gee, you look tired

tip of the cap to the All-Time Home Run Champion, Hank Aaron...

2012-01-02T12:14:00.000-08:00

born on this day in 1935, Sanford "Sandy" Koufax

2011-12-30T16:47:00.000-08:00

on this date in 1911...

2011-12-21T06:59:00.000-08:00

the great Josh Gibson was born.

an invitation!

2011-11-23T16:28:00.000-08:00

I'd like to officially invite you to come check out a new artblog that I've been asked to join. It's called "WHATnot" and it's full of incredible artists. Why they wanted me to be part is absolutely beyond me. It can be found at:

http://whatnotisms.blogspot.com

I won't be posting any of my paintings for it here on my blog, except this one (my first for WHATnot) so be sure to come by for a looksee...

and in color!

2011-11-16T17:00:00.001-08:00

nj convention sketch!

2011-11-14T17:27:00.000-08:00

convention sketch of a character I've never drawn before...Black Canary.

My approach was somewhere between Alex Toth and Cliff Chiang (yes, I aspire to the greatness of those two guys!).

Not being a mainstream superhero artist, I thought this was going to be a chore, but I actually had a great time with it. Thanks to goodguy Will King for asking me to do it!

Mattel's INSTANT REPLAY (1971)

2011-09-24T21:01:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, I had this cool game called “Instant Replay.” Basically, it was a bunch of little 3 inch records that you popped into this little mini record player and it played an announcer announcing a great play of a particular sports hero. You know, a Willie Mays home run or an OJ Simpson touchdown or whatever.

OK, kinda corny, but most everything in the 1970’s was.

I loved these little records and especially the paintings of each sports hero on each disc.

Recently, just for the hell of it, I made a counterfeit disk featuring a player that hadn’t actually been on one of the discs.

Use your eagle eye and see if you can figure out which is the FAKE one…

ok, it's a fake...so shoot me!

2011-08-05T12:43:00.001-07:00

this past weekend...

2011-07-30T08:23:00.000-07:00

hung out with the LIVING LEGEND, Jim Steranko last Saturday. imagine that!

retro painting

2011-07-17T09:12:00.000-07:00

…have you ever tried to intentionally paint an image so it looks like an illustration from your childhood? You know, totally adopt the style of art that you grew up with?

Whether the 60's, 70's, 80's, or 90's, each decade had certain looks and even ways that paint was applied. I grew up in the late 60's/early 70's, when illustration was starting to break away from the conservative 'advertising agency' approach of the 1950's and becoming more colorful and a bit more wild. Of course, this was Madison Avenue's attempt to co-opt what "the kid's" were wearing and eating and talking about.

For me, each decade is pretty easy to pinpoint, there's a fairly clear difference in the look(s) of an illustration or product design from the 1940's to the 1950's. The same holds true for the 60's and 70's. It's when we get to the 1980's and 90's that things become a little less clearly defined and distinguishable (to me, at least).

Anyhoo, above is my entry: an illustration of football Hall of Famer Don Maynard (who, by the way, was the first player ever signed by the NY Titans, who a few years later, changed their name to the NY Jets).

Can't you just see it on the box cover to a kid's game or football card from 1971?

weekend at norman's...

2011-07-03T11:33:00.000-07:00

just got back from 'baseball day at the norman rockwell museum.'

I exhibited several of my paintings and spoke about baseball, the negro leagues, and being an illustrator. I even did a watercolor demo in front of what seemed like a million people (!). Yup, I was pretty nervous, but somehow got through it all, meeting a lot of great people who had stories to share about their own childhoods and their own love of baseball. Two standout people were the curator of the event, the AWESOME Tom Daley, who graciously made me feel at home, and the DOUBLY AWESOME photographer Jane Shauck.

thanks to all who came and especially the guys who helped out (thanks, Jeremy!).

here's the painting demo that I did. it took about an hour...

...and here's some of the aforementioned Jane Shauck's photos of the new york mets. great images!

and speaking of Norman Rockwell...

