Last night I attended the opening show of the Bay Area Arts Association at the Bonnifas Art Center in Escanaba and was honored to receive the 2nd place award. The artwork on display was exceptional - my artist/friend Candace Zebell won 1st place for her awesome triptych of Montana Totem and April South-Olson won Best of Show for her interactive abstract piece - very cool!
The power of play is important for every artist and I am taking some time to just "play" - this weekend I plan to do a lot of horseback riding and chilling out before my busy next couple of weeks.
Our area artists lost a wonderful artist/friend and mentor - John Gustafson - passed away in April. He was very dedicated to his artwork and his family and his wife Jan was very dedicated to John and his artwork as well. He will be missed. I look up to both John and Jan and their quiet ways - I am glad our paths have crossed!
Here are a few pic's of some new pieces in a totally different color scheme, but I guess spring/summer sheds some light on my work.

The National Watercolor Society All Member Show 2009 opens on May 17 in San Pedro, CA. Although I will not be attending the reception, my piece "Just Wondering" was accepted. A mix of both abstract and representational works were juried in to the show from some of the top artists in the country.
Today I'm starting a new larger piece, hopefully using some silver/gold leaf as well as finishing up some of my 4 x 4 mini's.