. They will have 1000s of Artists panting, nose pressed against the door to show their work. The Professor watched  a  tourist market selling feel good "art" with plenty of Knock-Offs of Knock-offs of  supposedly sellable "art". Is it art if it is shown in an art gallery? The Professor likes the anonymous Houston art market where it is part of the general economics.

Keep it personal. Use yourself for source material. Know your art history. Do not follow trends. Celebrate who you are.

Back at school

School starts and then stops for Labor Day. The professor went to Seattle to meet Mary Margaret's. family.

Here are photos of his trip to Seattle. First at Discovery Park.

We took a walk on the beach at low tide in the morning.

Driftwood is always cool

The family picnic in Discovery park.

The Professor and Mary Margaret's parents

The Professor plays

Flying kites