2011-06-30T10:18:00.000-07:00

this Saturday at the NR Museum in Stockbridge, MA...

I'm very pleased (and honored) to have been invited to speak at the museum about my portrait work.

I'll also be doing a watercolor demo. YIKES! keep your fingers crossed that I don't muck it up!

obscure, yes...but still something cool

2011-06-14T08:41:00.000-07:00

here's the cover to a recent baseball publication that looks solely at the history of baseball in the Negro Leagues. I'm doubly proud of it because the editor and art director actually let me change their usual cover design so I could create this image of an 'imaginary' set of NL baseball cards. I mean, come on, we ALL kept our stack of cards together with a big rubber band, right?

this past weekend...

2011-06-06T08:45:00.000-07:00

had a wonderful time in Derry, Ireland at the charming, fun, family-friendly "2D Comics Festival." Chatted with lots of kids and looked at the portfolios of a lot of talented artists. Drank a lot and had a lot of great conversations. thanks, all.

Adding to my comic book superstar photo series are...

glen fabry (man, he lives up to his reputation)

mick mcmahon (the living legend!)

rufus dayglo (great artist and a real sweetheart)

2011-05-28T09:40:00.001-07:00

this past weekend...

2011-05-02T17:37:00.000-07:00

the Boston Comic Con has, in four short years, turned into one of the very best and most fun cons of the year. Thanks to Nick and Jimmy (and my pal Colin) for inviting me up this past weekend and treating me like royalty.

I moderated a panel on 'the art of the cover,' which featured Dave Johnson, Adam Hughes, JG Jones, and J Scott Campbell. What these superstars were doing hanging out with me, I'll never know!

WHAT did this guy just call me??!!!

2011-04-05T18:31:00.001-07:00

...check out this entry in a
scholarly baseball journal from 2010:

Empire and Objecthood
The Baseball Paintings of Mark Chiarello

by James Brunson

This article examines Mark Chiarello's baseball paintings, which have a deep connection with the rhetoric of empire and colonization. This paper argues that during the 1980s and 1990s baseball objects (art and non-art) were forged in a colonial encounter, with the beholder as an imperial, imperious consciousness, capable of surveying and ordering the entire object world. Chiarello's paintings belong to a "baseball order of things" (a phrase inspired by Michel Foucault's "order of things"), an epistemic field that produces a sense of the kinds of objects, the logic of their speciation, and their taxonomy. Of interest are not only the ways that baseball objects are catalogued, preserved and arranged in rational order but how acts of judgment and dialectics of taste constitute black images.

and in chicago...

2011-03-30T17:54:00.000-07:00

the least talkative man I've ever met.

this past weekend...

2011-03-07T17:59:00.000-08:00

just got back from the fabulous Emerald City Con in the VERY fabulous Seattle, WA.

One of the many highlights was breakfast at the Pike Place Market with two of my favorite artists and favorite peoples, Cully Hamner and Brian Stelfreeze. good times, boys. good times.

ny cop...

2011-01-15T08:35:00.001-08:00

the way I remember them from when I was a kid...

remembering coltrane...

2010-12-13T16:58:00.000-08:00

a dear friend had a cat named Coltrane. She loved her cat very much, and was very sad when Coltrane died. This 7 inch tall painting was a gift for my friend, so she would always remember Coltrane.

lady sings the blues...

2010-11-18T19:12:00.000-08:00

this painting took longer to complete than any other in my life.

now, it's done.

return to Batman/Houdini...

2010-11-18T17:12:00.000-08:00

a recent commission for a fan of the Chaykin/Moore/Chiarello joint...Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop.

man, this was fun!

to boldy go...

2010-11-15T14:59:00.001-08:00

the bride...

2010-11-06T11:46:00.001-07:00

billie holiday on the board

2010-10-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

From the ‘cursed movie’ department...

2010-09-29T14:48:00.000-07:00

...ever see the movie “Sorcerer,” based on the French film “Wages of Fear,” directed by William Friedkin, and starring Roy Scheider?

