Flip Top : 2026-02

I finally bought a miter saw which has proven to be very handy. For Christmas, my brother gave me a SKIL router and router table. So in under two months, I had two new tools. It's great to have them but also a space issue. I thought I'd take a hack at making a flip top table. Here it is. Above, it's in the 'buttoned up' mode. The covers were already made (see Sewing Bug) and in this shot, the router happens to be on top. Very please over all. We'll see how it works over time.

These shots show the router table and miter saw uncovered and ready to use. Notice the covers stay in place even when upside down. The router cover is held on by metal clips, the miter cover by magnets. Magnets are great. It would have been nice to have this in a more enclosed case, but part of my objective was to use things I already have and purchase (new purchase) as least as possible. Other than the miter saw, I purchased the latches to lock the table in place and cool raising caster wheels.

The pivot pipe was from an old flag pole, I made the washers for both sides of the pipe, I used all but about a square foot of a sheet of oriented strand board (OSB) that had been unused for about two years. I used three of four 2x4s that I had since the summer of 2023. They were so wonky, I'm fortunate the project came out 'true' enough. I found two pipe clamps to keep the pipe from moving in or out, and all the screws were already sunken costs or reclaimed from another project. By the way, the clearance of the router table just happened to work out perfectly. Maybe 3/4 of an inch from hitting.

The spring loaded door gate latch (above left). Used four...each corner is locked in place.

The SPACEKEEPER raising casters. Four of those, pretty cool. They raise the table about 3/4 an inch.

Above right is my "plan".  Most of it was in my head.

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Greenleaf : 2026-02

Greenleaf

12 February 2026

Acrylic on hardboard

20 x 10 inches (50.8 x 25.4 cm)

FOR SALE

I painted over Ruebenite for this abstract. Ruebenite was made for an art call but was superseded by other entries. The earlier call was RAW, CONCRETE so I covered the hardboard and frame with grout to get a concrete look. It worked pretty well, but the painting wasn't holding any space in my heart. The other reason I tried the grout was to get rid of leaves carved into the frame - hence the new title Greenleaf. I didn't just paint over Ruebenite in spite, I took it as an opportunity to make a painting for another call entitled STEP, REPEAT. It's theme is patterns and this is a geometric pattern. And it's one that's been on my mind for about 30 years...this a head nod to Box Cube, drawn in 1995. I think I'll enter this one with Odeum.

Left: the frame which gives us the title. Next to it, Reubenite.

The other two shots are stage pics.

The frame holding Greenleaf. You can see the leaves are covered and it's concrete-ish.

Note: almost all my frames are easily removed.

Back to Miscellany Art | Home | Musket Art

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Sewing Bug : 2026-02

I brought the sewing machine out and finished a shirt mod that had been sitting for about four years. After that, I kind of got the bug. I had some sheets that had already been cut in half so I made five tool covers. Four are shown above. The fifth was for a miter saw and that one looks more like a blog. These should keep the dust levels down a bit. Angles are a bit tricky but they're kind of like a mental game/puzzle. Earlier in the day I flew with a great friend and we visited the Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum. They had this war poster I hadn't seen before and I'm a fan of war poster art. It reads "The enemy can see your light. Put it out!"

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Monster Project II : 2025-06

Mud Monster

15 June 2025

Acrylic on canvas

11 x 14 in (27.9 x 35.6 cm)

This was painted for the Manitou Monster Project - similar to Monster of 2023. The project is conducted by the Manitou Art Center. Amazingly enough - because it's a fund raiser - there were financial rules that were getting in the way. As a result, there was no project in 2024, but now it's back. You can read more about the concept by clicking "Monster" above. This monster was challenging as there was a lot going on in the original drawing. I tried my best to focus on the monster. The true feedback will be how it's received by the original artist. I hope to meet him or her this year. I missed that opportunity in 2023.

The original monster and the additional information provided by the artist.

Mud Monster in the custom frame I made for it.

UPDATE: 07 SEP 25:

When I dropped off the painting, the organizers gave me a nice printout

of the original (in the frame above) and a t-shirt shown above right. Cool.

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Crane : 2025-04

Crane

03 April 2025

Acrylic on vinyl

16 x 20 inches (40.6 x 50.8)

FOR SALE

Crane was part of the 41st Best of Colorado exhibit at the Depot Art Gallery, 19 May - 27 June 2026.

