Recently I started a Patreon Page to support my online creativity. If you enjoy viewing my artwork, photographs and videos, please feel free to become a patron of my work. Thank you to all the supportive folks who have visited my various social media profiles.
Below is me at the beach in Pass Christian, located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Tonight at the Metairie Art Guild meeting my dot painting, "Treinta," placed second in the Artist of the Month competition. It is one of three recent dot paintings I completed in October. So far, I've received many positive comments on the painting.
In October of 2005, upon returning to the New Orleans area, I purchased my first digital camera. At the time I didn't realize the camera had a digital video feature. Once I discovered that ability, I learned through trial and error how to shoot and how to edit video. For 6 months I experimented with the medium, drawing inspiration from an assortment of videos I watched online.
Then in May of 2006, I made my first ever YouTube channel, dotdude. Over a ten year period I've shot video subjects that interested me and poured over that statistics provided by YouTube.
Along the way I purchased a couple of Flipcams and more recently a Sony camcorder. Some of my videos are simply observational, while others are more experimental. At times I’ve added music and sound to my videos. As the software changed, I tried new features.
Below is the first videos I shot. It includes an angel statue next to a small lily pond with a fountain. A number of homes in New Orleans have patio gardens that include fountains and/or ponds. A still image of the statue with pond served as my initial channel avatar.
The Jefferson Art Guild (JAG) 30 Month Calendar is out. Thirty of the guild's artists have work featured in it. My dot painting, "Veinte," appears above December 2016 - which is a year away now.
Four years ago I created patterned dot paintings that I call the "Alpha Series." Recently I decided to make a music video using still photos of the paintings. I used iMovie to assemble the images and add the "Cross Zoom" transition - which adds an animated effect. After uploading the video to YouTube, I added the music, "Swing on It (Instrumental) - Heavy Hitters" by Frederik Rubins, from the YouTube library.
In 2010 I started on a second group of paintings, but then got bogged down in the BP Oil Spill story. That tangent sort of put me in a funk and I abandoned that effort. I do plan to do a "Beta Series" that is closer to my "Alpha Series." Sketching new patterns has been a delaying factor. In the meantime enjoy this video.
Six years have passed and my video “Puppy Whining,” continues to attract viewers. On May 23, 2013, Ginger Rose had her second litter of puppies – all female. On Thursday I filmed new videos of her new puppies. Again, I captured one of them whining. Today Ginger Rose is six years old. Look for the new puppy videos on my blog video journal or check my playlist entitled Poodles Next Generation 2.
Seven years ago I decided to create a YouTube channel called dotdude. The digital camera that I bought in the fall of 2005 included digital video as one of its features. Through trial and error I taught myself how to shoot video and how to edit video using Apple’s iMovie software.
As the years have passed I purchased a couple of Flipcams and more recently a Sony camcorder. Some of my videos are simple observational, while others are more experimental. At times I’ve added music and sound to my videos. As the software changed, I tried new features.
Below is one of my first videos I shot. It includes an angel statue next to a small lily pond with a fountain. A number of homes in New Orleans have patio gardens that include fountains and/or ponds. So, I decided to make a still image of the statue with pond as my channel avatar.
This morning I entered art into an art show competition sponsored
by the Metairie Art Guild. It was held at the Clearview Mall in
Metairie. Participants designated three pieces to be part of the
judging. Anyway, my acrylic painting, "Once," was awarded third place in
the Not Under Glass Category. The judge was Tanya Dischler. This is the
second time I've won third place for this painting.
This morning I entered art into an art show competition sponsored by the Jefferson Art Guild. It was held at the Clearview Mall in Metairie. Participants designated three pieces to be part of the judging. Anyway, my acrylic painting, "Once," was awarded third place in the Not Under Glass Category. The judge was Carol Scott.
On Thursday I noticed my video, "Puppy Whining," passed the 500,000 views mark! Over five years ago I uploaded the video to my YouTube channel, dotdude. This video remains the most popular one of the 123 videos I have uploaded to date.
Here are two playlists that involve this puppy and her relatives. The first one features videos made around the same time as the "Puppy Whining" video. The second one shows the same puppy all all grown up and the mom of her own litter.