Friedkin, who had just made The French Connection and the Exorcist and was riding higher than a kite in Hollywood, supposedly acted like a complete prick during production of Sorcerer. So much so that when the film was released (on the week of June 24, 1977, the same week as another little film called “Star Wars”) and bombed, he was ruined as a director. Everyone who he had been a horrible monster to on the way up, made sure he crash landed on the way down.

Originally set to star Steve McQueen (and also turned down by Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Paul Newman, and Jack Nicholson), Friedkin eventually ‘settled’ on the “lesser” star, Roy Scheider.

Oddly, even though it’s considered one of the biggest flops in Hollywood history, it’s one of my favorite films, starrring one of my favorite actors. Scheider is awesome (as he is in Marathon Man, Jaws, The French Connection, and The Seven-Ups), so I did the (below) sketch of him...

on this date in the year 1630...

2010-09-16T18:01:00.001-07:00

...the Massachusetts village of Shawmut changed its name to Boston.

That sorta has nothing to do with Babe Ruth, but I just wanted to post this portrait of the Bambino.

did I ever tell you about the time...

2010-08-21T19:46:00.000-07:00

...a few years ago, when I took my (then 11 year old) son Jack to the first Iron Man movie:

he nudges me during the scene when Tony Stark is making his prototype IM armor and whispers to me "Poppy, they used your cover!" It was my finest moment ever in the comics business.

and then he asked..."do they pay you for that?"

er...um.

well, THAT'S a first...

2010-07-27T07:18:00.000-07:00

In the (very) crowded DC booth at the (very) crowded San Diego Comic Con:

A fella taps me on the shoulder with a gun..."Mr. Chiarello?"

I turn around and the Vigilante says "Remember that cover you did?"

I'm sure Mignola gets people dressed as Hellboy coming up to him all the time, but this was the first time a painting of mine came to life and said hello.

and speaking of MONSTEROUS books...

2010-06-25T07:40:00.000-07:00

if you haven't picked up your copy of COVER RUN: THE DC ART OF ADAM HUGHES, well than I'm just ashamed of you. ashamed.

It's without a doubt the best, most jam-packed book EVER published on a comics creator. Sketches, designs, full-page color reproductions, all with Adam's hilarous commentary to keep you warm at night.

remember: ashamed.

attack of the 50-foot comic book!

2010-05-30T13:26:00.000-07:00

towering over the competition...it's WEDNESDAY COMICS: the collection!

We made it to Barnes & Noble, ma!

billie holiday...finally...well, not really.

2010-05-16T18:23:00.000-07:00

I keep putting off the third jazz painting that I've planned. It's of my favorite female vocalist ever, Billie Holiday. I'll start it soon, I swear. At least I did a tiny color sketch for it this afternoon.

That's a start!

the Empire decides not to strike back...

2010-05-07T13:12:00.000-07:00

I was recently invited to be a guest artist at the upcoming Star Wars Celebration 5 con in Orlando. I attended it a few years back and had a great time producing a limited edition Stormtrooper print (see my earlier post).

I've decided to skip this year's con, even though I did a sketch for a new print. On top of all of the hoops that Lucasfilm makes their artists jump through (don't ask!), I just ultimately wasn't 'feeling' the sketch. I thought it was a neat idea and would make for a cool visual, but the sketch just leaves me 'blah.' Oh, and I couldn't figure out where to put R2.

File this sketch in the sad 'unused ideas' folder.

It happens.

the great american (comic book) novel?

2010-04-03T17:00:00.000-07:00

I FINALLY just finished reading every issue of Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso's epic and brilliant "100 BULLETS." all I can say is wow.

I had been meaning to sit down with the entire 100 issue run, and finally did so. wow. ok, I already said that.

Also, a monumental tip of the hat to cover artist extraordinaire Dave Johnson. I turned down this gig years and years ago and regretted the decision for a long time. Eventually I realized the only thing to regret is that Dave did twice as good a job as I ever would have!

