Category Archives: Articles on travel

Travel articles including trips where art is a large focus. Food, travel and general interests including food reviews.

Articles on travel

When does the intangible become the masterpiece?

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder they say and one person’s masterpiece is another’s pointless mess. In the past, I had lost my eye for what was art or of interest by second-guessing my initial reaction to a scene and questioning how I can sell instead of simply capturing what naturally appeals to the artist’s eye. No, I have not permanently sold out, just have learned how subtle and transient the artist eye can be and how quickly we can lose sight of why we started the process of seeing like an artist in the first place.
I have narrowed down how I shoot to four basic reasons. First and most simple is the snapshot-to capture the scene for posterity, no need for perfection even though perfection always tends to be the artists intention. Capture what you see and save a moment, no filters, no adjusting, just for fun and nothing more. The next reason is to document for the sake of a future painting, this image is just to capture objects and fragments of an overall scene for the sake of future rendering-I shoot many water and sky scenes for this purpose. The third reason is just for the pure beauty. This option is somewhat more of a challenge than it would seem and it’s harder to shoot for me when the beauty is overwhelming. In this case you are photographing something that so many weekend enthusiasts, cell phone snapping, selfie indulging novices as well as professionals will shoot in varying degrees of quality and perfection. Photo manipulation, color correction and post processing can make a good photo a great photo but the work has already been done for you by mother nature and all you can do is show the depth and beauty of the colors on a flat plane as well as your range of skills can afford you.
The fourth reason for shooting a photograph is the reason for this post, it’s the intangible shapes and textures that the artist would see but the skilled photographer might just pass by for the sake of shooting at the highest skill level the beauty of nature or whatever their particular interest would have them shoot. From an artist standpoint you would think this would be easy because it comes natural but the artist eye is often fleeting which brings us back to one mans’ art is another’s pointless mess. There was a time when I would shoot images of trees, or minimalist shapes and patterns in an effort to capture that artistic image that would amaze my viewer. I failed on so many levels, it’s your passion that drives the image, if you have no passion for a bunch of rocks or trees that create an interesting pattern you will capture that image perfectly and has to explain to your viewer why what you shot was so interesting and should be admired.
Here is the difference and the dilemma of shooting for the sense of art and shooting with passion. I don’t believe the photographer or artist should have to explain to the layman why the image they captured is a work of art, it should be understood even if the viewer isn’t quite sure why the image captures their attention or begs for a second look there is an intangible curiosity that keeps the viewer engaged. The interest and engagement depends first by the varying degrees of interest and passion shared by the viewer and the artist so many photos that might be amazing to the artist may lack the interest for the viewer that has no interest in the subject matter, this is where art is so subjective.
There is a level of art that I believe transcends that subjective notion of art and creativity
And goes beyond the interest. The viewer regardless of their interests or intention cannot help to be moved by the work, many masters have achieved this level of success. To me, there is this haunted feeling or a moment where you feel like you have interrupted something and you are an audience to something that draws emotion from somewhere you didn’t even realize you possessed. This is the artist at work and this is where I seek to achieve, it is the artists job to explain and show the reason why something moved them without ever having to explain why, this is the greatness that I strive for and it is a great achievement when a viewer is engaged when they don’t even realize why. To speak to a viewer an emotion or an intangible aspect with only an image is an incredible accomplishment and that which makes the pointless mess, the masterpiece.

Articles on travel

Future paintings of Daingerfield, Sunset and the beauty and solitude of nature.

This is a series of photographs from Lake Daingerfield. I like the low quality of the images from my phone, as they are more like painting sketches rather than actual photographs. All images were brought into Photoshop where I increased the contrast and saturation. The colors are not that far off reality actually because my phone was a bit washed out and with the saturation of colors I’ve almost achieved colors that are closer to the way it really was.
This is the beginning of a new series of paintings, I’m planning on creating ten very small paintings that I can create and finish in a short time, what I am trying to accomplish is the spontaneity of a fast painting but also that feeling of the dark evening, the silent moments as the sun descends and throws
shadows across the water.
I am amazed with the difference a short amount of time can make in relation to color and contrast. In the early hours just before sunset you have this pale light that keeps a bright sheen on the water, the blues of the sky are reflected but most of the color is burned out by the intensity of the last bit of afternoon sun. The contrast of the light and dark in the water makes the appearance of glittering diamonds in the edge of the water. High contrasting colors and values appear almost more like shapes and elements in an abstract painting.

As the angle of the sun changes the colors warm and the sky is infused with an intense blue, the blue in the water and the greens and golds of the depths of crystal clear water dance and reflect in multiple mirrors that throw light like halos on each movement of the water surface. To me, this is where the lake is its most peaceful, it’s the final breath of the day and the movements in the sounds in the forest start to stir as the evening shift take over, you can hear the sounds of owls from distant hollows and coyotes start gathering for the evening run.

