This painting is all about Autism, the Autistic mind and in particular, Asperger's Syndrome. They are calling Asperger's High Functioning Autism now. These are simply the way in which we use words to communicate with each other. With this piece, The Knowing, the communication I'm using involves intuition, feeling, insight, gut-sense and recognition that the viewer has with what's in the painting. 
   When I was little, I had a BIG imagination. I still have the same brain. This obviously comes in handy with what I do, but it's all the other stuff in me that goes into my art. It's flow of The Knowing, the seeing into the other side, making friends with the spirits and ghosts, the good souls and friends from the other realm, from behind the curtain. If you are a collector of my work, you understand what I'm talking about. You know I'm not just some nutter. ;)
   Asperger's? High Functioning Something or Other? All I know is that there is beauty in all these Earthly brains and perhaps if we can look very deeply into the abyss, into the dark, we can see something new and undiscovered, something that we need to evolve. 
  Namaste to the helping and inspirational spirits from the other side.

   England, you have someone who understands my art! A woman of the UK bought this piece, Empty City. It was not the first painting of mine she acquired. She will own this unique and flowing painting. How blessed am I? Right to the core of all that is.
   God save the UK.

  There are souls out there, right on this planet, this little blue ball, that actually understand a great deal about life and what it takes to live it. The person who acquired this painting, Keep Me Close, But Let Me Fly, is one such soul. The piece really spoke to them on a deep and personal level. For me, after starting with art when I was a little boy, is truly a beautiful thing. They "get it". This goes right into my heart. 
   Every single thing I went through for the art was all worth it when someone genuinely cares about what I do and hears the whispering voices within the paint.

   Ah, art, it's diabolical, isn't it? Some people love it, some hate it, some don't understand it, and some couldn't give a hoot. Art is in the eye of the beholder, or collector.
   There are people who say they'd love nothing more than to be an artist. But, alas, some of these people don't know what it takes. The sacrifice, the years, the work, the learning, the...bumps in the road. There are also great things. Great things come from a lot of work, and belief, and tenaciousness. Life is not just falling off a log. 
   As for a great art show, well, that's a cool thing. This piece, Safe with Mother, will be in one soon, in a large city. More details to come later. ;)
   Suffice it to say that big city exhibitions can be REALLY cool. Interesting things can happen. Fun things can happen. 
   The truth is that art shows must be a part of a viable art path. 
​   The proof's in the pudding... X

    I call this piece Keep Me Close, But Let Me Fly and I think the meaning behind it will be evident once I explain.  I often wonder what my life would have been like had I been diagnosed earlier, like as a kid.  Would there have been more understanding and patience for me?  Or, would I have been treated as somehow "broken" and wrapped in bubble wrap and the freedoms I enjoyed taken from me?  I had a ton of freedom as a child, in fact, I can honestly say that the adults in my life really didn't pay much mind to me or what I was doing unless I was causing some sort of problem, acting out at school, failing to achieve this elusive "potential" I apparently had with my studies, and on and on.   Long story short, I had the flying down, but not the "close" part.  I have no idea whether it would have made a difference and I can never really know, but some understanding probably would have been nice.

Today, we know more about Autism and many children are diagnosed when they're young and I wonder how parents strike that balance between the instinct to protect their kids, especially in the face of knowing the child is neurodiverse in a world that can often be unkind and strange and recognizing and encouraging the child to embrace and explore the amazing and wonderful gifts that our different way of experiencing the world brings.  This painting is for them.

   Ah, winter, that time of year that wakes us up. Some don't see it that way. Ha! Ha! Some HATE winter. I understand where their head's at. But, when you really sink your soul into it, it can be quite beautiful. 
   I'm from Canada, so you know I know winter. The skating, skiing, snowboarding, hot apple cider, ice fishing (when I was a kid, my toes began to freeze and I had to go wait in the car), but still, winter can be pretty awesome. ;)
   In this painting, Winter Welcome, we get a vibrant and emotional winter. Yes, you can almost feel the icey cold in the piece, sense a bit of frigid wind coming, hear the sudden crack of the ice, the groan of a frozen tree. When I paint, I allow myself to become immersed. It's my deep flow.
   Next time you find yourself out in that cold season, remember to say hello to Old Man Winter. Tell him I said hi. XO.

   Art. It can be a mind-blowing thing or something some people couldn't give a hoot about. Perspective is paramount.

Now a poem by myself:
   
   The Asperger's Person. They have a craving for the aloneness, yet don't want to be alone. They long to be part of this world, yet long to live on a different planet, perhaps with the aliens because the Aspie knows they are like the aliens. Another deep fear of the person is mediocrity, the realization that this may be a very bland world. However, they possess the ability to experience heightened senses and deeper perception than the ordinary human. They also have the capacity to see behind this earthly facade. That can be horrifying. A great amount of people do not have the capacity or courage to see beyond the curtain of illusion, and if they could, the truth would perhaps frighten them to death. 

   The Aspie who never gets sick, has a top level immune system, yet is so very sensitive to every invading scent and irritant. This disgusting, chemical world with its perfumes, diesel and gas smell. Humans are soiling paradise. 

   All of the swirling, horrifying realizations stick to the Aspie brain like white to rice, and this nags at the beautiful Aspie brain. But, alas, it could simply be the old yin and yang, the black and white, and the need for existence to contain the great balance to run properly. Afterall, what is joy without pain. 

   When a new day dawns, and the eyes open, perhaps it's best to simply smile at the gift of the new day. Afterall, the Aspie is not a superhero, despite always feeling like one.

   Maybe the Buddha had Asperger's. If only the Grey alien could cry, we'd have something.

​~ Namaste

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   Sometimes, someone comes along and hears what the painting is whispering to them, like good spirits that are trying to get through to our earthly realm. I am very fortunate that I create work that causes these wonderful things. 
   Sometimes, this painter feels like his insides are like a shining sun. 
   Life can be so extraordinary that it feels like a rare and magic gem, a new kind of precious stone, that carries something so powerful. This piece, Winter Joy, caused me a great joy. It'll be going far away to a distant land, to live with a very intelligent individual. How beautiful this is.
   The spirits, the good ghosts that seem to visit me when I paint, smile on me this day. I thank the collector of this painting and these beautiful ghosts.

   Sometimes, when we walk out in nature, we really feel something. When we're alone and free in our thinking. This piece, Winter Welcome, brought me to this kind of flow when I was painting it. I so enjoyed allowing this landscape to come out of me. It felt...soul-freeing...
   For the people who put up with me for all these painting years, you understand my mind very well. You know something takes over when I paint. I get very immersed. I get almost in a trance. I actually do feel like I go somewhere else. For those of you who try to look into my art and see what lives in there, hats off to you.
   Sometimes, the land we cherish and love, does feel like Mother Nature. Our love for her goes on. May we always cherish her. 
   Maybe she'll see you out there on the land, letting yourself go, like I I let myself go when I painted this work. 
   

   In this new painting, Night Rink, I wanted to flow with a deep sense of the uniqueness of winter. As a kid, I loved skating at an outdoor, natural rink. Some people used a lake, and some used a pond. It didn't matter which, it was incredible. If you were lucky, your mom would bring you some hot chocolate or hot apple cider! If it was close to Christmas, like it is now, the excitement is heightened. Where I'm from, New Brunswick in eastern Canada, the winters were quintessential winter and idyllic. I was a lucky kid, to be sure.
  Maybe someday you'll catch sight of a painting of mine where there are kids on toboggans. ;)  I LOVED that...