Well, at least I was sorta part of the team, as I did a pin-up of cool character Cole Burns for issue #26...or was it issue #25? My memory aint what it used to be.

sneak peek...

2010-02-21T13:36:00.000-08:00

i'm having a blast illustrating a kid's book called "Tyger lilly", written by good friend Lisa Trusiani. It's absolutely the most beautifully written children's book I've read in a long, long time.

whatever i want...

2010-02-16T09:50:00.000-08:00

my brother recently asked me how i decide what type of stuff i put up on my blog. Was it purely an art blog or was it about your life in general, he asked. I told him there was no rhyme or reason, and that I put up 'whatever I want.'

With that in mind, check out this photo from 1951 of aspiring comic book artist Martin Landau.

wow

2010-02-05T16:56:00.000-08:00

i found myself seated next to a wonderful Italian couple from Brooklyn. It was a charity event for ALS, and I'm usually self conscious at these things and tend to eat my dinner, have a few drinks, and not say much to anyone.

You can tell nice, real people the minute you see them. I looked the fella in the eyes and I knew. I just knew. The first thing out of my mouth was, "You're the guy." He smiled a shy, Bensonhurst smile and nodded. I said "you're the guy that caught the ball," and indeed he was.

Sal Durante was a 19 year old kid when he caught Roger Maris' 61st home run of the 1961 season. It broke Babe Ruth's immortal record and put Roger and Sal's photo on the cover of every newspaper in the country. For a few days, Sal was the most famous kid in America.

50 years later, last night, I sat next to Sal Durante and his wife Rosemary and talked about that day. They were warm and real and we enjoyed each other's company. There was no ego, no histrionics or steroids or money, just a wonderful guy and his wife, sitting next to each other, holding hands, just like they did on that day 50 years ago in the right field stands at Yankee Stadium.

and from the "really, really cool gig department..."

2010-01-23T05:28:00.000-08:00

ok, I'll admit I've been a comic book fan since I was 14 years old.

Comics, as they say, have been very good to me. Over the years I've worked at DC, Marvel and freelanced for just about every comics company in between.

I've had plenty of phenominal highlights as DC's Art Director, and as a comics artist, but this might very well be the coolest one: I just painted the cover to the 40th Anniversary Comic Book Price Guide!

Holy smokes, I've been buying that thing since 1974, and now my image of Batman will grace the cover to this milestone issue!

Ain't life grand?

I've been holding off posting the cover here until Gemstone Publishing posted it first, and since they did indeed post it yesterday, here she be....hope you dig.

ps...big shout out to the fabulous Jeff Vaughn at Gemstone, one of the GREAT guys in the biz!

Also, thanks to Misters Geppi and Overstreet for your very kind words.

here's the full article at the Gemstone/Diamond site:

http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/public/default.asp?t=1&m=1&c=34&s=259&ai=91147&ssd=1%2F28%2F2010&sp=chiarello&sd=1/22/10&arch=y

oh, yeah, just in case you're wondering, yes, this is a painting (not digital), and yes, those classic covers were a bitch to paint!

blame it on uncle norman...

2010-01-05T18:28:00.000-08:00

Spent this past new year's weekend caught up in a blizzard up in Stockbridge, Mass. One of my favorite places on earth, home of the incredible Norman Rockwell Museum.

Of course, when in Stockbridge, you HAVE TO stay at the Red Lion Inn, the loveliest, spookiest, charmingist Inn in America. Sit by the fireplace in the lobby and enjoy a hot cider, friend.

Also ate at Theresa's, possibly the most famous unknown restaurant in the world. huh? Well, ok, it used to be called 'Alice's Restaurant.' Yes, THE Alice's Restaurant. And yes, it IS 'just a half a mile from the railroad track.'

The Rockwell Museum was running a show featuring a lot of Norman's photo reference, to coincide with the recent publication of the wonderful book "Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera" written by Ron Schick (go buy it, now!).

