One of my favorite things to do is paint. It's like instant meditation for me. When I'm in the zone, if someone innocently walks quietly in to the studio, my reaction tends to resemble the cat in one of those Warner Brothers cartoons that freaks out and jumps to the ceiling. Well, I'm not so spry that I can jump up to the ceiling but there has been coffee spilt!

I am friends with Paul Booth. When he wants company to paint with, he gives a bunch of his artist friends a call and whomever can make it shows up and painting and general art talk happens. This time David Stoupakis came by.

Chaos the cat rarely sits still long enough for a clear photo. It was also Paola's B-day.

Painting the figure live is special. Classes in college would be devoted to it. Three to six hours of staring and observing and interpreting... It was always intense for me. I never got bored with it or dreaded it. Sadly, I don't get to do it anymore. I guess I could make it happen, but my time is too precious to not be making something I'm planning to sell. I accumulated nearly hundreds of paintings that were never finished. Not worthy to sell, but still there would be a little oasis of goodness that I would like about them. I've destroyed a lot of them. Sometimes I go back in to one to try out a new approach to painting. Sometimes I just feel like finding a volcano to toss them all in. I will appease the godz with my paintings (of what I'll tell them) virgins and thus prevent them from destroying the earth as exciting as that might be.

I hire models occasionally. Usually I just draw in pencil. Pretty laid back. I like to treat my models as the guest of honor. I try to especially pay attention to the temperature, but I'm getting them coffee or whatever their beverage of choice. I'm also usually friends with my models. Sometimes it's confusing. It's a nice bit of confusion as some models have posed for me over ten year periods! They invite me to their parties, performances. I never assume that they have chosen to model  exclusively as their career. One turned out to be an opera singer, an actress in movies, a police officer, dancers, accountants, and more than a few to be really great artists! When I have a new model it's always a little exciting because in the back of my mind I think this person is probably going to be a fascinating person that I get to know before they are famous.