The colors continue to darken, there is a flame that grows in the silhouette of the forest and its reflection in the lake is like the final burning embers of a campfire at the end of a night of a campfire, minus the burning eyes and aromatic smell of burnt wood. Contrasts are heightened as the final bit of light fades from the deep forest, and a star filled sky starts from a deep cerulean blue to an intense Prussian blue with stars that shimmer and appear and disappear as you stare into the depths of infinity.
Kayaking in a place like this makes one feel like you are the only one for miles. You turn to the forest and enjoy that stillness that cannot be duplicated unless you get out away from the city and stop for a moment to listen to nature at its best.
This is why I especially love kayaking on Lake Daingerfield and those final hours are my favorite hours, even though the cold wind and the icy extremities bring on discomfort, the peace you feel and the deep solitude is something that can only be experienced and barely described. These photos I hope capture that feeling, please let me know if you got any memories of camping with family or enjoying those last few hours of a sunset, would love to read your stories. Thanks for reading and get out and explore.

Articles on travel

Lake Daingerfield Fishing for Chain Pickerel


Yesterday I enjoyed another beautiful day on one of my favorite lakes. Lake Dangerfield is a small intimate lake in East Texas, this was my second time to visit. It feels like being in the middle of the north woods, including the sound of owls in the evening and the cries of wolves at night-okay coyotes but still.
I photographed with my camera phone, which guarantees a less than high quality product but I’m very impressed with the fact that the lack of quality almost made it more artistic than photographic. I have a new series of small paintings and these are like photographic sketches for those upcoming studies.

I want the paintings to convey the dark, cool blues and greens that make you feel so isolated and alone but the feeling isn’t lonely, its small and intimate, there are lily pads everywhere hiding chain pickerel and bass. The colors of the lily pads are warm reds and golds and they reach up from the crystal clear water like ghosts. As the sun descends the colors and light change and the drama of the scene heightens, we shared the lake with just a few other people that were crazy enough to go out into the 46 degree water and a twelve mile an hour wind but this is half the fun of kayaking in the winter, no really it is, having sensation in your extremities is overrated anyway.

On a lake like Texoma in North Texas, you feel like you are lost in the middle of a large body of water that could be an ocean if it weren’t for the tall trees and rocky cliffs but the size of the waves and the activity is so different than being on a lake like Dangerfield. The stillness of the forest that surrounds you and the deep blue color of the water as the shadows twist and bend at sunset are just a few of the reasons why I love kayaking Daingerfield.
Something that separated this particular day from other days spent kayaking is the fact that we actually caught fish this time. I caught a very large chain pickerel, my son and nephew each caught a few of their own, it was one of the more successful fishing trips I have had in recent months.

I even go the chance to see a pileated woodpecker, an osprey and other various songbirds. Being on a kayak in a place like this is like for a moment not existing and allowing nature to act as it would if you weren’t there. Recently, I have taken advantage of the silence and stopped fishing long enough to take in the beauty and calm of a pristine lake and one of my favorite places to kayak in Texas. I think this stopping and taking in the scenery has improved recent kayaking ventures as it is very hard to feel clumsy and awkward trying to fish while the wind is moving the kayak in a different direction and a tree is trying to pull you and your rods out of the boat-I’m not the most agile fisherman but this time was more calm and peaceful than many other trips I have taken.

Next destination, Broken Bow Lake Oklahoma, still cold but hopefully not too windy. Until the next time, get out there and explore.

Articles on travel

Happy New Year and Things to Come

This is the first image of 2014, my cat and a bit of rendering in Photoshop-I enjoyed the process of isolating what I liked about the cat and allowed the personality of the cat to come out. I am going to try to photograph every day-something and hopefully in 365 days I’ll have lots of images to go through and maybe a few that are noteworthy. 
I am in the middle of a painting series and have just sketched out eleven new paintings. The view is of water and darkness in varying degrees mixed in with some Florida scenery from my recent trip to Cape San Blas and Mexico beach. I have also did an underpainting of a koi pond-there are rich colors of reds and yellows that blend into the dark water that goes back into a waterfall in the background. I am excited about the change of scope and multiple vantage points I am perfecting. I want the viewer to look down into the depths of water and be able to stare out into the distance as well so there are various vanishing points in the same scene and several different planes where the viewer can focus their attention.
Besides igniting the passion for photography I am also planning on continuing my multiple stories I have in the works. I also have several self-help books about finding happiness in ones’ life. I am excited about possibilities for 2014 and hope we can have more contact and communication from readers. 

