Year of Paint

Still Life Half Finished

2009-01-23T23:09:00.000-08:00

I had not anticipated how ridiculous-difficult (ridifficult?) it would be to paint a larger canvas without an easel. It killed my back to lean over this one, so I'll re-post it when I finish it up tomorrow. I'm yearning for a french folding travel-style with a drawer for stuff.

My other project for the day has been taking care of my fiancee, who had her wisdom teeth removed this morning. I made some mashed potatoes for our dinner. To commemorate the occasion, I carved a "potato tooth" with a paring knife:

Canada Goose!

2009-01-19T01:29:00.001-08:00

I have always been a fan of geese. I had a few pet domestic geese in high school, and they were amazingly intelligent and affectionate animals. Even when they were full grown, they would let me pick them up and flip them upside down to be held.

Favorite Pen

2009-01-16T00:19:00.001-08:00

This is my favorite pen for note-taking in class. It is an old "Esterbrook" fountain pen I found in an antique store for $15 years and years ago. It's most likely from the ~1940s, judging by the bakelite plastic. I have two others pens of similar vintage, and they are all lever operated - they have a small rubber bladder on the inside to hold ink that is squished by pulling the lever on the body. This gives me the ultra-cool squid-like ability to spray a stream of ink on command, if ever the need arose.

Quarters

2009-01-13T22:53:00.000-08:00

This was a fun painting to paint. For some reason, it seemed to come very easily and I like the orange on dull green contrast. I'll be posting this one, along with yesterday's, on Ebay as a test. I want to see how they'll do on there.

Abstract Figure

2009-01-12T22:53:00.001-08:00

Here is an abstract figure for your enjoyment.

Nose and Mouth in Blue

2009-01-03T22:23:00.001-08:00

Here is my nose and mouth painted entirely in blue and white. Lips have been the hardest part of the self-portraits I've attempted thus far, so I wanted to do a sketch of lips nearly by their lonesome.

Fingernail Clippers

2009-01-03T22:22:00.003-08:00

Fingernail clippers. They're a wonderful thing.

Christmas Ornament

2008-12-26T22:52:00.001-08:00

Here is an ornament off of my Christmas tree. Our tree is an $18 wonder, one that looks like an oversized prop from Charlie Brown.

This painting will be delivered as a gift to the wonderful Jackie Holmes, who is a regular reader and a good friend of mine. She requested to see a painting of either an ornament or a tree, and she'll get one.

Hope everyone reading is having a happy holiday season.

Ripples

2008-12-19T00:18:00.001-08:00

Here is another 8" by 10" abstract. This one was "sculpted" first with modeling paste, in a ripple pattern. It's hard to try and photograph, but I feel like it has a nice subtle visual effect.

Abstract

2008-12-07T12:42:00.003-08:00

Here is an 8" by 10" abstract. I thought it should go vertically, but when I uploaded the picture I realized it didn't actually matter. That's an interesting thing, isn't it?

Tulip

2008-12-07T08:34:00.001-08:00

Here is a little mini-canvas of a tulip. It will be delivered as a thank you to the wonderful Michelle Henley, who invited me to the Burke Museum show.

The tulips pictured are from the show - they are still going strong.

Self-Portrait #4

2008-12-03T16:36:00.000-08:00

Here is a larger (12" by 16") self-portrait that I brought to the student artist showcase at the Burke Museum last night. I brought this painting still wet, having finished it only minutes before. It was a great event, and I'm honored to have been able to show in it.

Leaf #2

2008-11-30T21:50:00.001-08:00

Another leaf!

I'll be presenting at the Burke Museum on campus Tuesday - I think I might have to work on something a little bigger or more interesting to bring along with me. Of course, this blog will see it first.

Leaf

2008-11-29T09:16:00.001-08:00

Here is a leaf I found on the ground on my way back from classes. It dried and curled on the coffee table until it was ready to become the beauty you see before you.

Awful Rose

2008-11-21T20:10:00.001-08:00

I don't know what's happened to me. A work and academics-induced freeze on posting any new paintings has led to the deteriorated quality seen above. This is, quite simply, a very disappointing rose.

Obama Logo!

2008-11-15T01:02:00.000-08:00

As a penitence for my awful Obama portrait, here is his campaign logo.

Terrible Obama Portrait

2008-11-12T23:47:00.001-08:00

This was meant to be a commemoration of Obama's historic election win, but it is more of an exercise in terrible portrait painting. I'll try to put up a few more of these as practice. Obama has enough on his plate - he won't mind if some college kid churns out a few unflattering portraits.

