FREE SHIPPING
Shipping takes 3–4 Weeks
This ships from Round Lake Beach, Illinois. A suburb outside of Chicago.
I use UPS and sometimes US Post.
This is part of my Fresh Finds project—a series where I’m going through my archive and offering up older pieces that haven’t been available in decades. I’ve had these works stored flat and safe, but I figured, instead of letting them collect dust, why not let collectors own a piece of my early career? These are part of my legacy, and I thought it would be meaningful to share them now—especially for those of you who’ve followed my work for years.
This listing includes two original works from 1994: a hand-pulled intaglio print titled "A Smoke & a Paper" and the original charcoal and wash drawing I used to design the plate. I think offering both together makes for a special set—especially for collectors who care about process and the evolution of an image from sketch to final print. You’ll be able to see how I worked through the composition in drawing and then translated that into etched line and texture.
The image was inspired by a still from an old film noir. I wish I remembered which one—I paused the VCR, squinted through the grainy static, and roughed out this scene of a man sitting in profile, smoking a cigarette while reading a paper. I’ve always loved those moody, in-between moments from mid-century films. This one really stuck with me.
The print is 4 of 6 in the edition and is shrink-wrapped (not mounted) onto acid-free foam core, so it’s preserved flat and in great condition. The gloss you see in the photo is just the protective wrap. The drawing is done in charcoal and compressed charcoal with wash techniques for tone. It’s on heavy drawing paper and will ship in a plastic sleeve, but it’s not mounted or wrapped—just carefully protected.
Stylistically, both pieces mix realism and gesture. You can see how I tried to keep the anatomy accurate—the tilt of the head, the bend of the elbow—but the surfaces are rough, expressive. I was chasing that same balance that artists like Diebenkorn, Elmer Bischoff, and Malcolm Liepke were so good at: letting form emerge from texture and movement. The background is abstracted to enhance the focus on the figure, and there's an emotional stillness to the scene that feels cinematic.
This was also around the time I was showing at Hang Gallery in San Francisco. They had the idea to sell some of my smaller drawings as lower-priced originals. It didn’t quite pan out—the gallery overpriced them—but the work still holds up, and now I can offer them at the price I think makes sense. I’m grateful that so many of these pieces have ended up in collections where they’re appreciated and cared for.
Details:
Intaglio Print:
Title: A Smoke & a Paper
Medium: Intaglio with aquatint
Year: 1994
Edition: 4/6
Image size: approx. 8 x 8 inches
Shrink-wrapped on acid-free foam core (not mounted)
Excellent condition
Charcoal Drawing:
Medium: Charcoal, compressed charcoal, and wash on paper
Year: 1994
Size: approx. 10.5 x 11 inches
Comes in protective plastic sleeve
Drawing used as source for the print
Excellent condition
FREE SHIPPING
Shipping takes 3–4 Weeks
This ships from Round Lake Beach, Illinois. A suburb outside of Chicago.
I use UPS and sometimes US Post.
This is part of my Fresh Finds project—a series where I’m going through my archive and offering up older pieces that haven’t been available in decades. I’ve had these works stored flat and safe, but I figured, instead of letting them collect dust, why not let collectors own a piece of my early career? These are part of my legacy, and I thought it would be meaningful to share them now—especially for those of you who’ve followed my work for years.
This listing includes two original works from 1994: a hand-pulled intaglio print titled "A Smoke & a Paper" and the original charcoal and wash drawing I used to design the plate. I think offering both together makes for a special set—especially for collectors who care about process and the evolution of an image from sketch to final print. You’ll be able to see how I worked through the composition in drawing and then translated that into etched line and texture.
The image was inspired by a still from an old film noir. I wish I remembered which one—I paused the VCR, squinted through the grainy static, and roughed out this scene of a man sitting in profile, smoking a cigarette while reading a paper. I’ve always loved those moody, in-between moments from mid-century films. This one really stuck with me.
The print is 4 of 6 in the edition and is shrink-wrapped (not mounted) onto acid-free foam core, so it’s preserved flat and in great condition. The gloss you see in the photo is just the protective wrap. The drawing is done in charcoal and compressed charcoal with wash techniques for tone. It’s on heavy drawing paper and will ship in a plastic sleeve, but it’s not mounted or wrapped—just carefully protected.
Stylistically, both pieces mix realism and gesture. You can see how I tried to keep the anatomy accurate—the tilt of the head, the bend of the elbow—but the surfaces are rough, expressive. I was chasing that same balance that artists like Diebenkorn, Elmer Bischoff, and Malcolm Liepke were so good at: letting form emerge from texture and movement. The background is abstracted to enhance the focus on the figure, and there's an emotional stillness to the scene that feels cinematic.
This was also around the time I was showing at Hang Gallery in San Francisco. They had the idea to sell some of my smaller drawings as lower-priced originals. It didn’t quite pan out—the gallery overpriced them—but the work still holds up, and now I can offer them at the price I think makes sense. I’m grateful that so many of these pieces have ended up in collections where they’re appreciated and cared for.
Details:
Intaglio Print:
Title: A Smoke & a Paper
Medium: Intaglio with aquatint
Year: 1994
Edition: 4/6
Image size: approx. 8 x 8 inches
Shrink-wrapped on acid-free foam core (not mounted)
Excellent condition
Charcoal Drawing:
Medium: Charcoal, compressed charcoal, and wash on paper
Year: 1994
Size: approx. 10.5 x 11 inches
Comes in protective plastic sleeve
Drawing used as source for the print
Excellent condition
