These are some tree rubbings created during a recent hike. I've been on a productive art path so far this January and completed one painting... feeling momentum overall. Beyond that, I've been trying to just have some fun in life - eating good food, going places, spending time with loved ones, and trying to compartmentalize the general vibe of doom surrounding American political life. 

Test First. Oil on Canvas, 24" x 30".

 

I wanted to work larger, so I picked up a deep-edged canvas, but I have decided I really don't care for canvas as a substrate. It's too toothy. I prefer panel or Gesso board or even Arches paper.

We visited the Nelson Atkins in Kansas City... here are some of my favorites:

Tympanum
China
Tang Dynasty (618-906 C.E.), late 7th to early 8th century
Engraved stone

Stele for Pagoda Commissioned by Song Jingye
China, Stele carved in 558 C.E., Northern Qi dynasty
rubbing created about 1800s-1911
Ink rubbing on paper

Kamadhenu, the Wish-Granting Cow
South India, possibly Karnataka
15th-17th century
Stone and pigment with metal attachments

Stayed at the Elms hotel and spa:

Checked out George Washing Carver museum and Neosho Fish Hatchery:

And most importantly, enjoyed some good food:

One of my favorite restaurants, Billie's Grocery in KC

This chair is $1879

Some shots from Dallas. We had the opportunity to visit Meow Wolf in Grapevine, which is located in an actual thriving (not dead) mall.

This is the 2nd Meow Wolf we've been able to experience, the first being The House of Eternal Return in Santa Fe. By the time we were done, the absurdity of the mall itself felt like an extension of Meow Wolf. At one point, we wandered into Neiman Marcus, thinking it was a trashier version of Marshalls/Homegoods, only to realize the ugly Christmas sweaters were $700.

$742, LOL

This made me realize there is a deep misalignment of values between myself (and, I suppose, broader Midwestern culture) and people who would even have a social context for these kinds of status symbols. It's interesting how many people are living in close proximity to one another while living in totally separate versions of reality.

We also went to the Dallas Museum of Art, which was both transcendent and fabulous for people watching.

I was amused by the juxtaposition of the "juicy" pants with this ancient relic

This person was using the art as a backdrop, asking the guy to take more photos of her because the first ones he took weren't adequate (a feeling I empathize with)

Just a few of my favorites:

Melchor Perez Holguin, Virgin of the Rosary, 1675-1725

Hans Thoma, Olive Grove at Lake Garda, 1897

Jean Baptiste Marie Pierre, The Abduction of Europa, 1750

Meanwhile, back in Kansas:

The Eviction

 Some good 'ol Oklahoma spookiness