Busy in the Studio

Well, it a long ways from Winslow Arizona. It's been awhile too. While my typical framing business has been suprisingly slow these days I've been busy laying some gold for samples of different techniques in gilding and lettering styles. I've really been enjoying this time to get caught up on a number of things. Here is an example of my latest...

This is a vintage "S"  23 kt gold gilded in reverse on a piece of glass. It is two toned, in that I gilded part of the letter with a "bright" watergilded technique and then leafed the duller, matted look with a reverse oil gilded process, thereby giving the two toned look. All done by hand. Classic. I love it. I'm thinking that these might make for a special Christmas gift...a personalized monogram in the letter of your choice.

Also gilded my shop address numerals on the transom glass above the doors the other day.

Hard to see the burnished reflection of the gold in this shot. It looks like a matte gilding but trust me, it is watergilded bright. Again 23kt gold gilded in reverse on the glass with a black outline.

Although the numbers don't show up as well in this photo, the bright reflective properties of the gold are more apparent.

I've been getting these sample photos together because after Christmass I'm taking this lettering, painted and gilded, on the road to businesses in the area. I've become absolutely infatuated with this and lovin' it.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Standing on a Corner

Yup. So there I was, last Saturday, standing on that famous corner in Winslow, AZ. You know the one. Come on. Think. “Well, I'm a standing on a corner, in Winslow, Arizona, and such a fine sight to see. It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford slowin' down to take a look at me”. It’s from the song “Take it Easy” made famous by the Eagles. Now you remember? It WAS “such a fine sight to see” as they were holding a great classic car show right there also. Our luck couldn’t have been any better. What a treat.


Taking a break from working on the Bronc Fighter we left Montrose on a chilly Friday morning on our Harley bound for the Cameron Trading Post in Cameron, AZ. We passed through Monument Valley and managed to get some great photos and video. We’ve been there before but the last time it was so windy, the landscape and sky was just a sea of red sand and dust. It was much better this time. The dining room at the Cameron Trading Post is sight to behold. Many stunning Navajo rugs adorn the walls and there is the old original tin ceiling to boot. Neat place.

Saturday morning we rode on down to Winslow and aside from the famous corner, the other big attraction for us in Winslow was the La Posada Hotel, which is just down the street from “the corner”. The La Posada is a “Harvey House” of the famed Harvey Houses built by Fred Harvey along the Santa Fe Railroad lines back in the day. Mary Colter, the architect, considered it her master piece. Mary, however, is probably more famous for her work at the Grand Canyon. She worked as an architect for Fred Harvey for many years, designing and building the famous Harvey Houses.

From Winslow we rode on to Gallup, NM. Gallup of course is famous for the Indian jewelry produced and sold there. I guess you could say it is the capital of Indian jewelry. Despite that renowned legacy, we were more interested in the El Rancho Hotel on Historic Route 66. The El Rancho Hotel is known as the hotel of the stars. R.E. Griffith, brother of Hollywood director D.W. Griffith built the hotel in 1937. The hotel became a get-a-way for the stars. The list of stars who stayed there is impressive. Each room is named after a star. We were fortunate to be assigned to the John Wayne room. My wife Kathy was impressed that she could be sitting in the chair that John Wayne had sat in. Then she commented, “I hope he didn’t sleep in that bed too. That would mean it is really old.” It was a great weekend.
Video and pictures to follow as soon as I can get them sorted out. I'll keep you posted if you'll check back. Later.

Progress on the Bronc Fighter

I got some good progress done on the painting today. Most of the color is blocked in. I really like the character that is coming out in the cowboy's face. You should take a look. The video isn't very long. The color on the horse is a little dark but I can lighten it up as needed. This will be it until next week for this painting.

I'm off to Cameron Trading Post tomorrow. Cameron is on the western side of the Navajo reservation. We'll spend Friday night there and then Saturday we'll move on to Gallup, NM. On the way to Gallup, we'll stop at Winslow, AZ to checkout the La Posada Hotel, one of the few Harvey Houses left from the railroad days. While we are there, we are going to stand on that famous corner, in Winslow Arizona. What corner you ask? Come on. You remeber the Eagles song? OK, if you don't then you'll have to look it up.

