I stopped dating last summer. I wanted to focus on building community and investing in my work and my girls, but lately I find myself wanting something more, so I created a profile on OKCupid. Soon after I make my first connections, news reports of the coronavirus filter in from around the world. (more…)
Every year I paint a new series of Affectionate Animal couples for Valentimes Day, and every year I base this series off vintage photos of homosexual and lesbian same-sex couples. It’s important to remember that “being gay” isn’t a fad or a phase… queer folk are a part of history. If my art can celebrate LGBT history in some small way, if my art can help LGBT+ people see that they have a lasting and meaningful place in this world, then I will have accomplished everything I hoped for. (more…)
A few months ago, I invited people to tell me about their invisible selves, and I said I would paint them.
The concept of an “invisible self” comes from The OA by Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij. It is not the self that we present to the world, but our inner self, our true being, the core of who we are underneath all our masks and barriers and defenses. It’s the “you” that stays with you when you close your eyes, the part of you that aches and dreams, the part of you that no one can ever take away from you. (more…)
Every February I add a new batch of portraits to my collection of Affectionate Animal couples. When I started this project, I felt there wasn’t enough representation of LGBT+ couples. I hoped my art would illustrate the whimsical and timeless aspects of queer connections. I pour so much of myself into these critters, and it warms my heart to see how many people from all walks of life see themselves or their loved ones in these portraits, as well. Love connects and unifies us. (more…)
I have new paintings available for you! If you are supporting my Patreon, you’ll get these images featured on your perks for December. Art prints, originals and Nutcracker stickers and notecards are also available in my shop. (more…)
I want both my work and my kids to matter to me, but it’s so hard to balance. And hard to describe. And yes I know “it’s hard” is such a bland sentence. How about, “I feel like I’m dying, trying to do it all without fucking things up.” Maybe I should tell myself some saccharine line I don’t really feel. “It’s not your job to hold the world together. Everything will be ok. Just relax your grip. Don’t hold on so tight.”
Oh yeah. Why do I hold on so tight? (more…)
Animals have a unique way of capturing different aspects of the human spirit. They have been present in our myths and fairytales from the dawn of civilization. Some cultures uphold certain animals and villainize others, but what’s fascinating is the archetypes for each animal retain the same symbolism across history and culture. (more…)
I’ve loved rainbows my whole life. As a Christian, they were a symbol of hope, that God would not destroy me but carry me through the storm.
When I was coming to terms with being queer, one of the hugest hurtles for me was the question of faith. Did my sexual orientation condemn me? Or was it the dogmatic fundamentalists in my life who had perverted the true nature of Christian love? (more…)
Last year, I put out a call for submissions and received dozens of heart warming snapshots, expressing moments of fatherhood. One year later, these paintings are now complete just in time to share with you for Father’s Day!
A couple of the originals are available, and art prints of all the paintings are available in my shop. I also added notecards for the Otter Pop painting, as well as the Llama Mama image from last month!
Without further ado, here are this year’s Father’s Day paintings! (more…)
This is a guest post by Justine Done. She is a single mom of two children. When she submitted her photos to me last year to be considered for my Mother’s Day series, she sent a heartfelt email along with the images. Her words are as follows.
I recently went through a divorce (“recent” meaning two years) but it still feels recent, and when we parted for the last time, I sent him all the pictures I had of him and the kids. Probably a few hundred. Candid. Beautiful. Every bonding moment between my children and their father.
He had none of me and the littles, which I expected. No candid pictures, no random snippets he thought worth capturing behind the scenes, not even from the day our daughter was born. (more…)
