and then i found his car paintings. vintage toys. love. vintage cars and trucks stacked and organized by color [oh rainbow order i will never tire of thee], by type, by style. LOVE. lovingly painted in all their played with glory. worn paint, imperfections, minute details. LOVE. LOVE. to me the rendered imperfections keep these from being too cute.

the simple backgrounds - singular colors or distinct horizon lines - allow the toys to pop.

4 busses, 2005, oil and acrylic on canvas, 101.6 x 165 cm

the straight on views or the hovering above perspective [like the image above and below] mimic the stance of a child. remember squatting at a table and pushing a car along?

autopark, 2006, acrylic and oil on canvas, 60 x 80 inches

or pushing a car along a floor going vroom vroom? these paintings invoke that, but then much more. because the imagery is handled in a sophisticated way. they are perfectly still. like nostalgia. they live in perfection in perpetuity.

clearly this is an adult at play. i think it's obvious that he's painting these from life. and these are his collection - which apparently has grown over the years, starting with his own childhood toys and expanding to include finds [wouldn't you love to see them all together? i wonder how he stores them. by color? by type?].

bus jump chase, 2004, oil and acrylic on canvas, 10x10 inches

i also love how he sometimes includes action. i want to jump up and down and say go orange car go ! escape the cop !

and if i had to choose one:

two tone [summerset sky ride], 2008, oil and acrylic on canvas, 12x24

this one. the size seems great to me [really rectangular]. the colors are perfect. i love love the older cars and in particular the camper. the pale blue in the background is divine. and that tiny tiny car on the botton which makes it feel precarious gives it a hint of silly danger that i adore.

until next time. happy collecting. follow my collection as it grows on pinterest.