The primary objective of this painting - before there was any concept of an image - was to repurpose some wall art and treat the canvas with coffee. I didn't know if it would make the surface appear aged. I think it would if you covered it uniformly. I chose to streak and bump it. The original piece was a crane standing in a wetland. It was also larger than frames I had so I could size it as desired. I flipped the vinyl and since it already had a frame, I reshaped it to 16x20. It re-stretched okay but my corners could have been a bit more uniform. Once the coffee dried, I pretty much let the lines guide the image...I still had not solid plan. You can see in the gif, the biggest area of contention was the center of the larger shape. I think the dark red sits well with the black edge and the coffee 'shadows'.

The original is above left. It was about 18x28 so resized to 16x20 pretty easily.

The gif shows the progression over 6ish days. I washed the original coffee off and tried again.

This was one of two frames planned to hold the vinyl. Once you have an image, it's easier to pick.

I think these go well together.

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Kroger Mural : 2024-12

Kroger Mural (Garden Peak)

09 December 2024

Acrylic on hardboard

8 x 24 ft (2.4 x 7.3 m)

Installed at Store #151 (King Soopers) at 2731 North Gate Boulevard, Colorado Springs.

Opening ceremony , 22 Jan 2025.

Kroger uses local artists to provide work for new stores. They work through galleries to find those interested. The gallery in my neighborhood was Cottonwood Center for the Arts (CCARTS). Artists submit a sample of previous works and three finalists are chosen. The finalists submit sketches for the specific piece/them and then one is chosen. Kroger does have room to make tweaks/suggestions. They pay a pre-determined amount which doesn't cover any expenses. It's a good challenge to control expenses. For a new store in Colorado Springs (which happens to be close to my home), I was fortunate to be selected. It was about the end of August when I was selected and the deadline was mid December.

The project took about three months to the day. I didn't take pictures of all the sketches but the first two frames of the gif show how they all looked. Because the far right panel had the Academy and the jets, I started with that panel. In other words, those three things (to me) needed to be relatively accurate and that in turn, is technically harder. With that panel finished, the rest were much more fluid. Starting from the right also let me get the contrails finished and aligned. The original sketch of Garden Peak had the contrails crossing three panels. Because the panels are separate, there is always a risk of a non-perfect alignment. With shorter contrails, I reduced the alignment issue from two seams to one.

How I transferred the image / how I did it. After some comments from Kroger, I made this final sketch of Garden Peak. I made it at the correct proportions on a panel of generic wall art. The painted area of the sketch is 8x24 inches - which was 1:1 for the final or 8x24 feet. Funny aside, the three original sketches (Kroger Project) were made with an incorrect proportion. They would have been eight panels of 4x8. Kroger reminded me of that saying they look too "panoramic". As it turns out 6x4 is 24, not 8x4. That comment saved me two panels that would have been scrapped. Since the sketch was at the right proportions (finally), I made a cutout on stock paper (the white rectangle) which was 4x8 inches. That hold represented one panel. I placed a panel against the wall, slide the 'viewfinder' over the appropriate place and sketched it with a carpenter pencil. I went over some of the pencil lines with black paint which was fun since it made a great contrast against the sky and details didn't yet matter.

This was the picture I assembled from three shots of two panels together. It was the first time I saw them together. I was working in my garage and it sufficed, but I could only see two panels at once. In fact, that was a stipulation in my setup. As long as I could see two together, I had faith they'd match okay when together. I would just shuffle the panels as I moved across the scene.

This is the same picture as the top of the page, but with more of the wall. It has good placement - it gets its own wall, is right by the entrance, and can be seen through windows from the parking lot. This was the first time I saw all the panels together in real life. I thought it worked out swell.

Above left is the back of one panel. The size of mural lent itself perfectly to 4x8 panels. I used hardboard tempered panels (by EUCABOARD) of 3/16 inch thickness. They make a 1/8 inch thickness which is almost half the price, but I wanted the stability of the thicker panels. In retrospect, I think the 1/8 inch think panels would have worked since they were fastened to the frame. The frame is select kiln-dried square edge common softwood whitewood (also from Home Depot). I used this wood because it was very uniform and made great sides. The cross beams are 2x2s and one 2x4. The 2x4 was used to make a French cleat. Screwing the cleat to the side of the frame avoided having to bolt/connect the cleat through the front of the panel. Above center shows the panels in a rental U-Haul box truck, and above right is the bare wall prior to hanging. It was a great project and a learned many things.

