CURRENT MISSION

I want to experience the places I go to with out pretense or presumption. And to try to get a real sense of simply participating in community instead of just taking in the sights.

ABOUT ME

I am an artist and musician with a quick wit and great sense of humor. Quite, introspective, thoughtful and hard working. I have a lot of energy and love to keep busy. I've always got a lot of projects running but I always, always, have time to give to my friends. I love to just pitch in and help others when something needs to get done, no matter what needs doing, I'll get my hands dirty.

PHILOSOPHY

Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have not participated in couch surfing yet. I did make sure to give my friends who are currently on couchsurfing.com the good references they deserve. I have requested a lot of hosts. But have not been home since establishing an account so I have not yet been able to host surfers myself.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

No experience surfing yet. Just been reading a lot of profiles and requesting hosts.

Interests

I love art and music. Can't fail with those two! But it's a love/hate relationship and i blame art school. Art school instilled in me a critical and probing set of ears and eyes which means I tend to never be satisfied with my own work and am constantly inspired by others work. This is frustrating because other people's work forces me to work harder while my own work is never done. A self perpetuating cycle.

• arts
• books
• running
• flying
• reading
• painting
• music
• cycling
• surfing

Music, Movies, and Books

John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Jimmy Smith. And Chet Baker. And Milt Jackson.
Iron Maiden is the best metal band of all time.
As far as other favorites...
Soul Coughing, They Might Be Giants, The Doors. The Dead Kennedys.

A couple of my favorite movies are: Once Upon A Time in the West, Whose Afraid of Virginia Wolfe?, Labyrinth, Legend.
...A little high brow and a little low. I love watching really bad movies sometimes...

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Sitting by the Grand Canyon was one of the most humbling moments of my life. It's so refreshing to be reminded of just how infinitesimally small we are compared to the universe. Another humbling moment was seeing the aurora borealis from the jet over Canada as I was flying to Iceland. It just hung there in the atmosphere doing what it was supposed to. Shining for nobody. Just a phenomenon happening because of the massive forces creating it. It was an artistic epiphany for me. Sounds a bit over romantic, but true.

Teach, Learn, Share

I think i have a lot to teach and share about studio painting. And of course there is always more to learn.

If you want the eyes to look real, don't paint them white. They aren't white at all. Just look. They are a pail grey or maybe yellowish it all depends on the circumstances. By all means, paint them white if you want to, but just know that the way a person reads a painting (or a book or hears music) depends on your adherence or rejection of details. Which details most necessarily describe your subject? If its the eyes then get them just right, the way you need them, or people won't hear what you're trying to say. That last statement, i feel, is the key to all art making. If you want to say something and be taken seriously, then you must, first and foremost, know what you want and have to say. You should know your own mind as best as you can if you want others to know it as well.

Countries I’ve Visited

Czech Republic, France, Germany, Mexico, Spain, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States