Paintings... Some general Themes

September 11th and the emotional experiences for a citizen witnessing big and terrible historical events... including the various things I learned about my own country afterward (few of them good).

Death, Mortality. Generally, but especially my own. The concept of my own death is difficult and surreal but yet immediate and powerful and emotional.

Journalists. (Note... I first wrote this idea in a journal around 2006, more than ten years before people started ranting about "Fake News". So, it's been an evolving conversation in our country, to say the least.)

The concept of the Loser or the Outsider. Many people think of someone scary, like the kids who murdered other kids at Columbine. But I've been treated as an outsider myself, and so it's very nuanced. You can feel a suffering and a pain of being ostracized without being a deranged psychopath. And yet,  people generally don't trust others who aren't charming or extroverted, and sometimes they're right. Sometimes the outsiders are monstrous in some way... 
Hence why there may still be some material here, even though so many other artists have touched it already. 

Commerce and Advertising. Lots of stuff to touch on here, both from the past and from the present, and especially when you consider how it affects society. At the time of my writing this, our president, Trump, is someone whose fame came from being a Reality TV star... I can't help but feel that Advertising dollars played some kind of role in that. 

Material Girl/Wedding/Princess Fantasies. Not sure if I care so much about this anymore. It's rather an annoyance for younger guys... which I was when I wrote the note. It's this notion that some young women have, that they deserve every privilege in life and lots of special treatment, for no other reason than that they are 1. young and 2. pretty, and this can turn into a rampant greed and obsession for money.

Beauty Magazines, Television and other Media. How media affects our self esteem and how we see ourselves. Probably mostly a negative thing, though there may be some pluses.

Paintings based on interpreting Music into Visual Art. Could be Abstract, or could be a depiction of an image that shows some kind of feeling that  is inspired by the music. Should be Poetic, not just an illustration of the lyrics. 

Same Idea, but with Literature. Should be very interpretive/ abstract however. Otherwise it will just look like book illustrations and won't add anything interesting to think about other than telling the story. The story is just a starting point for a constellation of ideas or feelings that it sparks--and those things become the painting.

Same Idea, but with Movies. Not portraits of actor's faces though... paintings inspired by the movies themselves.

Points on a Map. High key, Semi Abstract, photos collaged and painted, each from different locations... geography and physical position is the unifying concept. Possibly including maps or images from google earth and drone photography. I can reference a day, a personal historic moment, or some kind of idea. 

The News is Scary. Any kinds of paintings taken from current events and filtered through my reaction/emotions.

Icons from personal history or symbolism. Small square paintings of simple things that represent personal symbols to  me. 

Internet Dating. Not much explanation needed. Can be personal or societal or both.

Soldiers for Corporations. Starbucks--soldiers with coffee brewers on their backs for flamethrowers, Disney--Mickey and Donald shaped helmets and honeypot shaped grenades...

People with ticker tape billboards on their foreheads that show what their thinking about.

People with "Hi, my name is..." stickers stuck on them.

Art books or Journals... collage, snippets, story, images... whatever I want.