What's YOUR favorite Rockwell? (IMPOSSIBLE question, right?) I'm partial to "Freedom From Fear"...

but also this one from 'Tom Sawyer' is a fave...

...and this one too!...

and one more...

how about you???

blame it on Uncle Walt...

2009-12-18T11:35:00.001-08:00

my very earliest memory is of being 4 years old and watching 'The Wonderful World of Color' (also known as "Disneyland") on a Sunday night in February 1964. The particular show that made such an indelible mark on me that night was "The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh" staring the brilliant Patrick McGoohan.

It's pretty much the tale of a Robin Hood-like character who haunts the British countryside in the area near the cliffs of Dover, thwarting the efforts of the King in order to subsidize the poor country folk.

A fine enough tale for sure, but it was McGoohan, dressed all in tatters and wearing the horrific burlap mask of the Scarecrow that scarred me for life. Me and my brothers were so taken with him in this guise (and his blood-curdling laugh), that we made our mom make up our faces to look like the Scarecrow himself. That next night, we ran around the neighborhood, cackling like a bunch of loonies.

I'm happy to say that Disney FINALLY rereleased the 3-part show in a special DVD set last year.

I'm also happy to say that collector Jim Droese recently commissioned me to do a painting for him of the character (above). It's the first time I've ever drawn him, and I must say, it was fun as all hell!

1968 Academy Award: best picture

2009-12-11T17:33:00.000-08:00

"Boy, it would give me a world of satisfaction to horse whip you, Virgil."

You take care, y'hear?"

"Stay cool, Harvey. "

the josh print...

2009-11-20T05:12:00.000-08:00

just finished a limited edition print (12X16) of baseball hero Josh Gibson, and thought you might like a looksee. It's a very limited run of 40 numbered pieces that will be for sale in a few weeks through the great non-profit educational organization 'The Josh Gibson Foundation'.

I worked with Josh's awesome Great Grandson, Sean Gibson on the print, and it's something we're both proud of. The org will be selling 20 signed LE prints as well as 20 'Signed & Remarqued' prints (which feature an original pencil drawing on each print). They'll be available soon through the organization (http://www.joshgibson.org/) or through ArtInsights Gallery in Virginia (http://www.artinsights.com).

I'll also be selling 10 'Signed & Remarqued' Artist Proofs of the print, which also feature an original pencil drawing on each print. If interested, you can contact me directly.

I had a ton of fun doing all of the drawings on the 'Remarqued' prints. Most of the drawings are of Josh, but there are also a few of Satchel as well as one of Babe Ruth (the white Josh Gibson!). here's a few of them, hope you enjoy...

...plus a photo of me and Sean at last year's unveiling of the Josh Gibson statue at Nationals Stadium in Washington DC...

comic book LEGENDS #327...

2009-10-30T11:10:00.000-07:00

just remembering the lovely julie schwartz...

he was a pain in the ass and loved to flirt with the young girls, but he was always really sweet to me and told me tons of stories about the 'golden days.'

Little known Julie fact: he was an obsessive baseball fan and was actually at Yankee Stadium on 'Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day' in 1939, and heard Lou give the 'luckiest man on the face of the earth' speech.

awesome.

blue train

2009-10-06T17:47:00.000-07:00

was planning on a billie holiday painting next, but have been listening to a lot of saint john coltrane, so have decided to capitalize on that.

I hope Billie doesn't feel mistreated, I guess men were always treating her shabbily.

did you know...?

2009-09-25T19:27:00.000-07:00

...that my roomates in college were George Pratt, Kent Williams, and John Van Fleet?

believe it or don't!

favorite movie ever?

2009-09-23T19:51:00.000-07:00

...is the Pope of Greenwich Village. Then what's with the Blade Runner drawings? Well, I've never done any sketches from 'Pope', so the best I can offer is stuff from my SECOND favorite movie ever...yup...Blade Runner.

