Here is a special surprise right before New Year's!  I'm excited to share this Ridgewood Talks Podcast episode in which we talk about a variety of topics including art, travel, Monet and more!
 Huge thanks again to Jeanne from Ridgewood Walks and Gil from Ignite Creator Studios!  Happy New Year everyone!

  My niece recently turned 6 months and I enjoyed drawing her portrait!  She's a beautiful baby and it's great watching her grow!
  A note about portraiture: I think a lot about proportions and getting the accuracy.  I measure by eye, but it takes practice to get the measurements right.  Getting a likeness can be challenging, but I trust that if my proportions are correct then the likeness will follow.  Good practice is to draw and paint self portraits; self portraits allow you to practice without pressure (and a model that is always ready!)  
  I love portraits and recently put up a PORTRAITURE PAGE here on my website.  Check it out and I'll share more in 2026!

  As an artist, I'm always trying out new set ups and materials.  I love experimenting with different products and I wanted to share this truly "pocket-sized" watercolor set.  I just got it as a Christmas gift and I couldn't wait to test it out.
  The kit comes with a set of 12 colors, a palette that holds 8 colors and has a mixing area, a small watercolor sketchbook, a brush pen that holds water, a terrycloth wrist band (to wipe off brush) and a clip to hold the palette on the sketchbook.  The palette separates and is held together with strong magnets.   The paint is good quality for sketching and includes a nice range of colors.  I wish the palette mixing area was a little bigger, but this is meant to be portable.
  The set came with instructions and a website: https://tobioshop.com - This isn't a sponsored post, but it looks like they have some other fun products also.  It seems like a gimmick, but I actually like this set a lot!  Merry Christmas!

  I am feeling really happy because I recently finished up a long-term woodworking project that is a gift for my young niece.  I can't share pictures yet because it's a Christmas surprise, but I feel a deep satisfaction and will share photos after the holiday.  But this reminded me that the satisfaction of completing long term projects is an incomparable feeling.
  I find this with books also.  Reading longer series like Poldark by Winston Graham was a deeper experience because of the length and time required.  And last year, I read Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky.  It's a fairly long book and it's deep writing that takes time to process; after finishing the book, I had this same satisfaction--so much so that I don't know if I'll ever read a book that powerful again.
  As a painter and teacher, I also feel this payoff when I complete a long-term painting (even though "finish" is a tricky term to use for a painting).  And my goal of bringing Eric En Plein Air to TV audiences has resulted in milestones that bring me this same feeling.  (I can't wait to share Season 1 which is looking like spring of 2026!)
   It's not novel to say that most things nowadays are here for a moment and then discarded.  I know part of this is by design to keep us buying and upgrading, but I feel this same expendable nature in conversations, relationships, news, art, writing and so much more.  In an age when faster is better, I also feel that modern people desperately want something real and truly satisfying.
​   The point that I'm making is that I cherish the difficulty, concentration required, ups & downs of a long-term project.  I've learned that the real things take time so I'll wait, tinker, re-write, go back, contemplate, be patient, get frustrated, try again and keep heading towards my distant goals (the farther the better!)