Blowing Smoke (Portrait of Aaron Shikler)

Aaron Shikler was my friend and mentor for many years, and this was the scene that typically punctuated each of my visits with him. His studio was always filled with the warm scent of turpentine, oil paint, and the ever-present smell of tobacco. I’d watched him light his pipe hundreds of times. It was a scene that begged to be painted.

There are moments in life that are snapshots of an entire season or era, when time seems to have slowed for you so that you may fully absorb every detail. Such snapshots serve as anchors to which many memories are tethered. To capture in paint, and share one of these snapshots – one of these anchoring moments of life – is something I most hope for as an artist. Blowing Smoke is one of those "snapshots" for me.