Stuffed Animals… the Story
Stuffed Animals
The return of the Stuffed Animals. After finishing the first Stuffed Animal Pile in 2015, “Dream Team” and “Nobody Told Us No” I knew I was about to strike gold… creativity and in the art World. Long story short, the Stuffed Animal instantly became a huge success and is still what I am most known for. I contributed to create over 100 pieces in this series from 2015 - 2019 and began selling these pieces for well into the six figures. Collectors such as Nobu began to collect. The art world was buzzing and I can still say, there has not been anything like it since… many imitators but nothing close to what I was creating. I often say, “it is not what you paint, but how you paint”… the Stuffed Animals are a perfect example of this. In 2018 I peaked at the pinnacle of hyper realism I, as an artist, desired to achieve with “You Can!”… and yes I did ;) This painting took 1 1/2 years to complete. Everyone wanted me to condition e to produce as many stuffed animal paintings as I could. Many people, including many in the art world, advised me to hire a team of painting assistants, similar to some of the biggest names in the art World, so that I could produce more and satisfy the demand… I had and still have Zero interest in that!… to me, that is the antithesis and a mockery of the magic of a painting… I do not pursue art to produce a bunch of stuff, I pursue art to create! Every oil painting with my signature was made solely by my hands. Even when the market and demand for a stuffed Animals was escalating, I knew internally I was coming, for the time, to a creative end to the hyper real Stuffed Animals. To me, there was so much more to explore in Creativity and it was time for me to start breaking the rules and create from a place of pure imagination and possibilities… thus, the cRaZy stuFFed aniMALs were born. From here I creatively explored the abstract, textural, furry spaces of crazy quilts; the energetic, impressionistic cute fur faces, the minimalistic color focused intentional quilts; the Monet, Nature and color inspired Impressionisms and finally to my Mona Lisa… a series/creative journey I have been intentionally pursuing since 2018 Inspirationalism. This series/painting is why I chose, for a time, to divert my creative path from stuffed animals. As an artist, I need to show to myself that I was capable of creating this from nothing but my pure imagination… the most valuable gift I could ever have given to myself. Now that I have been through the very challenging journey of this creative growth, I feel as if it is time to revisit and foster the series that has been since a pivotal part of my creative journey: Stuffed Animals.
My new favorite Studio :)
text
My personal DTLA Gallery showing my 2017 Solo show ‘the ANIMALS’
Entrance into my DTLA Studio
The Hangout Room in my DTLA Studio
Where I created some of my greatest pieces… and yes, I am an extremely clean painter
10 years of constant Creating
text
“Bloom” 2017, from my Skulls series which was directly influenced by my Dental schooling from 2010-2014 and a divination to depict Nature.
“Treasure Chest” and Dr. Tara. Part of my 2022 Long Beach Museum of Art solo show. This painting sold for $130,000 and all my other Stuffed Animal series have been collected and are in homes around the World.
In 2018, I decided to paint solely from my own imagination and the series cRaZy stuFFed aniMALs was born. This series is now my most collected and has helped me break the barriers into the infinite possibilities of Creativity.
Quilts became a full expression of the beauty and texture of oil paint. As I developed in this series, they eventually taught me one of my best life lessons… the power of the present moment.
“Smiles” Bronze Teddy Bear Sculpture. This ~800lbs sculpture was an edition of only 2 and now one resides in the Cayman Islands and the other was craned into the 6th floor of a private office in Monterrey, Mexico. The painting in this picture is the largest painting I have ever created!… “ToyBox” sold in 2025.
The inception of the Impressions series
There is a rhythm and vibration in Nature that I wish to capture and still continue to pursue.
The idea of painting outside in Nature first began in Gstaad, Switzerland during my 2024 Solo Show and 2 month Residency with Maddox Gallery.
07/2024, this painting was created in the mountains just north of the beautiful town of Gstaad in the center of the Swiss Alps.
Creating with only the sound /vibration of Nature.
Sunsets and painting in the wild of Manhattan Beach
All the Sunsets I created were painted on 19th Street, The Strand and within the brief 30-45 minute window as the sun was setting… a real artistic challenge. Because of the brief window of time, the Sunsets encouraged me to paint what I felt, rather than solely what I saw…there was no time to overanalyze my brushstrokes and movements, I had to capture the impression of what I was experiencing.
“Sunset 12-25-24” was the 2nd Sunsets painting and was created on a very special day... my niece’s birthday… and Christmas :)
“Sunset 01-07-25” was created the night of the most devastating Palisades fires and I hope this piece honors the beauty we have in life even after great hardship.
Although the Sunsets series are technically impressionistic paintings, I leave them in their own category because of the extreme time limitation of the creation process. With that said, this series was the catalyst of the Manhattan Beach Impressions series.
MB and the Impressions series
The Sunsets started the desire to paint Plein Air in Manhattan Beach and the biography, “Monet, The Restless Vision” was the the tipping point to commit to this new artistic endeavor.
From our patio, which I have now turned into my Art Studio. “Paradise”, so aptly named for the feeling I have for living here in Manhattan Beach, was the 1st official of the Impressions series and, even more importantly, was the painting I credit to unlocking the creative vision of what this series is to ultimately become!
Below is a list, in chronological order, of the Impressions series to date.
“Paradise” 03/2025… I kept this painting for Tara and me :)
“the Beach” 03/2025… standing at 19th street and the bike path.
“Home” 04/2025… another painting I kept for Tara and me :)
“La Casa” 04/2025… the 1st Impressions painting that I sold to a local Manhattan Beacher… you can probably guess what home it is in ;) (sold)
“Day at the Beach” 05/2025… the 1st of many Pier paintings however, there is nothing like the magic of the first time an artist approaches a new subject.
“Walk Street” aka “19th Street” 06/2025… the second piece created from our patio of the beautiful 19th walk street. (sold)
“Sky, Ocean, Beach, Garden” 06/2025… the beginning of creatively focusing on one of my favorite things in the World… Flowers!
Everything I created before is put into what I create now.
The more I create, the more I see how all of the series and paintings I have done, show themselves more and more within each new piece. “Love Note” is the epitome example of how all all my series informs what I create today.
“Love Note” 07/2025… this painting was commissioned by 2 art loving Manhattan Beachers… Lan and Desmund Shirazi. (sold)
Artist careers are a continuous rollercoaster of euphoric bliss and all-consuming challenges… constantly reinventing and evolving. If an artist continues to create and push their own boundaries, they are periodically rewarded with divine inspiration… the Impressions series is my next creative blessing :)
