Through the Eyes of a Child blog

Now Showing in West Ashley (Opening December 8)

2011-12-08T22:14:00.001-05:00

"Through the Eyes of A Child" is now showing at Catalyst 61 in West Ashley SC. If you did not get to see the show in 2008 you can come view the remaining original oil paintings which are currently on display. For more information about the show you can view the archived description here and for directions to Catalyst 61 click here.

Come join us on December 8 from 7pm-11pm for a fun night filled with great art, live music, an open mic, coffee, and desserts.

music by Volcanoes in the Kitchen

art by Melanie Spinks, Alex Radin, Elianna Radin, and Wes Tuten

"Through the Eyes of A Child" came down yesterday

2011-06-28T09:28:00.003-04:00

"Through the Eyes of A Child" is no longer showing and for the first time in a very long time has taken up residence in my studio. As I brought the remaining paintings home I was once again reminded of the raw freedom of creating as a child and gained a renewed burst of inspiration to push my creativity to the limits, to not get stuck in old patterns and modes of doing things, to explore, to see the world in a new way, and to appreciate the moment that is now.

This blog has been more or less dedicated to posting the pieces from the "Through the Eyes of A Child" show which took place back in 2008. So what is next for this blog? That is a good question. Most of the remaining paintings that are still available from the 100 paintings originally created for this show have been purchased. I will be posting any ones that have not been posted so far that are still available and I will most likely put the rest of the series up here online that have been sold as a full record of the show. Where things go after that I am unsure. I feel like i need to change the name of the blog to reflect in a better way what it's purpose is and has been. It has been far from a painting a day blog ... perhaps in the future it will become one but for now it seems to be a record of the show. We still have plans for a coffee table book that includes the entire show, some thoughts on creativity, and everything Ellie said about her work when she created the pieces at 4 years old.

As you go through your day today and tomorrow and the next day .... Don't forget to be a kid!

"Through the Eyes of A Child" is now showing in North Charleston

2010-08-08T18:29:00.005-04:00

"Through the Eyes of A Child" is now showing at Voice of the Lord International Church in North Charleston SC. If you did not get to see the show in 2008 you can view the remaining original oil paintings which are currently on display. For more information about the show you can view the archived description here and for directions to Voice of the Lord International Church click here.

"Through the Eyes of A Child" now showing at Kairos Gallery

2010-04-17T02:56:00.006-04:00

"Through the Eyes of A Child" is now showing at Kairos Gallery in Mt. Pleasant SC. If you did not get to see the show in 2008 you can view the remaining original oil paintings which are currently on display inside Saint Andrews church in Mt. Pleasant. For more information about the show and for directions click here.

Inspiration for the Tornado With The Sun Series

2010-04-17T02:51:00.004-04:00

Here is the drawing that my four year old daughter Elianna did that inspired the "Tornado With The Sun Series" which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show. I did three paintings for the show that were inspired from this drawing.

Tornado With The Sun 2

2010-01-29T22:58:00.003-05:00

This painting is the 2nd of 3 paintings in the Tornado With The Sun Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tornado With The Sun 2
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Tornado with the Sun 1

2010-01-28T00:53:00.003-05:00

This painting is the 1st of 3 paintings in the Tornado With The Sun Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tornado With The Sun 1
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

The artist that inspired the show.

2010-01-27T00:21:00.004-05:00

My little Ellie is growing up so fast. I love these shots of her in the studio showing off her art from back in 2008. These pictures were taken right around the time that I started to get really inspired by her creations and simply watching her create which in turn inspired the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show.

Here is a picture of her holding up a picture that she says is a spider.

These were all so cool that I should have done a spider series but they did not make it into the show probably due to her choice of using the yellow lined paper. I did want consistency in the presentation so I told her that the only pictures that could be in the show had to be drawn only by her, they had to be on white paper, and she couldn't put any stickers on them. The sticker rule was a big one because she kept putting stickers on pieces of hers that I wanted to use for the show and it was driving me crazy because she would create this really amazing piece and then slap a my little pony sticker right in the middle of it.

I explained to her that sometimes there were rules or guidelines in terms of what art could be in a particular show. She was quick to respond that one day she would have her own show and it would have pictures that we created together and she would be able to put stickers on them.

Fall Bloom

2010-01-27T00:12:00.004-05:00

This painting is one of the 20 paintings in the Tall Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Fall Bloom
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

Sold

Tall Flower 10

2010-01-25T23:20:00.003-05:00

This painting is the 10th of 20 paintings in the Tall Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tall Flower 10
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

Sold

Tall Flower 8

2010-01-12T10:25:00.006-05:00

This painting is the 8th of 20 paintings in the Tall Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tall Flower 8
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

Sold

Tall Flower 9

2009-12-11T11:31:00.003-05:00

This painting is the 9th of 20 paintings in the Tall Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tall Flower 9
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

Sold

The Wall of Tall Flowers

2009-11-25T23:30:00.003-05:00

Here is a picture of the wall where the Tall Flower Series hung during the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. It was directly to the left as you entered the space. The 4,000 square foot store front is now an East Shore Athletic Club and they have altered the layout of the building quite a bit. It's too bad ... I really wanted to do another show in this space as it was perfect for an art gallery.

