Whatever floats your boat

Today I met with a groomer/ pet boarding facility regarding painting some "kitty condos" in the coming months. These will have a castle theme; I'm thinking gardens, fountains, stone walls and romantic flowers. On my way home, I could feel the excitement to start sketching grow inside, the anticipation to get to the library and do my research and meditating on which medium to use for my sketches.

I would like to rest with this emotion today. Adulthood has brought a lot of changes in my heart and mind. I have taken several different paths only to turn back when it became inconvenient or just plain depressing. For whatever reason, the world of art does not run that way for me. Any setback is small and easy to overlook when I consider the larger picture, and my passion.

I have been asked "what" I paint, or "what" I do. The truth is that I paint and do whatever I want, because it is too hard to say no to what inspires me. Below is a painting I just finished and some other little sketches, drawing on my love for comics and also inspired by a newfound artist hero Raymond Pettibon. He has taken what we sketch and feel in our hearts, blips that could have come straight from a diary, and made dark, somewhat titillating and often humorous art. It captures the angst and confusion, the cynicism of a thinking person, without bothering to whitewash it with sophistication. So, Mr. Pettibon, this one's for you!