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Garden Peak : 2024-08

Garden Peak

13 August 2024

Acrylic on hardboard

15 x 29.75 in (38.1 x 75.6 cm)

FOR SALE

For the Kroger Project, the company requested that I add more elements that represent Colorado Springs. Pikes Peak was a must-have, but I also included Garden of the Gods and the Air Force Academy, as they are quite recognizable. To avoid making the mural too cluttered, I incorporated these elements 'just enough'. Additionally, I added some jets to reflect the significant military presence in the Springs and because they’re pretty awesome.

This was the original piece I used as my canvas. The wood grain is more pronounced than I thought. In other words, the paint didn't cover as much as I had hoped.

A gif showing two days passing. Since this was a request for an updated sketch, I didn't want to sit on it too long. Sometimes the pressure (or less time) seems to work well for me. The first think I added was the black border which was to set the correct proportions (1x3) for the mural. The four sketches (including this one) are in Sketches, Evolved and General.

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Kroger Project : 2024-07

I submitted these sketches for a mural in a new Kroger store. If selected, it would be my largest piece at about 8 x 32 feet. These are all in the General Sketchbook.

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Blackwood : 2023-11

Blackwood

20 November 2023

Acrylic on wood

8 x 10 in (20.3 x 25.4 cm)

- FOR SALE -

Some of the best alarms aren't on phones.

I was with Kimberly in the mountains and in one of the shops we saw paintings on 2x4s. I thought it was kind of clever since the painting automatically has a frame of sorts. I wanted to try it for a couple of reasons. First, because I've become a fan of painting on wood, and second I wanted to see if I would be able to make the keyhole slot for hanging.

The pieces we saw were a bit shabby - you could see they were 2x4s (and some 2x6s) and painted black with average attention to detail. I like to repurpose things so instead I assembled a block from scraps. Aside from using wood which was taking up space, it allowed me to make a custom size. I started the first two at around 8 x 10 inches. As far as the keyhole, I purchased a keyhole bit and thought it would be easy enough. It would be much easier if I had a router. With a drill press it's a bit more tricky. The one shown above is my second keyhole which turned out much better. I learned quite a 'bit' from the first attempt.    

A gif showing the progress - about 48 days had passed. When I calculated it, it amazed me how quickly time can pass. Obviously, there were other projects between, but it's still amazing. Both of these blocks were kind of predestined for birds. I had seen birds the same day we saw these blocks and that was the overall vision. He started out as a self-made creature but I was getting frustrated so I went with something a bit more traditional.

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Pikes Hero : 2023-09

Pikes Hero

11 September 2023

Acrylic on board

12 x 16 in (30.5 x 40.6 cm)

A closeup of His purple mountain majesties.

This was the first of two paintings I made for a by-invitation call for art. The show is titled, "Purple Mountain Majesty" and one requirement was that the artwork must incorporate the color purple as a key element. that note, it was very nice to be asked to submit art. I had a kid's poster and since I've been painting on wood lately, I thought it'd be a great repurpose. Because of the limited space, I thought I'd just do zoom in of the peak itself. I'd never painted Pikes Peak so it was nice to have the subject provided. And, I was pretty happy with how this turned out.

A gif of the progress - about nine days. Maybe I should start trying to track hours.

In the frame I made for it.

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Monster Project : 2023-08

Monster

08 August 2023

Acrylic on board

9 x 9 inches (22.9 x 22.9 cm)

- Private Collection -

Manitou Art Center was having a Manitou Monster Project (or MMP) which is a fund raiser for Manitou Springs Elementary School. The students drew dozens of monsters, we received a photo of one monster, and we could make our own rendition. The students could also send additional information about their monster (shown below). It was a good project for me and it was nice to have a subject provided. I don't know how they'll raise the funds (how much they'll charge) but the real payment for me would be knowing if the original creator liked my version.

The original monster - the artist remains a mystery.

The additional info provided by the artist.

A gif of the progress. I had some particle board lying around and I thought it's be a good surface and certainly sturdy. I wanted to emphasize the slide and the marshmallows so originally the slide went all the way into the clouds (or started there), but the top distracted from the Monster's head. Also, I realized marshmallows are a bit tricky to paint.  I just hope the first artist likes it.

Something I've been doing lately - by accident. I like how the pieces

look on an empty wall. I think it's a nice way to see pieces "at work".

Update (20230910):  This is the flyer for the showing...

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