In Gallup we are spending Satruday night at the El Ranch Hotel, famous for where the movies stars all stayed while filming the movies such as produced by John Ford in Monument Valley, AZ...John Wayne, Lauren Bacall, et al.

I hope to post some video from this trip on my HiThisIsMike Channel on Youtube. Stay turned

I'll be  in the shop on Monday and get back to this painting then.

The Bronc Fighter

Here are a couple of clips of video that I took relating to the development stages of a new painting I'm working on. As a result of yesterday's "thinking time" while I was waiting for the glue to dry, I came up with an idea for a new painting. See...it wasn't wasted time at all. I know that it appeared that I was daydreaming, when in actuality I was working.

This is the first video with an explaination of what I'm doing. Those that follow, continue the explaination. This video and the next two were actually made yesterday, 10/2/2012, for those of you who are going to keep track. Enjoy.

Here I start the sketch using the photo as reference for a start. As explained, there is a lot of analyzing and thought that begins at this point. It's easy to rubout and redraw, adjust and manipulate. That's the beauty of working in oil paint vs watercolor.

This video shows a little more progress in defining the image. I've started to darken portions of the sketch to help create some modeling effect and establish values. That's probably good for the time being. I'll take another good look at it in the morning.

I'll continue to post videos as they relate to the progress of this painting. Hope you enjoy it.Thanks for stopping by.

Waiting for the Glue to Dry

This morning I was putting a frame together for one of you good folks. This particular style of frame required that I glue and nail the corners together as opposed to using the underpinner which is quicker. In either case, I use glue, which actually provides a more secure bond than just nailing or using the underpinner without glue, but that’s more information than most of you really need.


In any case, when I do it the old fashioned way, with glue and nails, I join one corner at a time and I like to let the glue dry a bit and set up before I switch to the next corner. This amounts to about 15 minutes per corner. Do the math. Four corners at 15 minutes each leaves me with an hour, or so, before I can move on. Usually during this time I have other things to do so it isn’t actually “wasted” time as such.

This morning however, I needed the workbench that the vise and frame were occupying, for another project, so I decided to go to the computer and start this column while I waited. That idea was short lived, however as Vinnie, you folks know Vinnie, was curled up in my chair sound asleep. I didn’t have the heart to disturb him so I decided that I would perch myself on the director’s chair behind my framing design counter and engage in some quality “thinking” time. That chair is at the right height for me to prop my feet up on the counter and assume the “thinking” position.

I’ve got a number of things on my mind these days and I decided I would spend some time mulling it all over. One can never get enough time to just sit and think. I know folks who are just ramming and jamming all the time, constantly on the move and busy with something. I used to be that way. That’s all and good, but these days I’ve found that giving something a little thought results in a better outcome. It doesn’t make any difference whether it’s a painting, or business or personal relationship matters.

Sure enough, while I was busy thinking about stuff, wouldn’t you know it, someone came in and caught me “thinking”. Of course, I have to admit that it looked like I was merely daydreaming and watching the traffic on the street and folks walking by the front windows. My best efforts at explaining that I was actually “working” fell on deaf ears I’m afraid.

So, if by chance you find me just sitting there, doing what appears to be nothing, I am actually working. I’m probably waiting for the glue to dry. Then again…maybe not.

Catch of the Day

Here's proof that my fishing trips do yield material to paint. This is a watercolor I just finished. These two native Colorado Cut Throat trout were caught on the Big Cimarron River in the Cimarron Mountains in Colorado. They are easily identified by the bright redish orange slash near their gills. They made for a wonderful meal by the open camp fire. My wife Kathy has a phenomenal recipe for trout and it was perfect end to the day.

Pocket Watch Framing

What a great idea! A customer brought in a pocket watch that has been in the family since 1854. Below the watch is an engraving that lists 5 of the owners and dates, all members of the family that the watch has been passed down to. I mounted the watch on a piece of grey linen mat board and lined the sides with the same color of board. The glazing is Museum glass by Tru-Vue which minimizes the reflection. A family treasure preserved for generations to come.