Musicians
Black and White Musicians Series
Billie Holiday, Son House, Robert Johnson: The blues musicians that form the bedrock of American music lived in struggle and captured both pain and beauty in their music. It is this beautiful struggle that shapes their lined faces and finds expression in my work. By breaking the shadows and highlights down into high contrast, abstracted shapes, I create portraits that shift according to the viewer’s mood. Billie can look joyful or agonized; Robert Johnson is angry or sad from day to day. I honor the brilliance and innovation of these great musicians, and aspire to celebrate them in my paintings. Lately I have been experimenting with more contemporary musicians such as David Bowie, Janis Joplin and Frank Zappa, all of whom were influenced by the earlier blues musicians who formed the heart of rock & roll.
Billie Holiday, 16x20 acrylic on canvas (SOLD) Lady Day was know as much for her brilliant jazz vocals as for the dark forces that plagued her life.
Aretha I 12x16" acrylic on canvas board. The "Queen of Soul," Aretha Franklin was a brilliant R&B artist.
Bowie, Shattered 16x20, acrylic on canvas David Bowie was an innovative singer, songwriter and actor. His death in 2016 rocked my world.
Chet Baker 14x18" acrylic on canvas The "Prince of Cool" was a jazz trumpeter and vocalist.
Janis 16x20" acrylic on canvas Janis Joplin loved the blues musicians who paved the way for her thick rock and rock persona and voice. Unfortunately her personal life hewed to the demons that plagued her heroes.
Nina I 16x20 acrylic on canvas board Nina Simone was a singer and civil rights activist who towered over other artists of her era, influencing virtally every rock and R&B artist to come.
Aretha II 12x16" acrylic on canvas board Aretha Franklin, in addition to being a great singer, was a superb actor. Here she is singing "Respect" in The Blues Brothers
Intense 8x12" acrylic on paper Frank Zappa sang and created in most genres, as well as genres he created. I don't actually like all of his music, but I love his stances on freedom of speech, political participation and self-education.
B.B. King 14x14" acrylic on canvas B.B. King ruled the blues scene for decades, and helped usher in the electric blues. I like to think of him as a wizard, and here he is much like the wizard of Oz
Bessie Smith 11x14" acrylic on canvas Bessie Smith had both a great voice and a great attitude. She pushed for independence and sexual freedom for women, as well as respect for working women.
Big Bill Broonzy 11x14, acrylic on canvas board Big Bill was one of the earliest bluesmen, helping to develop the genre with influences of folk and country as it moved to a more urban populace. It's a pity he isn't better known today, as his music is fantastic.
Billie Flowers 12x16" acrylic on canvas board Billie Holiday is known as much for the darkness that plagued her life as for the brilliance of her singing. This portrait is more about the darkness.
Howlin' Wolf 12x16" acrylic on canvas board Howlin' Wolf led the Delta blues to Chicago, and then on to psychedelic rock, which is quite a journey. I particularly like "Smokestack Lightning."
Son House 12x12" acrylic on board (SOLD) Son House had a short career, but a massive influence on artists such as Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters.
King of Smoke and Mirrors 14x18" acrylic on canvas Ah, Robert Johnson! Did he sell his soul to the devil at the crossroads to learn the secrets of a master guitar player? No one knows, but the few recordings we have are great.
Very Black 12x16" acrylic on canvas Johnny Cash, the Man in Black, struggled with drug addiction for most of his life, but turned his attention to activism for Native Americans and incarcerated people.
Ella and Louis 16x20" acrylic on canvas board Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong were incredible artists in their own right, but together they were even better.
How How How 12x16" acrylic on canvas board John Lee Hooker was a master of the Delta blues, who rose from a poor sharecropper's family to owning five homes at his death.