Tea Cup

2008-11-07T21:19:00.001-08:00

Here is another cup (but this one is for tea!) on a little mini-easel. This one will be delivered to Lexie Krell, the marvelous reporter who interviewed me for the Daily. In case you missed it, here is the article again.

This, of course, is the same size easel and canvas that is available for custom order in my Etsy Store.

Coffee Cup

2008-11-07T21:11:00.000-08:00

Here is a little coffee cup. It's in the vein of "Banana #2" with the stretched-out text. This one will be delivered as a gift to Aiden Duffy, who photographed me for my article in the Daily.

The article, which of course brings all of the awesome, can be found here.

Banana #2

2008-11-05T16:34:00.001-08:00

Here is the same banana after it had been peeled. I accidentally painted it too far up on the canvas, so I added "banana" underneath. I kind of like it this way, though.

Banana #1

2008-11-05T16:23:00.001-08:00

Here is an old banana off of the shelf in my kitchen.

Whidbey Island View #2

2008-11-02T00:30:00.001-07:00

Here is a sequal / reproduction of my first "Whidbey Island View" painting, found here . This one has been completed on commission, and it is my largest painting yet - 16" by 12". It will be delivered to a collector upon completion.

October was a rough month for painting. Work and my education have been taking up my time on a grand scale, leaving me with little else. I hope November I will be able to paint more than a "painting every other day" as I had been.

Spoon with Squiggles

2008-10-27T21:41:00.001-07:00

"Everyday Item With Squiggles #3" is my alternate title. I hope you enjoy!

Also, here is a haiku to accompany:

Spoon with squiggle shapes

What food will you be scooping?

Something with lemons.

Fork with Squiggles

2008-10-24T23:28:00.001-07:00

This is a continuation of my "Everyday Object With Squiggles" series, which began way back in the day.

Here is the first, in case you didn't get a chance to check it out.

This painting, as with my previous, will be posted on my Etsy. If you want to own an everyday object with squiggles painted around it, you should definitely check it out.

Two Leaves

2008-10-23T23:33:00.000-07:00

Leaves! Leaves! Leaves! Leaves! Leaves!

It's fall and they're all around

Cold air on my face.

-A Haiku.

This painting will also be listed for sale on my Etsy store for the low, low price of $95.

Cut Open Tomato

2008-10-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

Here is a tomato that I sliced open. I painted part of this while being photographed for an upcoming article in the UW newspaper, the Daily. I'll post a photo of the article when it hits the presses - but it's pretty exciting!

Mug

2008-10-19T00:04:00.001-07:00

Here is a mug from my cupboard. I hope you enjoy it! Tomorrow morning I'll be meeting with a reporter and photographer from the UW Newspaper the Daily. It's exciting to have them cover my blog, and I'm planning to snag as many copies as I can carry when the issue comes out!

Little Squash #3

2008-10-17T11:53:00.000-07:00

Here is a third and final "little squash."

Little Squash #2

2008-10-17T10:42:00.000-07:00

Here is another little squash for your viewing pleasure. A paper for my constitutional law class conspired to keep me from painting for a little while, but now I'm back!

Little Squash #1

2008-10-14T00:09:00.001-07:00

In anticipation of Halloween, here is a little squash (pumpkin?).

Rose from Campus

2008-10-10T00:41:00.000-07:00

Here is a rose from the little rose garden surrounding Drumheller Fountain. They're past their prime now, but there are still some roses out there plugging away.

Also, here is a view of the paper towel I use to clean my brushes, which I think has a cool abstract effect. Once I finish a painting, it's basically a record of all of the colors I used, in streaks and blotches.

And, if those weren't enough pictures for you, here is a little window into my daily life: a glimpse of the wall where all of my paintings (and some of my fiancee's) go. This doesn't show all of them thus far, as some are on other walls or aren't up yet, but you get the idea:

Tiny Mint

2008-10-09T19:58:00.000-07:00

Here is a little mint. It was in a basket full of free mints for a local bank - I had to mentally "edit out" the bank logo while painting it. It's strangely harder than it sounds.

So, as a first in "Year of Paint" history, I will be offering this painting for sale. If you look on my Etsy Store, it will be priced at $95 before shipping. An opportunity to own an Andrew Martin original!

Also, I neglected to mention to you, my dear readers, that on the 3rd I was featured on the Seattle PI's "School Zone" blog. You can find the article from the wonderful Amy Rolph here.

Apple on clipboard

2008-10-07T22:36:00.001-07:00

Here is a still life of an apple sitting on the clipboard I use as a makeshift painting surface. About 2/3 of the way up you can see the border of the clipboard, where it overlaps with the brown paper bag that keeps all of the paint off of our coffee table.

