When you need no words to tell your story and your story is as smooth as velvet... drop mic.

This being the first in the series, I was hoping for strength and to set an overall tone that the rest could follow.

black velvet

Does she want the cheeseburger?

Is she in competition with the cheeseburger for attention?

Does the cheeseburger represent temptation?

Yes, I ate the model on the pedestal.

extra bacon

My model just spontaneously struck this pose and I loved it,
so after trashing many conceptual ideas, I landed on this one. Seemed to scratch that inch.

the itch

This one makes me giggle out loud. I had never painted a frog before so I added that to my resumé.

The dialogue is fun and makes me think they are debating the sex appeal of their legs. He totally wins!

it's all about the legs

This one was tough. The pose was extreme, and while physically awesome, it did not inspire a fun conceptual. I have used the golden ratio in all of the pieces to create strong compositions, and this one uses multiple segments. The goldfish was a great model and held his pose perfectly.

be a goldfish

I know I’m not supposed to pick favorites, but… Working on the concept for this one was super fun and went through some edits.

It was important not to trigger amputation or any wrong idea. The big win idea on this one was making her hair yarn.

knit wit

This gorgeous child made the painting process easy. However, I couldn’t get the golden ratio to work out in this one like it does in the others, so I sort of put the flowers in the intersections of the golden ratios and called it done.

full bloom

I was never allowed to have Barbies as a kid; my mom didn’t want me to grow up fashion-conscious.

Totally didn’t work, but I can’t help thinking how this “perfect” figure toy might have negatively impacted my younger self.

bad influence

Totally inspired by Bouguereau, this one became a little serious. The concept is that mankind is running on a short supply of HOPE, FAITH, PEACE, LOVE… so in her desperate moment, the goddess of humanity plants these very seeds. She herself looks drained, but the intense light source in the middle of darkness suggests that the seeds will, in fact, germinate and grow.

germination

The rigidness of physical strength is pictured in contrast to the softness of velvet and the fragility of an instrument like the mandolin... I believe it inspires a sense of balance that more so favors the softening of a solid structure than the hardening of a delicate thing.

We all want to see a venerability in such strength, which may bring on the romantic notion of feeling protected and a chance at being loved.

velvet notes

This little gem really speaks for itself in a lot of ways... The viewer can explore the idea of a “new” beginning or being “reborn”. The contrast between sharp eggshell edges and the softness of her new skin might elude to the past vs the present.

hatched

She sits relaxed and comfortable in her own skin, for it rivals all the fine textiles in the world. No dry cleaning necessary.

braids

The butterfly has been a symbol of transformation, hope and faith for thousands of years. From larva to caterpillar to chrysalis, and finally to a beautiful butterfly, it seems like humans go through the same stages in our youth to adulthood.

caterpillar no more