Oil on Canvas

Even though this painting is from last year, I just posted it on etsy, so i thought I would share it here as well...
http://www.etsy.com/listing/92528113/18x24-original-oil-painting-oil-on

This painting titled "Oil on Canvas" was painted shortly after the deepwater horizon oil spill in 2010. It is the first piece in my series of Oil platforms which I am still working on.

My oil platform paintings are viewed by some as a testament to awe inspiring feats of engineering by mankind.

Others view them as a representation of all that is ugly in man's creations and our never ending hunger for oil which is surely harming the environment in which we live.

To me they stand as icons. These oil platforms are highly recognizable, monumental structures, which represent the things we value most as a society. I try to represent them as they are; huge and powerful machines within a beautiful environment.

Dragger Oil Painting

 On my last fishing trip, we saw this dragger.  These ships can be especially detrimental to the environment.  They pull a dredge along the bottom of the ocean to collect shellfish and it can damage the seabed. 

As with the oil rigs I've painted in the past, I see a certain beauty in the size and power of man-made structures juxtaposed with the serenity and peace of the natural world. 

This painting is still in progress and there is still work to be done on the ship.  I think i will make the windows in the front of the ship darker.

In this painting i tried some new techniques for making water.  I apologize for the low picture quality, but when I'm done painting it I will take better pictures and post them on www.jayvarney.com

A Swelling

I've been in the studio a lot lately, working on some really good stuff.
Here's a shot of the painting of a gas station, which I mentioned a few weeks ago.  There are a few final touches still to be made, but it's pretty much in its final state:

I think this piece is about 16x20, just to give you some scale.

Also, I've started a new project which I've been meaning to get into for a few years now.  I'm so lucky to have access to studio space which will allow me to work on such a large piece:

The piece is 20ft by 8ft and will be of an ocean swell, with choppy, writhing waves.  What you see so far in the photos is just a horizon line with a little work on the sky.  The very beginnings of a mammoth project; I will post more pictures as it progresses.