Well, ok, maybe my second favorite movie ever is a tie with Chinatown/the Godfather/A Place in the Sun/Paper Moon/A Very Long Engagement/Taking of Pelham 123/Godfather 2/the Searchers/To Kill a Mockingbird and Blade Runner.

please don't make me decide.

goodbye bernie fuchs...

2009-09-22T07:04:00.000-07:00

one of the true giants in the history of American art, a hero to all of us illustrators.

thank you, Mr. Fuchs.

"prez"

2009-09-07T18:06:00.000-07:00

had a good painting weekend, got the first piece in a new gallery series done. The series is one of legendary jazz musicians and vocalists, the painting is of tenor sax genius Lester Young.

Next up is Billie Holiday, of course.

and so it goes...

2009-09-01T18:46:00.000-07:00

put the final issue (#12) of my baby, Wednesday Comics to bed today. Lots of hard work, lots of great writing and drawin' by lots of great creators. Thanks guys from the bottom of my exhausted heart (except for Stelfreeze and Paul Pope, youse guys were punkass!).

the evolution of a print part 5

2009-08-09T09:53:00.000-07:00

...and then I thought I'd go a little bit overboard and have a perforated postage stamp-like seal created for the project that I would affix to each print. I designed the stamp (based on a painting of Peter Cushing I had done a few years ago), but ran out of time before I could have them printed up. Oh well, maybe next time.

...for your enjoyment, for the very first time anywhere, the Grand Wilhuff Moff Tarkin memorial 'Tarkin Doctrine' stamp:

the evolution of a print part 4

2009-08-09T09:47:00.000-07:00

in order to fully embrace the propoganda aspect of the whole concept, I thought it'd be cool to add a hand-stamped seal at the lower lefthand corner of the print. I did a little research, designed the seal, and had a rubber stamp made up. It was actually a lot of fun to sit at the convention and stamp the seal right onto each print as they were sold.

the evolution of a print part 3

2009-08-09T09:43:00.000-07:00

no, the original isn't a digitally created Photoshop or Illustrator file, it's a goauche painting. remember real 'paintings'?

certainly the largest painting I've ever done, here's a shot of it on an easel in my studio:

the evolution of a print part 2

2009-08-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

here's my original sketch for the print. You'll notice that the '501' flag idea (a tip of the hat to the really awesome guys who dress up as stormtroopers and appear at conventions, press events and even visit sick kids in hospitals dressed as Star Wars characters!) hadn't hit me yet, as I originally thought it'd be cool to have the Stormtroopers investigating a downed spacecraft on an obscure, distant planet.

the evolution of a print

2009-08-09T09:23:00.000-07:00

just cleaning out some old folders on my computer, I ran across all of the files and sketches of the limited edition print I did for Lucasfilm for their 2007 STAR WARS 30th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION CON.

The print was a huge sell-out success (although it didn't sell out QUITE as quickly as Adam Hughes' print), and something I was quite proud of.

here's the final print:

lunch with the stars!

2009-07-07T16:54:00.000-07:00

had lunch at the Society of Illustrators on 63rd St today with some old pals. It's a yearly ritual with the excellent crew of Tom Palmer Sr, Klaus Janson, Mike Carlin, Joey Cavalieri, and the always awesome Tom Palmer Jr. Great pals, great Rockwells and Leyendeckers on the walls, and great pecan pie.

thanks, Big Tom!

pictured: Klaus, Tom, and the Great Carlini...

the return of 'matinee' sketching...

2009-06-19T17:10:00.000-07:00

a few years ago, artist galpal Christine Norrie and I started a small, elite sketching group. The weekly subject was always a favorite movie or actor. We ended up with a whole bunch of fun drawings, mainly because we never took it very seriously. Well, life got in the way and the practice fell by the wayside, but fear not! We've decided to jump back in, and thus "MATINEE" is reborn.

Our first new subject: everyone's favorite movie star, Paul Newman.

sketch of the day...

2009-06-10T09:12:00.001-07:00

just trying to keep the pencil warm.

"HEY OSCAR WILDE, IT'S CLOBBERIN' TIME!"