Tall Flower 7

2009-11-25T23:21:00.003-05:00

This painting is the 7th of 20 paintings in the Tall Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tall Flower 7
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

Sold

Inspiration for the Tall Flower Series

2009-11-25T22:50:00.005-05:00

Here are two of the drawings that my four year old daughter Elianna did that inspired the "Tall Flower Series" which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show. I did twenty paintings for the show that were inspired from these two drawings. All of them sold except for four.

Leaf 10

2009-11-22T20:57:00.004-05:00

This painting is the 10th of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 10
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Leaf 7

2009-11-14T22:11:00.003-05:00

This painting is the 7th of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 7
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Leaf 8

2009-10-03T01:24:00.006-04:00

This painting is the 8th of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 8
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Leaf 6

2009-09-25T01:31:00.002-04:00

This painting is the 6th of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 6
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Time Flies

2009-09-25T01:14:00.004-04:00

Ok ... so I have been so busy this past month (with two conferences that I was speaking at as well as showing work at) that I have not continued posting the available paintings from the "Through The Eyes of a Child" show. I am really looking forward to finishing the coffee table book of this show. The remaining pieces are still currently hanging at Seacoast Church in Mt. Pleasant SC. You can find out more information about that by visiting http://www.artistonfire.com. So this is my apology and my renewed commitment. Check back soon...

Leaf 5

2009-08-20T23:17:00.004-04:00

This painting is the 5th of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 5
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Leaf 2

2009-08-04T22:47:00.002-04:00

This painting is the 2nd of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 2
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Leaf 1

2009-07-27T01:11:00.003-04:00

This painting is the 1st of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 1
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Leaf 9

2009-07-21T00:01:00.002-04:00

This painting is the 9th of 10 paintings in the Leaf Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Leaf 9
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Inspiration for the Leaf Series

2009-07-20T23:48:00.007-04:00

Here are two of the drawings that my four year old daughter Elianna did that inspired the "Leaf Series" which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show.

She actually started these by collecting beautiful leaves that she found outside and tracing them. She then colored and decorated them as she saw them in her mind. I loved the abstraction in these and had great fun painting my interpretations of them.

Acorn Tree 5

2009-07-09T22:33:00.004-04:00

This painting is the 5th of 10 paintings in the Acorn Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Acorn Tree 5
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Acorn Tree 7

2009-07-06T21:29:00.003-04:00

This painting is the 7th of 10 paintings in the Acorn Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Acorn Tree 7
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Acorn Tree 3

2009-07-02T22:59:00.004-04:00

This painting is the 3rd of 10 paintings in the Acorn Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Acorn Tree 3
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Acorn Tree 6

2009-06-29T20:45:00.000-04:00

This painting is the 6th of 10 paintings in the Acorn Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Acorn Tree 6
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
8" x 12.5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Inspiration for the Acorn Tree Series

2009-06-29T20:19:00.007-04:00

Here is one of the drawings that my four year old daughter Elianna did that inspired the "Acorn Tree Series" which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show.

I really liked this drawing and the others she did that were similar to this. They ended up being called the Acorn Tree Series because that's what she said they were .... Acorn Trees of course! She did not want to sell her drawings during the original showing back in November of 2008 but she has recently informed me that she is ready to sell her work and actually sold her first drawing last week after some tough negotiations where she decided to go up a whole dollar from her original asking price. Yes ... she is still 4 years old.

Tree 1

2009-06-05T01:33:00.004-04:00

This painting is the 1st of 3 paintings in the Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tree 1
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

Unavailable

Tree 2

2009-05-30T09:51:00.005-04:00

This painting is the 2nd of 3 paintings in the Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tree 2
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

Unavailable

Tree 3

2009-05-22T23:22:00.001-04:00

This painting is the 3rd of 3 paintings in the Tree Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Tree 3
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

Unavailable

Inspiration for the Tree Series

2009-05-22T23:10:00.003-04:00

Ok ... so I have been pretty slow this month at posting anything but I think I am now back on track. Here is one of Elianna's drawings that inspired the next three paintings that I am going to make available online. When we asked her about this tree that she drew she said she just wanted to draw a different kind of tree than her stick trees. She had been drawing her stick trees (know as Acorn Trees in the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show) over and over and this was the first deviation she made from them.

