2020 Artist Statement

The biggest change in 2018 for my art was the inclusion of the iPad Pro and the iPencil, with an app called ArtRage. I also had marked advancements in my live drawings of musicians that often surprised me. And to round things out I completed a few oil paintings including a large masterwork called, ‘Frank and d’Beans.’

I had plenty of new experiences with lots of travel. I visited Pai, Thailand; Kathmandu, Nepal, a place beyond time; Edinburgh, Scotland, where I love visiting the local snugs; small bars where locals play acoustic music; Boulder, Colorado; Marquette, Michigan; Gainesville, Florida; All this, and I was still working full-time!

Each of these places inspired the art you will find within these pages. Of note is my trip to Kathmandu, Nepal, and the neighboring world heritage site called Bhaktapur. We stayed inside the world heritage site among the temples juxtaposed with modern motorbikes and a few stores.

The flight was uneventful, however once on the ground, I saw how disorganized this place is. The ATM did not work and we needed money to hire a taxi. That airport is known as one of the most dangerous in the world. It is located in a mountain valley surrounded by tall peaks. It is very close to the highest point on earth, Mount Everest.

We were picked up by a fellow named Dil Bahadur Chhetri. He brought us large necklaces of orange flowers making us feel very special. Dil is short in stature but big in demeanor. He is the perfect mix of local, entrepreneurial, and international. Notable is that Dil has climbed Mount Everest. None of us knew then that a worldwide pandemic was coming and he would not survive. He was far too young to pass away.

2018 Notable Artworks:

Frank and d’Beans, 6 feet by 6.5 feet, oil on canvas, with a matching frame is a masterwork of my style. It took one year to make. The colors and composition are breathtaking. I used what I call a flat brush technique. I tried to paint everything flat to give myself the freedom to make compositional changes with impunity. By keeping things flat I can paint directly over an area with a new color giving me the most freedom of composition. Dattatreya Temple - My favorite temple in The World Heritage site of Bhaktapur, Nepal is the Dattatreya. We first stumbled upon it while walking around at night hearing chanting with music within. The music was coming from a hand-pumped harmonium organ. We stepped under the covered porch where the people were playing as if we were walking through a portal into another dimension. The locals welcomed us with smiles as they continued to sing and chant. We did our best to follow along.

I was mesmerized the entire time I was in Bhaktapur with this temple and did many drawings of it. The Hindus have many Gods, which in and of itself is fascinating. Coming from the West we are constantly reminded there is only one God. I found it refreshing to see an alternative approach and as an artist, the concept brings up profound possibilities. Dattatreya is a composite deity that personifies three Gods; Trimurti of Brahma; Vishnu; and Shiva. She is seen as a three-headed God. Nowhere at this location will you find a sculpture or image of Dattatreya. Instead, each of the three Gods is portrayed. Seeing them together is said to evoke Dattatreyya in the worshippers.

Note- I learned that the Hindus do not worship idols. Instead, they use them as a reminder of their Gods. It bothered me to see the sculptures until I learned this fact.

In the front of the Dattatreya temple are symbols of Lord Vishnu (three-pointed trident), garuda (a monk God saying Namaste to the temple), a conch shell (symbol of the sacred OM sound), and chakra (a circle representing the universe and the destruction of karmic bonds, denoting salvation).

I learned this temple was built from a single tree in the year 1470 as a resting place for Shiva ascetics. Later, in the 1800’s it was modified to recognize Dattatreya. The building is made of a central set of bricks housing a small sculpture of a God with a doorway for the God to see the world. A porch surrounds the bricks which are protected by wooden slats giving the overall appearance of the building a solid shape. Up close you realize that the slats have large gaps. The porch is not protected from the elements. If you are inside the porch these slats give scant protection from the wind and cold. This is where the people were chanting.

At night there is one more thing that adds to the mysticism of the temple, it is guarded by goats.