Articles on travel

Teresa Kalnoskas, An Amazing Artist that Captures the Energy of Things

Patience oil, alkyd, wax on linen, 40″ x 76″

I have always questioned the process of abstract art and having even attempted to paint in a somewhat abstract manor I realize there is more to abstraction than simply shapes and patterns. An artist either sees in that realm or not and to simply try to paint abstract does not bring about art that touches the viewer. There is decorative art, that is beautiful in its own right and than there is art that truelly touches the viewers soul and evokes, flavor, emotion and conjures up memory. I have been inspired by one such artist that creates abstractions but in such an organic and animate way that the word abstract seems too ambiguous to describe her artwork.
I wouldn’t even call her work abstract or even expressionist as it is so fluid and dynamic it embodies different aspects and various schools of art. Teresa Kalnoskas captures perfectly, images of everyday life, natural objects, mechanical objects and she strips away their exoskeleton leaving the pure energy of the object. The viewer doesn’t waste a moment of just seeing an object, instead they see that same object and all of its energy the artist captures. When I see her paintings of fruit-I can taste the sweetness of the fruit, I think of a stone counter where fruit is rich and appetizing, I picture a place and time-it takes me further than the actual image of fruit to the very aspect of what makes us crave the taste and the sweet juices of the fruit.
Her colors are not pretty for the sake of pretty, they are beautifully violent and richly soothing- they bleed across the canvas and capture a place.The deliberate hues don’t seem intent on being artsy or graphically pleasing no more than autumn leaves try to be pretty-they are organic and natural and that untouched, untainted feeling is what makes them so intense and beautiful-she gives colors flavors and shapes sound-they act as if they have always been there but we as viewers weren’t open or insightful enough to see them that way. 
Mojo oil, alkyd, wax on linen, 54″ x 54″

I’m haunted by the paintings of her parents, they speak, they are not portraits but an intimate moment where you can the see their energy and every beautiful feature that she celebrates allows you to know the person that is beneath the paint. Her images of leaves remind me of that dark cloudy day where you walk in puddles in the street and you don’t see leaves, you feel the day and the atmosphere. She captures images of red tractors in a field and I can imagine that day, the harvested field, the smell of oil and gas-it makes an object an emotional experience and the viewer can bring experience to her paintings and that is a supernatural process that describes the true essence of what art truelly is.
Lucidity (triptych) oil, alkyd, wax on panel, 10″ x 30″

Articles on travel

This is an oil on canvas from 2012. The late afternoon was cold and right after we saw this we walked the Golden Gate Bridge. I wanted to show the cold atmosphere, notice everyone is bundled up but at the same time the colors are very rich and warm. The people were not very social with each other but instead kept among themselves in small groups of families.

I really appreciated the activity, as in the suburbs it seems to be a bit of a ghost town, I love tourist areas because locals and tourists tend to be all around even if no one actually socializes amongst themselves, I still enjoy the energy and activities of community and family.

Articles on travel

First of the New Series

3 Comments

The new series is well on its way, with manic excitement in the in initial sketches, great under paintings that really gave me a great overall idea of what the series would say and than the long and labored creative block and suddenly I can see the ideas clearly again.

So here is the first of the series, it is an image of a shrike, also called the butcher bird because their habits with their prey, they tend to hang grasshoppers and mice on thorns and barbed wire. I had originally planned on adding the prey but felt it might detract. The concept here is the beauty and warmth of an open field at the height of summer sunflowers and hidden along the hedgerow the shrike surveys its territory.

This image is the first time I had ever used oil sticks, as I wanted a rich somewhat abstract feeling of the weeds and sunflowers, the background was left open and barren. I hope there is a bit of strength in the power of a predatory bird and a bit of sadness in the distance with the impending storm. This scene is something I see pretty much every day-the shrike came to me as a harbinger of something perhaps violent, I aimed for simplicity and left only the detail for the birds and bit of the sunflowers.

My colors have changed in recent, especially in
some of the water scenes, more greens in the emerald hue inspired by a visit to the Florida coast.  This painting of the shrike quickly clarified my direction with the contrast, limited color palette and the somber grey bird with a violent reputation as a small but effective predator. I am eager to paint more birds, wildlife and probably people, I want the landscape to stand on its own to create the atmosphere but the wildlife and the people will bring a voice or personality to the empty landscape.

My first love is nature, something that has been a major influence as long as I can remember. I love the hedgerow, I love the silence of being in the middle of a field during the most dramatic seasons of fall, winter and spring, a time that I seem to paint the most, maybe because its cooler than but more importantly the atmosphere of the landscape is more distinct and says more in its reference to death in autumn, the deep thought of loss and redemption of winter and the chance for the renewal in spring. I want my colors to be true and my shapes to almost allow an abstract feel mingled with realism.

