1973, acrylic on canvas, painted in black & white. This was my first large painting at school. Never had the room to try it at home, but then I really didn't start painting until College. I painted it from a picture of a motorcycle I photographed on black and white film that I'd processed myself. Black and white film processing was something I picked-up in high school. I also chose the subject of the bike because of all its chrome, it was full of reflections I liked. I still have this one, though its suffered some wear and tear over the years.
1973 oil on canvas 51" x 32" This was my first oil painting. I was taking painting, so painting in oil was part of the curriculum. I was into taking solo subjects, at the time, and painting them big. Ping pong was a big appeal to my father, partly the reason I chose this subject matter. He was paying my tuition, I did this painting for him. When I painted this one, I had added a lot of drying agent to speed that up, as a result it has developed some cracks over the years.
1974 oil on canvas 51" x 34" . This was my second painting in oil. I was still playing around with the mix of linseed oil, varnish and turpentine and apparently didn't have the mix down yet because this painting has had some color changes over the years. This is another painting to please my father who was flying DC-8 jets as a pilot for UAL. I added a little paper air plane in the corner . The model was an actual flying glider, I built from instructions in a book on paper airplanes.
1974 oil on canvas 6 x 4 feet Title: "Reflections of enthusiasm at an auto show". This was the first painting I gave a title to. Its the painting I did after the motor on the prior page. I was into the reflection thing again, liking shiny objects. This painting has the distinction that it hung briefly in the Denver Art Museum at an all Colorado show during 1974. It is no longer in my possession.
1974 oil on canvas 78" x 44" This painting was a class assignment, which was to do a painting for a location, of our choosing, on campus. I chose a cafeteria in a men's dormitory. The unusual canvas size was designed to fit the location as well as the subject matter, my sister in law eating a piece of steak. Though you can't see it here, I spelled out "steak", in the meat she was eating. Still in my possession.
1975 oil on canvas 6 x 4 feet. Though I was no longer taking painting, due to I had taken all the painting class offered, I still produced this one of Varsity pond on the campus of CU Boulder. It hung in the Fine Arts library until I graduated in 75. I still have in my possession.
1974 oil on canvas 31" x 23" This was the last painting I did as classroom work. This is my niece Kristin, another painting to please family.
1973 acrylic on canvas approximately 7 x 4 feet This ones out of sequence. I thought I had done it back in 75, but after talking to Steve Allen, the person I painted it for, says it was 73. He was going to school in Fort Collins at CSU and was a radio DJ on campus. They wanted something interesting on the wall in the radio room and wanted me to paint something for cost. Because Steve's a good friend, still is, I did. Where it is now, I have no idea, but I know its no longer hanging in the radio room. I like to think it was a presentiment of the compact disk before it was invented.
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