Abstract doodles #2

2008-10-07T20:48:00.000-07:00

This painting is a exactly like the doodling that adorns all of my lecture notes and papers. I've always had an affinity for these little filligree-style squiggles.

Self-Portrait #3

2008-10-03T23:55:00.000-07:00

My self-portraits are getting better, but still not quite there. I'd love to get good enough at this to paint portraits of blog readers that aren't terribly unflattering.

Moldy Flowers

2008-10-02T00:13:00.000-07:00

These were flowers that my Fiancee and I bought at the grocery store some time ago. In all of the hustle getting ready for the new quarter here at the UW, we didn't get them in a vase at all. They sat at molded, in water that turned increasingly dingy green. Here is the end result. Also, I have been a bit slow as of late - but this is due to the new quarter and getting situated in my schedule.

One-hour Vase

2008-09-28T01:34:00.001-07:00

Here is my attempt at a one-hour painting of a vase. I think it is a very similar result to my drinking glass painting - which was also a quick illustration of a transparent glass object.

Duck and Goose

2008-09-28T00:36:00.001-07:00

For my last campus painting in this series - #7 - I elected to paint a duck jumping into drumheller fountain. It was based on a photo, and to show some of my progress, here is the initial pencil sketch:

And here is the end result:

Flora portrait

2008-09-26T19:59:00.000-07:00

This is my first commissioned portrait - my dad's favorite plant, named Pinkie.

Kane Hall Entrance

2008-09-25T15:19:00.001-07:00

Campus #6 - the entrance to Kane Hall, decorated for the beginning of fall quarter and arranged with tables, chairs, and umbrellas. Those chairs were difficult to try to paint - and I felt that they had a low effort to return ratio; they didn't have the same impact as the structure and the umbrella.

Robot #3

2008-09-23T22:33:00.000-07:00

This robot inhabits a strange, bleak planet with always-blooming flowers.

Greeting Cards

2008-09-22T22:36:00.000-07:00

Possibly I can count a couple of these as one daily posting. These are my latest addition to my Etsy store, original acrylic paintings on post cards available for the low price of $5. There are three on there now, so get 'em while they're hot.

Bench

2008-09-21T22:15:00.000-07:00

Campus #5 - This is one of the benches next to Denny hall looking toward the quad. I've always liked these benches in their mossy, dingy splendor.

Denny Hall Gable

2008-09-21T00:49:00.001-07:00

Campus #4 - a gable (or cupola?) on Denny Hall. Denny Hall is one of my favorite buildings on campus. How can you not love it? It's gorgeous!

Curious Seagull

2008-09-17T23:44:00.001-07:00

Campus painting #3 - a curious seagull peeks in the window of the Law Building. Maybe it wants to be a lawyer?

Campus Pillars

2008-09-17T23:44:00.000-07:00

As the continuation of my "Campus week," here is a painting of the UW's original founding pillars. They're tucked away in a field by the Computer Science building and quite beautiful.

Nuclear Reactor Building

2008-09-16T00:05:00.001-07:00

At the suggestion of UW Livejournal user corpus_juris (this one's for you), I have painted the University of Washington's abandoned nuclear reactor building. And of course, when the lights go out, spooky things happen:

Self Portrait #2

2008-09-15T00:56:00.000-07:00

This was my attempt at a half-hour self portrait. The more I tried to make my mouth work, the less it did. I'm not really even sure if it resembles me at all - at least the hair + eye color is distinctive. I think I'll need to work on the proportions and shape next time, so I don't look like a monkey.

Orb

2008-09-14T01:41:00.000-07:00

It is an orb.

Business Card

2008-09-13T00:05:00.000-07:00

I painted a business card today. Oddly enough, I felt compelled to smudge out my phone number for this blog. Why is that? If someone in person was very interested in my paintings, I would probably have no hesitation to give them a card with my number on it. But over the internet, it makes me nervous. Strange.

Paint Brush Holder

2008-09-12T23:53:00.000-07:00

This is my bamboo paint brush holder. It works, so what can I say?

Whidbey Island View

2008-09-11T23:41:00.001-07:00

This is a painting of the view from a dock in Freeland, WA on Whidbey Island. This was painted from a photograph taken a while ago. I remember my fiancee and I kept taking pictures and the wind made the boats rotate, so in each one they looked a little bit different. The black ducks in the foreground were a favorite of mine. They were little diving ducks.

Votive Holder

2008-09-08T23:08:00.000-07:00

This is a 40-minute still life of a votive holder. I liked the contrast brown canvas sides.

