Painting completed and accepted in juried show

I'm excited about completing this painting and having it accepted to a juried show. Prints are available here.

Details about the exhibit are below.

Around the Block: Artists from Our Neighborhood will open for visitors on Monday, June 15 and the reception will be held on Thursday, June 18 from 6–8 p.m. with a gallery talk by Aaron Packer at 7 p.m. I will definitely be attending the reception.

The exhibit will be on display until August 6

Work in Progress

Here is a work in progress for an arts festival. Mandolin sound board top will be a painter's palette. Flute with brush tip will have painted a flowing brush stroke in the background.

What color(s) would you recommend for the brush stroke? Or what colors should be on the palette to begin with?

Your feedback is appreciated.

What Helps or Hinders Your Creativity?

In order to facilitate a discussion on creativity, I'll pose 3 main questions, along with some other clarifying questions. We will also be referencing the book Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon.

1) What feeds your creativity?
2) What hinders your creativity?
3) What sorts of changes are needed in order to correct or eliminate the hindrances and/or how can a better creative environment be formed and nurtured?

What books have you read on creativity? Share your own bibliography. Here's mine in order of most recent first:

Show Your Work!–10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered
    Austin Kleon
Manage Your Day-To-Day: Build Your routine, Find Your Focus & Sharpen Your Creative Mind
    Jocelyn K. Glei (editor)
Steal Like an Artist–10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative
    Austin Kleon
Creativity, Inc.–Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration
    Ed Catmull
Imagine–How Creativity Works
    Jonah Lehrer
Art Without Compromise*
    Wendy Richmond
The Creative Habit–Learn it and Use it for Life
    Twyla Tharp
The Artist’s Way–A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity
    Julia Cameron
The Creative Call–An Artist’s Response to the Way of the Spirit
    Janice Elsheimer
Creative Utopia–12 Ways to Realize Total Creativity
    Theo Stephan Williams

Just Added a New Drawing

Reflections of a Dancer 3 by artbymichael
Look for more gallery posters at Zazzle

Pirates Drawing Finally Published

http://www.zazzle.com/pirates_poster-228227857184765038

After 2 different scans and a long wait, I finally published this drawing on Zazzle. It is for sale as a poster. Perhaps I'll make some cards of it, too. I think one New Year resolution I could make would be to publish more of my art that has been scanned already. How hard can it be?


make custom gifts at Zazzle

Another Almost Complete

Been working on this painting for a long time, too. Still needs some finishing up. Needs background touch up and foreground touch up as well.

Almost Done

I'm almost ready to submit this art for a billboard competition. Unfortunately the cropping will be fairly extreme. The dancer's legs will cropped off. Maybe something like the one below.