A Grand Affair

Thank you to Rachel Koper of The Austin Chronicle for taking notice of my work in a recent review of  "A Grand Affair" group show currently on exhibit through January 31 at Wally Workman in Austin. I think the sentiment is appropriate as I wanted the air of delicacy to infuse these two paintings. Delicate…

Learning to Draw: the virtues of copying

Originality is a quality highly prized in art. How does one begin to be original? By learning the basics. When it comes to learning the craft of painting and drawing, I believe that there's nothing more beneficial than copying and studying great works of art. It's how I taught myself to draw and then to…

Twelfth Night

These are inspired from William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night or What You Will." They are portraits of Viola and Olivia respectively. "I am all the daughters of my father's house, And all the brothers too; and yet I know not." - William Shakespeare, "Twelfth Night" "Make me a willow cabin at your gate, And call upon…

Inspiration from “Madama Butterfly”

I listen to opera in my studio and it is my painting music. Here are two paintings that are inspired from Cio-Cio San's aria "Un Bel Di Vedremo" from Puccini's "Madama Butterfly." I've taken the imagery from Pinkerton's parting words to her. ``O Butterfly My tiny little child-wife, I'll return with the roses, The warm…

“In the Moonlight”

My inspiration for this is a small copper painting by Adam Elsheimer, "The Flight into Egypt." Painted in 1609, it was the first painting of its kind which showed the biblical scene in a nocturnal forest, as described by Matthew (2:13). His contemporaries marveled at his rendering of the Milky Way, which has never been…

“Rules of Engagement” and Santos

My first landscape featuring the area around Santa Fe. In my painting studio I have a view of pinon trees on a hill. I witness ravens, rabbits, lizards and prairie dogs. This painting incorporates a lot of Santa Fe. My Santo Nino from the Philippines feels right at home in this land. I suppose my…

Crowning the Grand Sow

This is the final painting. I released it and then took it back after awhile because there was something missing I thought. So in 2009 I revised it. My creative process: from drawing to finished painting. I love the little piggy in the foreground, scratching his side, completely unimpressed by the wondrous coronation next to…