When did it get to be December??? Hmmm...must have been sometime earlier this month...
I'm not particularly surprised that it's taken so long to update here, especially considering we've downsized everything and moved ourselves from the United States of America to Taiwan, Republic of China! Yes, we've moved from the Central Valley's wide open spaces to Taipei's bustling cityscape! So, as you can imagine, we've been busy getting ready for the move, making the move, and moving in! One of the best things about this move (other than the fantastic food in
Taiwan) is that we are actually living on the foothills of several
steep peaks, and the trail heads are "up the street" or "off such and
such a bus route." Amazing. We've already taken a few hikes and we're eager to explore more!
I've finally gotten the time to update this website with some new and older art. Here's what's new:
- Some previously scanned pastels added to Pastel Landscapes
- A new section called Duotones where I show my recent work with graphite and white charcoal on colored paper. It's been a lot of fun!
- Several pictures added to the Sketchbook page, including an improved scan of "Imaginary Tree"
- Another new section called Sculptures where I have posted pictures of some of my three-dimensional pieces
- Several pictures added to the Fantasy Art pages, including a few of my own versions of Tolkien's wonderful Ents
Music has been limited to quick recordings on my mp3 player when I'm noodling around on the acoustic guitar. With any luck (and time!) some of those will be fully realized as real recordings! I've been asked by several people, including--and most importantly!--my wife, so I'm hoping to get started on that once the dust settles a bit more here in Taiwan.
In the meantime, browse the site, enjoy the art, and drop me an email and/or sign the guestbook! Hope to hear from you! --Mark
July 16, 2011
Did I mention it's been awhile since I put out the news?? Well, it's
been even longer this time. What a year! I've been very busy with many
things, including working with a guy name Larry Benigno who lives all the way on the other coast of the U.S. Check him out at www.sonicmusic.net. He's amazing. We've done a couple of pieces together, working via email and ftp. He'll do a mix and I'll add a couple of tracks, email him the WAV files, and he'll do another mix, adding his own stuff... It's a total gas! I'll see about getting "Velvet Revolution" and the final version of "Love Theme for Aliens" somewhere they can be heard. We're currently working on a piece called "Taiwan." Larry wrote the music and I wrote the first draft of the lyrics, then Ping wrote the bridge in Madarin. Love it. :) I'm very interested in doing more collaboration long distance via the web. If you are interested or you know someone that would be, don't hesitate to contact me.
On the art front, my piece "Alishan National Park" was juried into the Pastel Society of the West Coast "Pastels USA" show. That makes three years in a row for my work! Very cool. Now, if I'd just been a member all that time, I would have gotten "signature" status by now. Well, I'm a member now. It was very nice to chat with so many terrific artists like Tina Moore, Jerry Boyd, Cuong Nguyen, Evelyn Delgado, Terri Ford and others at the awards ceremony earlier this summer. The show was fantastic. I was honored to have a picture up in with the others.
I also had two paintings juried into the Mistlin Gallery Spring Show. It was a strong show this year!
Right now we're very busy with logistics. Downsizing has been quite a project. Today we cleared out the entire guest room in one shot, thanks to craigslist!
I'll post more soon. (No, seriously. Sooner than a year, we hope!)
July 14, 2010
Ok, it's been awhile since I put out the news, but it's been a busy several months. Here's a quick rundown:
March: Released "A Taste of Heaven" on Amazon, et. al. As usual, the link is on the Music page. No video at the moment. We'll see about that one. Comments are appreciated!
May/June: Submitted "The Wizard" and "Keys Point Sunset" to the Mistlin Spring Show. They took first and second prizes, respectively in the Pastel category.
It was a good show. There were lots of landscapes in many media--the oil competition was particularly fierce!--and some fascinatingly creative sculptures. Ping and I
enjoyed the gala that opened the show.
June/July: "Saratoga Gap Outcrop" was one of 108 works juried into the 24th International Pastel Society of the West Coast, Pastels USA open competition. This was an outstanding show! I was honored to have one of my pieces on the wall among so many greats in the Art Museum of Los Gatos. The full catalog is available as a pdf here. Many thanks to award-winning artist Gerry Boyd who helped me navigate the logistics and took the time to tell me about his framing technique, and to Evelyn Delgado who had a delightful chat with Ping and me as we came to pick up the art after the show.
There are several new pictures up on the Pastel Landscapes gallery including the award-winners noted above, and two smaller paintings done in the last few weeks. "Bridalveil Creek" is based on one of those wonderful pictures one gets in Yosemite Valley near the famous fall, and "Glacier Point View" is from a shot I took during our early morning visit to (surprise!) Glacier Point the first week after we moved to the Central Valley. The latter is hanging now in a private home just a few miles outside the national park
Back with more soon!
Cheers! --Mark
Watch this space! I re-recorded "A Taste of Heaven" with all new vocals
and instrumentation. Ok, I kept the original lead guitar and a couple
of other things, but it's virtually brand new. I just uploaded it to
Tunecore, and it should be available soon on Amazon.com, iTunes and all
the others. I'll announce the video release when it's available!
All the best! --Mark
February 22, 2010
Oh, yeah! The third single "Clear Blue Sky" is out now! Go to the Music page to check out the videos and get the link to download the mp3, too! Hey, collect 'em all!
Your comments and ratings really do help! Thanks so much for posting on YouTube and elsewhere!
The new Blog is up, too. Read the first posting in the Cross-Cultural Experience category on "English with Chinese Tones."
Cheers! --Mark
February 5, 2010
"Glass Slipper" is based on the Cinderella story...only this time it's from the prince's perspective. It's a perfect metaphor describing what it felt like when I met and fell in love with my wife. Check out the Other Pastels page (new!) on this website for a larger version of the image from the YouTube video.
Please post comments on the video, reviews on Amazon.com, and sign the guest book when you get a chance. It's always good to hear from folks!
Cheers! --Mark
January 27, 2010:
I'm excited to announce the release of my first song for commercial distribution!
"Not A Perfect Girl" is
a piece I wrote for my wife in December 2009. It talks about
how--though she doesn't always see it herself--she's very special.
The song will also be available from a slew of online stores including iTunes and Napster within the next two to four weeks--I'm hoping in time for Valentine's Day
The video is out now on YouTube!
May this music bless everyone who is "not a perfect girl" or guy and all those who love them/us!
Cheers! --Mark Ivan Cole
PS: I appreciate your help spreading the word! Please send the link to
anyone who would enjoy it. Word of mouth is always the best way to get
these things out into the world. Thanks in advance for your help and support!
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