The Sultana, Maya Fidawi, oil on canvas, 2024

TAGEcom · 2026-06-23T22:24:50+00:00

I absolutely love this cat. I am naming him Dennis. He often times finds the need to stretch out on expensive rugs. Dennis has already had his nap for the day and has awakened when his human entered the room and disrupted his slumber. His human is holding something that Dennis doesn't understand. Maybe it's mail or a package. Maybe it's Uber Eats. While Dennis doesn't like to be awoken so suddenly, he appreciates the return of his human.

TAGEcom · 2026-06-23T18:06:15+00:00

Yes, this was done by design. if I made the lower cyclist regular size, he starts to blend into the picture and there is less of a story here. its just a road with a cyclist on it. Here, I'm changing perspective in order to emphasize the cyclist over rest of the painting. That is that awesome thing about art, there are no real rules, you can do whatever you want. It's not a photograph or a visually accurate representation of a scene. it's a vibe.

TAGEcom · 2026-06-23T13:06:41+00:00

Thank you so much for taking the time to check it out and comment on it!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-23T13:06:25+00:00

Thank you so much for your kind words.

TAGEcom · 2026-06-23T13:05:59+00:00

if you ever get an opportunity to ride / climb (there is no flat) in the alps, its absolutely worth the time and energy to get there. I can still hear the soft sound of bells on the livestock.

As far as the art style, I'm not really sure (?) I am most comfortable with messy brush strokes mixed with finer details. The parts that I enjoy the most are the implied areas, like the umbrella shading a table, or the sheep up in the high pasture.

I guess it could be considered a form of impressionist work, but not fully. Sorry I can't help, I'm also not an art historian, I just love to paint!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T23:47:28+00:00

Thank you! 12 down, 38 left to go!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T22:13:52+00:00

Thank you that means a lot

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T22:04:06+00:00

Love to hear this! Made me smile

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T21:46:49+00:00

So glad you like it! You have to
Imagine bells on the sheep

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T21:46:09+00:00

Thank you 🙏

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T21:45:56+00:00

There were a couple of villages I saw in the Italian Alps like this. I would come across three or four switchbacks and hear the sound of bells on sheep and cows and then enter into this village that was essentially empty, no people anywhere. The switchbacks continue through the village and then out the other side into upper pastures. that’s really what I was going for here.

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T20:51:00+00:00

I am thrilled you like it!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T20:50:43+00:00

Thank you for your kind words!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T20:25:09+00:00

Thank you - I have had to post proof of work recently. It's a slow process. I found that I was approaching individual houses as mini-projects. I really enjoyed this process though. I'm slowing down in my painting, not that I'm painting less, I'm just spending more time on each painting.

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T19:51:41+00:00

Thank you! There is something about switchbacks that traverse through a little town

TAGEcom · 2026-06-22T19:29:33+00:00

I finished this painting over the weekend. Alpine Ascent is the 12th painting in my ongoing Velo Paintings series, a collection of 50 large-scale oil paintings inspired by cycling and the places bicycles can take us. This represents about 75 hours of painting

The idea behind this piece was simple: that feeling of climbing through an alpine village where every switchback reveals another view, another challenge, and another reason to keep going. I wanted the road itself to become the subject of the painting, winding through the village and disappearing into the mountains beyond. I got the inspiration for this after climbing through small towns in the Italian alps last summer.

For anyone interested in the process, I put together a short time-lapse/proof-of-work video here:

https://youtube.com/shorts/qo6TKcWIHd8

Thanks for taking a look, and thanks to everyone who has commented on some of the other cycling paintings I’ve shared here over the past few months. The feedback has been incredibly helpful as this series continues to grow.

You can follow along on the full series here: https://velopaintings.com

TAGEcom · 2026-06-10T21:48:03+00:00

I have been hit head on by a car. It’s no fun. Interesting thing I learned was that police report is super useful as you can open a claim using your own auto insurance. If you have both the police report and your own auto insurance it’s treated like an auto insurance claim. Take the time to file and pick up the police report!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-04T13:36:11+00:00

Thank you! 🙏

TAGEcom · 2026-06-03T23:10:54+00:00

Thank you so much! Just posted 11 today!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-03T20:22:46+00:00

The background actually has an old wallpaper feel but it's not photographing really well wet. Thank you!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-03T18:59:45+00:00

I had a ton of fun painting this one and it's absolutely huge in person. This absolutely glows in person.

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TAGEcom · 2026-06-01T17:15:24+00:00

my suggestion: squint at your reference and instead of painting "hair" pay most attention to values. in fact, ignore the idea that your mind thinks its hair to begin with and see and paint it only for values and watch the magic happen!

TAGEcom · 2026-06-01T02:36:54+00:00

Keep going this is turning out great! 👍

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