Crimini Mushrooms

2008-09-08T21:42:00.000-07:00

Yet another small fridge item still life. I should really break out of that mold a little bit and paint some other subjects. The only thing is - I like painting eggs and mushrooms and fruit. Oh well.

Oeufs Deux

2008-09-07T00:26:00.001-07:00

Here is an egg. It was a happy little egg until I went along and cracked it open. Hopefully it will be joyous once more tomorrow morning (technically later this morning!) when I scramble it.

Oeufs

2008-09-06T09:32:00.000-07:00

Here are two eggs from my fridge. They will be the beginning of an "Oeufs" series. Stay tuned to see what happens to them. Also, buy some mini-canvases to support my painting habit. Funds may or may not go to buying yours truly a table or easel.

Mini Easel Custom Paintings

2008-09-04T17:40:00.001-07:00

I have decided to sell some mini (3" by 3") paintings mounted on cute little easels. They are painted on commission and can be of anything you want, and cost $25 apiece. Each will be signed, titled, and dated. I can also add custom inscriptions and messages next to the signature if anyone would like. These make great gifts, conversation pieces, or desk ornaments.

I am in process of setting up an Etsy shop to facilitate selling these. You can find it here: www.yearofpaint.etsy.com .

Lemon

2008-09-04T07:54:00.001-07:00

Here is my one-hour lemon painting. The lighting on the photo makes the surface look a bit wonky and uneven, but it looks better with more indirect light.

Apple! Apple!

2008-09-01T13:57:00.000-07:00

This apple painting took me a surprisingly long time today - and ultimately I felt a little underwhelmed by it. Maybe you'll feel differently, who knows?

Tomatoes

2008-08-31T23:55:00.000-07:00

I started this still life while waiting for portions of Robot #2 to dry. It took much less time than the robot and I ended up liking it quite a lot. These are two Roma tomatoes yanked out of my fridge at random.

Robot #2 (With Flashlight)

2008-08-31T23:53:00.001-07:00

Here is a robot burdened with the unfortunate task of maintaining a dark dungeon of a basement with a network of pipes. His only companion is his trusty little flashlight, which he carries with him always.

Robot #1 (Melancholy Robot)

2008-08-29T23:39:00.001-07:00

Inspired by Mikeatron (Jaime and I own the original of #1 in his Robot series), I have decided to paint a few robots for your enjoyment. This robot looks somewhat like an oil barrel, which may explain his sullen nature.

Abstract Doodles

2008-08-28T08:54:00.001-07:00

In case anyone wanted to see a big mass of blue and orange/brown, here you go. Enjoy!

Drinking Glass

2008-08-27T00:09:00.000-07:00

This painting was an experiment in how to paint a transparent, reflective object. The end result at least looks like a drinking glass - but the finesse will take some honing to be sure.

New Mug

2008-08-25T23:28:00.000-07:00

A new mug - plucked from the shelves of the Ballard Value Village and painted the next day. It's a milk glass Anchor Hocking, the perfect size for a morning french press coffee with a pinch of half & half.

To the upper left of the painting you can see the ball of acrylic Jaime and I have been accumulating. It's much easier to wait for the paint to dry on our palettes and peel it off than to wash them, and we decided to take all of the excess scraps and make a multicolored mass. Maybe one of these days we'll cut it open and take a peek at the vortex of muddled colors inside, or keep it going as long as possible and see how big it'll get. Below the painting you can see the paint-smattered Trader Joe's bag I've been using as a table cover.

Crop Duster

2008-08-24T01:13:00.000-07:00

On the way to Spokane, we stopped in a small town called "Ritzville." The town was definitely not "puttin' it on the Ritz," so to speak. There was a butcher shop that advertised "custom killing," a largely abandoned main street, and this airplane hangar. The field next door was advertised as the "Airport" for Ritzville, so I of course dubbed it Ritzville International. Though not visible from this angle, this plane had crop dusting nozzles lined up in rows underneath the wings.

Store Logo

2008-08-22T23:59:00.000-07:00

This masterpiece is the newly minted logo for my upcoming online store, which will be accessible by the sidebar of the blog. Once I have it up and running, which should be very shortly, you will be able to purchase cards and prints of your favorite Andrew Martin paintings. How exciting!

Car Window

2008-08-22T23:06:00.000-07:00

This is the view from the car window while driving through Eastern Washington.

Lookout Point

2008-08-22T01:18:00.001-07:00

This is the view from a lookout point near Vantage, WA. This was painted based on a photo, which I took while trying to stand upright in the frighteningly strong winds that were buffeting us.