This morning I entered art into an art show competition sponsored by the Jefferson Art Guild. It was held at the Clearview Mall in Metairie. Participants designated three pieces to be part of the judging. Anyway, my colored pencil piece, "Fuse," was awarded third place in the Under Glass Category. The judge was Martin Wohlgemuth.
My color pencil drawing "Fuse" was published, with a brief write up about me, in the February 2012 issue of Our Louisiana. I am one of four color pencil artists profiled in the article. Below is a full photo of the drawing.
Given the response to my video “Puppy Whining,” today I filmed a new video of a puppy whining. Last night Ginger Rose, who was in the original video, gave birth to two sons. So this is the first day of life for the two pups. Already, one is more vocal than the other. Ginger Rose will be four years old in June.
Three years ago today I uploaded some videos of my sister’s three-week-old poodle puppies. They had just started walking. Three months later I noticed that my top video was one of these videos. It had 934 views. In August, the following year, the video climbed to over 20,000 views. In 2009 it went over 30,000 in March, 50,000 in April and 100,000 by May. Today the video is up to 171,877 as I write this post. On June 7th I made a birthday video that included the parents and all three puppies. Below are the two videos: my highest viewed video and the birthday video.
On October 1st, 2009 I began posting dot art paintings from a group called “e” Series Reaction. They follow some paintings that were more homogeneous in color and design, my “Alpha Series.” However, I felt constrained by my process. Hence, I dubbed this new group “Reaction.”
Many of the images were inspired by artwork I’ve seen. Other paintings draw upon specific objects, places and experiences between April and June of 2007. For the moment I’ve stuck to the vowels for grouping my works. “e” follows “a” this time around. There’s some overlap in the time period from “a” Series Next. I did some rearranging of my idea list along the way. Below are all the paintings in a checkerboard slideshow.
Now I am ready to go back to the 6” x 6” size canvases and paint abstract patterns without a story. In the meantime I will be editing my ideas list down some more. When I return to the smaller size, I will finish the second half of the “e” Series.
It’s been a little over four months and I have finally completed my Alpha Alpha Series. The paintings mark a journey back to a process I used on some 6” x 6” dot paintings I call the “Greek Code Series.” Each painting was named after a letter in the Greek Alphabet. Since all the names in the new bunch begin with “Alpha,” I figured I’d name this group the “Alpha Series.” For a while I couldn’t find that size. Once I did, however, I ordered a bunch of them. Below are the paintings in a checkerboard slideshow.
As I started posting photos of my new works, a friend mentioned that they looked like mandalas. Well, that was not the intent of these works per se, but I went ahead and continued to pattern them in a similar way. Because of some an upcoming show I will return to the smaller size as I begin the “e” Series. Simultaneously I will be working on some more 6” x 6”‘s and 20” x 20”’s. When I have more information will post it.
Earlier this evening my video "Puppy Whining." climbed above 100,000 views on YouTube. Former poodle puppy, Ginger Rose, stars in the video. It was a a little over a month ago that it hit 75,000 views. For those interested I made a playlist for the dog lovers who visit my channel dotdude.
This past week I answered interview questions posed to me by John Rouse from the site Create Culture. Today through next Thursday the interview, with photos, will be featured under the Stories tab on the site. When I clicked a link I provided to friends, I found out it is necessary for viewers to register with the site.
Create Culture community artists include not only the visual artists, but the performing artists, photographers and filmmakers. I'm still learning how to make the most of using the site. So far I've uploaded some photos of my art and some of my art videos to my profile. Since I signed up my work has been featured on the site from several times already.
On July 23, 2008 I began posting dot art paintings from the group I’m calling “a” Series Next. Yesterday I completed this batch of paintings. Many of the images in this bunch have brighter colors. Since the previous one was “a” Series Transition, I felt “Next” was a logical title choice. This time I cover the period December 2006 through April 2007. Below are the paintings in a checkerboard slideshow.
In the meantime I will be taking a break from this process. My plan is to go back to the 6” x 6” size canvases and paint abstract patterns that do not have a story. I’ve become too bogged down in how I got about making these. When I return to the smaller size, I will begin the “e” Series.