Spiral Flower 4

2009-04-23T23:45:00.003-04:00

This painting is the 4th of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 4
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Spiral Flower 7

2009-04-22T00:44:00.003-04:00

This painting is the 7th of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 7
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Spiral Flower 2

2009-04-17T15:31:00.003-04:00

This painting is the 9th of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 2
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Spiral Flower 9

2009-04-13T23:32:00.004-04:00

This painting is the 9th of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 9
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Show Layout - Spiral Flower Series

2009-04-12T23:36:00.006-04:00

Here is a picture of the wall where the Spiral Flower Series hung during the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show and a picture of Ellie and I standing together in front of our work. The first drawings that I saw her doing that really caught my attention and inspired the overall idea for this show was one of her spiral flower drawings.

I think one of Ellie's favorite parts about the show was the Hors d'oeuvres ... so much so that she was still eating in this picture.

Spiral Flower 3

2009-04-12T23:00:00.005-04:00

This painting is the 3rd of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 3
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Spiral Flower 1

2009-04-12T01:30:00.004-04:00

This painting is the 1st of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 1
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Inspiration for the Spiral Flower Series

2009-04-10T23:46:00.006-04:00

Here are two of the drawings that my four year old daughter Elianna did that inspired the "Spiral Flower Series" which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show.

Spiral Flower 5

2009-04-10T23:35:00.008-04:00

This painting is the 5th of 10 paintings in the Spiral Flower Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Spiral Flower 5
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
10" x 10"

Unavailable

To purchase this painting please email me.

Inspiration for the Door Series

2009-04-05T22:41:00.005-04:00

Here is the drawing that my four year old daughter Elianna did that inspired the "Door Series" which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" art show. Notice the orange door with chimney and the rainbow doormats. Also notice the spirals on her hands and feet which carry on into her other pieces.

The Door of Mystery

2009-03-16T01:24:00.003-04:00

This painting is one of eight paintings in the Door Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Door of Mystery
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

Gallery Wrap

2009-03-14T22:17:00.003-04:00

People often ask the question, "What does the term Gallery Wrap mean?" The term Gallery wrap is used to describe a canvas that has been stretched around the sides of the stretcher bars and has no visible staples since it is secured to the back of the frame. The sides of the canvas are also thicker than a normal canvas measuring 1.25" to 2" or more. The sides of the canvas are primed and painted as part of the artwork most often continuing the image that appears on the front or sometimes simply painted with a solid color. This allows for a frameless presentation of the finished painting.

In the case of my paintings that are on birch wood panel the term "Gallery Wrap" has nothing to do with canvas that has been wrapped around the sides since I am not painting on canvas. It is a descriptive term used to describe the method of display. The painting that is on the front of the wood panel continues around the sides of the wood. So the paintings are intended to be hung without a frame. See the picture below which was taken from a 3/4 view at one of my shows where all the paintings were displayed in this method.

The Door of New Beginnings

2009-03-14T21:04:00.007-04:00

This painting is one of eight paintings in the Door Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Door of New Beginnings
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

The Door of Honor

2009-03-13T23:05:00.009-04:00

This painting is one of eight paintings in the Door Series which is part of the "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. All paintings in this show are gallery wrapped wood boxes.

Door of Honor
Oil on Birch Wood Panel
20" x 5"

$135 + S&H

To purchase this painting please email me.

The Door Series

2009-03-13T22:19:00.007-04:00

To start things off I am going to feature the three remaining available paintings from the Door Series (the other five have already sold). My four year old daughter Elianna did an amazing sketch of her walking between these orange doors that each had chimneys attached to them and rainbow doormats in front of them. I don't have it scanned at the moment but plan to upload it soon. You can see her piece was hung just to the right on the adjacent wall below. That was the inspiration for these pieces which were eight in total. Here are some shots from just before the opening night of the show.

Painting in the Studio

2009-03-12T01:50:00.011-04:00

Here is a shot of me painting in my studio on some of the pieces for the, "Through the Eyes of a Child" show. This was the first time that I ever attempted to paint 100 paintings for a single show and even though they were only 100 square inches a piece I had to make use of every square inch of space in the studio ... which is why I ended up painting on the floor. I don't recommend this as it's pretty hard on your knees and lower back.

The Beginning

2009-03-12T01:15:00.004-04:00

In an attempt to inspire new collectors of original art this blog was formed to feature pieces that I created in a shorter period of time and offer them at a price that new collectors could afford.

I recently had a show titled, "Through the Eyes of a Child" that featured my four year old daughters artwork along with my interpretations of her drawings. The pieces in this show are explorations in freedom and a tapping back into the raw expression of a child. Children are the most uninhibited artists and are full of such fascination with the world around them. Watching my daughter create inspired me to break the boundaries of my own creative process. I began work on these pieces only ten weeks before the show opened, which was a purposeful attempt to mirror the prolific production of a child.

The exhibition consisted of 100 oil paintings each measuring 100 square inches. Almost half of them have already sold. I will begin this blog by featuring some of the remaining available paintings from this show. If you would like to see more of my other work you can visit my website http://www.truthillustrations.com or you can visit my myspace page.

I hope to have a coffee table book of the entire show along with comments, artist statments, and biographies available soon. If you would like me to send you an email when it is available send me an email with the subject line coffee table book.