My next paintings is of a cat at the window with the moon and trumpet flowers on the fence outside-I concentrated on the blues and oranges of the night garden contrasting with the shadows of the cat as it stares out of the dark corner of a window scene. I am very excited to see this series progress and am also happy to include more pastels which were a bit absent in the last series. I hope you will enjoy the series.

Articles on travel

Who needs electricity when you have board games?


I woke this morning to a frozen landscape outside my door. I was very excited about having a nice cozy afternoon with no place to go, watching movies, having hot chocolate-one problem changed our plans-we had no power, in fact most of the area had no power. It was one of those days that you really appreciate the simpler things, like being able to cook, make coffee, surf the web, oh and lights and heat would be good. The fish tank was beginning to get cold too-the fish were at the bottom almost in a stupor. Our first position was waiting it out, certainly we would have lights before long but the morning dragged with everyone staring at each other, I’ll make coffee, never mind, let me check the news, never mind and that habit of reaching for the light switch to be disappointed with an empty click and standing in the darkness feeling foolish. 

After a great walk around the block where my son and I discovered an oasis of donuts, coffee and Kolaches, we walked back through the treacherous streets hoping the many falling branches wouldn’t fall and kill us. It looked like a war zone, there were beautiful tall trees split at the trunk and the glass branches glittered in the gray afternoon bliss-okay I’m an optimist. After drinking the tepid coffee and eating the cold kolaches-it was a long walk in the cold-again we looked at each other with a bit of confusion. So now what do we do? 

I just started a late morning nap when my son blurted out-board games!!! What about board games? So the first game we played, as I reluctantly resurrected myself from the warm blanket and my peaceful slumber, was scrabble. You just can’t turn down a fifteen year old actually wanting enjoy a game with you-even if is the fact that we were captives to the ice storm. Just as we were into the game and really enjoying it and questioning why I ever hesitated my brother and his family stopped by, they too had no power. They brought some coffee, it was actually hot. My son and I went out and got some needed comforts, all ready-to-serve and bought yet another board game which I’m not sure you’ve heard of-“Monopoly”. How many hours have been spent playing that game and yet now with television, video games and internet-we barely remembered how to play. So just as we get home to a house where the heat is starting to hum, my son said something that struck me-“I hope the power is still out.” I just thought it was sad how far we had come where the only way we were forced to play a game and not be distracted was with the most fortunate ice storm.I considered it a bit of an addiction to media and decided the power would stay off for the length of a game of monopoly. Okay we didn’t play in the dark, we’re not savages and we weren’t having to bundle up with the blessing of having heat but the television stayed silent and the computers never opened and the Xbox missions were all postponed for my son to literally monopolize the whole game and steal every last cent I had. I think he’s going into business for himself next year and I think I might invest in what ever he starts as he’s quite a mogul.


So what did you do during the ice storm and when was the last time you played a board game? 

Articles on travel
The road whispers go forward and fast, like light
there were no directions no hints of point or perspective
I followed
into the clouds that kept the sun quiet
the daylight rich and hollow 
skies laid out on my shoulders
its autumn
and I feel winters earnest rush
the season of loss, the silence
stares through both of us
Backroads, the quiet morning, before you wake
but I am gone
and the sun barely touches the earth
and the stone speaks little of histories, only names
backroads, the weight of heaven on the branches and limbs
but I am gone
your door does not recognize the ghost
nor offer any words of excuses or renewal
friendship and love; these words we throw like stones 
mean nothing in a vacuum
mean nothing in their absence
a ghost that sees itself with little purpose
in this realm
backroads, riding silent, alone,
I am happy and yet sad
that you have found your own…..
I am home,
haunted in this field is the feeling that left me
but I am open 
to feel
and the ghosts we love and ache for
are real
I am home,
walked to the lake to be closer to the trees
a ghost  brushed my shoulder
I remember Rusk
I remember sleeping in the comfort
of being whole
even while the apnea
left me oxygen starved and cold
I remember
the empty space that never filled
I spoke with God and its empty still
you were the home that kept me
you were the home that promised time
and I am left with a beautiful ghost
and a home that isn’t mine….
I remember snow
last Christmas
but they’ve cleared the trees and sterilized the road
you rise out of the beautiful field
an eye sore
but you give more than you take
though there’s nothing left in your wake
my son saw a bobcat with cubs the other day
even while all the trees and deeper forests were whisked away
In disgust I watch as you give more than you take
while I was only hoping that the back roads
the landscape might keep
another day….