I am a few days behind on painting. For this I apologize, dear readers. I was on a trip ("mini vacation") to Eastern Washington and Spokane. I will attempt to catch up with myself as the next few days go on, with paintings inspired by my trip.

Self-portrait #1

2008-08-17T23:11:00.000-07:00

This was a difficult painting. Portrait painting seems like it will be very difficult to me. I'll have to try this again soon with a different self-portrait (hence the #1) and try to develop.

Peace Lily

2008-08-17T12:01:00.000-07:00

This is a peace lily in my apartment. Every day when it gets hot outside (as it is today), it starts to droop lower and lower. When it starts to look totally morose, we'll water it and it'll perk right back to life. Surprisingly, after all of that drama, it's managed to put out quite a few blooms.

Grapefruit After

2008-08-16T00:14:00.000-07:00

This is the same grapefruit after some cruel, senseless person ate it. As a note, grapefruits were harmed in the making of this painting.

Grapefruit Before

2008-08-16T00:12:00.000-07:00

This is a happy, though admittedly dismembered, grapefruit.

Greenhouse Bench

2008-08-14T01:26:00.001-07:00

Today's painting is a ratty, rusty old bench found in the UW Botany Greenhouse. I have a couple photos of this bench, which looks like it was made in the 50s and originally a light tan/cream color. It is a favorite of mine because it was sitting in the middle of a tropical wonderland of bright and flowering plants, rusting away.

Three pine-cones

2008-08-12T14:50:00.000-07:00

These three pine cones were picked up off the cement on my way back from class this morning. In possibly a day they will be back on the ground again, getting kicked around by other college students on their way to class.

Ominous Peeps

2008-08-12T01:44:00.000-07:00

They're watching you while you sleep.

Sugar Bowl

2008-08-12T00:44:00.000-07:00

Here is a new one - my silver sugar bowl. Like many of my painting subjects, this was purchased at a thrift store. It cost a grand total of under two dollars because the left "arm" was broken off completely and masking taped back on. A little super glue and it was back to normal.

Bathroom faucet

2008-08-08T19:08:00.001-07:00

Here is my latest, which is a painting of my beloved bathroom faucet. The handles actually are mismatched - one is ceramic and the other is metal.

And for the purpose of scale, all of the paintings I have done have so far been either 8" by 8"
or 8" by 10".

Still Life

2008-08-08T19:08:00.000-07:00

Here is a still-life of a smattering of fruit grabbed from the kitchen. I liked how the banana was a little bit over-ripe and speckly, it added texture. Once again, this is a plate from our expansive collection of vintage Pyrex (in this case Corelle). I think this plate came from a thrift store on Whidbey Island, WA called Community Thrift. If you're ever on Whidbey, it is definitely the thrift store to visit (but we can keep that our little secret).

French Press

2008-08-07T01:28:00.000-07:00

The subject here is my favorite coffeepot, a single-serving stainless steel french press. My dad gave it to me as a way to discourage me from drinking the eight cups my larger french press makes. When I have a large press or a drip coffee maker, I always tend to make the full capacity and become dangerously over-caffeinated.

I make a cup of coffee in this little pot just about every morning, and it's wonderful. Also, I started keeping track of how many pots I get out of a typical 9-oz bag of coffee so I could compare the price to drip coffee at a typical cafe. So far the price is down to $.20 per cup, and I'm not out of grounds yet.

Budgie Feet

2008-08-06T08:34:00.000-07:00

Here is my least favorite painting yet - a passion flower in an ugly plastic wrapping. As I am typing this, my pet parakeet, Minerva, is dancing on my feet and pulling on my toenails.

Syngonium

2008-08-04T01:12:00.000-07:00

Here is a painting of a plant I can't exactly identify, but I think it's in the Syngonium family. It was purchased in the Volunteer Park Conservatory plant sale here in Seattle. The little handwritten tag just says "Pixey" with a line dashed through the tail of the "y." I don't know if that's eurpean or just strange. It's up to you to decide.

Jam and Scone

2008-08-02T23:57:00.000-07:00

Here is my second painting - a scone with some jam. Tasty! The plate is one of my favorites - a 1950s or about Pyrex with a fading, chalky rim of color. We found it in a thrift store for $.75. The jam is home-made by my fiancee's mother, and is delicious. I should know, because I ate this scone shortly after painting - light dusting of eraser dust and all. A little pencil eraser never killed anyone, right?

First Painting

2008-08-01T18:10:00.000-07:00

Here is my first painting of the endeavor - entitled "cup and saucer." I'm sure as I go along I'll get better at photographing them, because this isn't very good. Also, this was painted yesterday (the 1st) so another is due today, too. Enjoy!