2009-06-02T17:15:00.000-07:00

...shows you how slack I am, really nice guy Steven Gettis invited me to join his fabulous website "Hey, Oscar Wilde, it's Clobbering Time!" years and years ago. The site features drawings of great fictional characters from literature (or great authors OF literature), done by illustrators and comic book artists. I told Steven that I'd love to contribute, and would be sending him a drawing of my favorite character from literature, Jacob Marley.

About 12 years (and a lot of guilt) pass, with Steven patiently nudging me every few years. Well, I've finally found the time to send Steven a drawing of another of my favorite fictional characters: Addie Pray, from the novel "Addie Pray" by Joe David Brown (or better known by it's movie title: "Paper Moon").

Thanks for your considerable patience, Steven.

Please visit the fabulous site and gawk at all of the great artwork:

http://digitalmedusa.com/sgettis/word/

b-day greeting from the Masters...#3

2009-06-02T16:05:00.001-07:00

...and the last of my three birth-day posts from the year 2000, this one from the INCREDIBLE Jordi Bernet. lucky me, huh?

b-day greeting from the Masters...#2

2009-06-02T16:02:00.000-07:00

one of about 300 drawings I have from old pal Alex Toth, the greatest comic book artist of all time. For obvious reasons, this one is extra special.

b-day greeting from the Masters...#1

2009-06-02T15:55:00.000-07:00

...from my personal art collection:

waaaaaaay back in the year 2000, good pal Tim Sale helped organize my secret surprise 40th birthday party. needless to say, I hated the party, but I did love the invitation that Tim drew. I'll BET you've never seen this before...

Basil Chicken w/ Rose

2009-05-31T16:46:00.000-07:00

can't resist a photo of my beautiful daughter Rose, who could?

Kurosawa in NY

2009-05-31T16:27:00.000-07:00

Walking down the street, past the Film Forum, of course a new poster for Akira Kurosawa's classic RASHOMON catches my eye. The poster, by old college buddy Kent Williams (painter extraordinaire).

Don't the funniest things happen in New York?

quiz:

2009-05-27T08:11:00.000-07:00

Q...what's better than seeing Spinal Tap at the Beacon last night?

A...how about Elvis Costello coming on stage to take lead vocals for a version of "Gimme Some Money"?

yup.

what life is all about (possibly)

2009-05-25T09:27:00.001-07:00

Just got back from a wonderful weekend with my painter pals (George Pratt, John Van Fleet, Scott Hampton, and Chris Moeller), in Washington DC.

Lots of art gazing, especially at the incredible National Portrait Gallery (the most under-rated museum in America). Lots of Thomas Dewing (top), Whistler, Abbott Thayer (bottom) and all the boys. Food for the soul.

sorry, i couldn't help myself...

2009-05-20T17:38:00.000-07:00

*this trip down memory lane brought to you by the good people at topps, inc.

hats off to kevin & jody!

2009-05-20T17:24:00.000-07:00

ok, I know not everyone is as much of a Disneyland nut as I am, but IF you are, you MUST check out the awesome flickr page that showcases Kevin Kidney and Jody Daily's work. The defining factors to everything they create is an unabashed love of all things Disney, a classy, sophisticated design sense and just darn good taste.

Please give their work a looksee and a round of applause:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miehana/sets/72157601848341798/

somewhere in the wilds of Germany...

2009-05-18T19:27:00.001-07:00

I recently finished an ad campaign for the German branch of Carhartt Clothing. Actually had a lot of fun doing the paintings (when I could actually find the time to do them!). My Art Director, Coskun sent me this photo of two of the printed posters hanging in a clothing shop somewhere in Berlin. cool.

if I must, I must...

2009-05-17T17:24:00.000-07:00

Somebody forced me to create a website even thought I don't know why I need one. Someone else forced me to create a blog even though I don't know why I need one of those either.

The accompanying photo of baseball great Pete Rose is a special gift from me to all those people that force me to do things that I don't want to do. enjoy.