Avatar of Hope (2018)

Hope springs eternal

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Welcome to the last post of 2025. I appreciate you following along these past few months—it’s been a very interesting journey for me as I too rediscover a lot of work I’ve done these past decades. It’s very easy to make, make, and make some more. Then, periodically, I gather up a pile of drawings, paintings and such, to put away. I mount drawings to backing boards and bag them, I trim unpainted edges off paintings and bag them, give them a look, then file them and move on. Reconsidering old work is something there isn’t a lot of time to do. For Magic, I see the work more often in the way of cards players bring to sign at events, so I get to experience them a lot more. But sometimes I pull out an older Magic painting, even, and seeing the original art surprises me too.

And so, as a year comes to a close and a new one begins, I approach it with gratefulness for my life, my health, the experiences I had and my accomplishments. And I approach it with hope for what is to come. It’s always a good time to leave behind the bad and redouble my efforts to make my life what I would like it to be despite any setbacks. I hope you come to 2026 with similar hope and resolve.

Avatar of Hope, 6x8” oil on watercolor paper

Nothing says hope to me more than bringing a child into the world, something I recognize even while I don’t have any children. The bet one places on the future as a parent is tremendous. It’s a bet that most make in the face of dread about the future, which is our generation’s default, here shown by the dark, foggy, barren landscape. A light shines, however.

In-progress. I was very happy with the portrait here at this small size.

As with many of my Every Day Original contributions, I entered this piece without most of this in mind, and allowed the image-making to surprise me, really. I didn’t start the piece with most of this in mind, but I began working and making shapes just knowing there’d be a figure and a dark landscape. A nice change of pace.

Often, when I sell paintings, I ask collectors if they are willing, to send me a photo of the framed piece. I am always delighted to see the pieces framed, and to get the opportunity to see where these “children” end up, how they will live on.

The collector’s choice of frame.

Happy New Year, everyone. I have so much more for you in 2026, art both new and old. I am so grateful for you.

A time-lapse of part of this painting so you can see how off-the-cuff it was, filmed with a potato.