ABSTRACTION

Aloha,

The world is a smaller place now. We all can travel virtually far and wide. I in fact started that about 15 years ago when I received my first computer. It was a Mac and in it I found an application called appleworkes.
It is a rather simple one that allows for word processing and as I noted a painting format. I started playing around with it, using my mouse to draw images. As with anything else in so doing, the more I played with the tools at hand the better my control and end result. At the same time my introduction to the world wide web began. I started to chat with folks here and there. A couple of years later while staying in Berkley, California , a Swiss friend of mine paid an unexpected visit. He is a dear friend who had rented a vacation house that I owned on Maui. I had been drawn into this digital painting world and had been putting my work on paper by going To Kinko's and having my floppy disks read and printed. This friend had bought a few of my water colors and acrylic pieces in the past. I showed him what I had been doing and he was impressed. As it would happen at the very time he was visiting there was a Mac Expo going on in San Francisco. He suggested we go. That experience altered my art life forever. At the Expo I was introduced to the Watcom Tablet. This wireless drawing tablet with stylist permits an artist to draw as is using a brush or pencil. No longer would I struggle with the mouse. I also at that show met a guy who owned an Iris printing business in California. After showing him some of the artwork from my limited portfolio he invited me to bring my stuff to his place of business and there showed me the astonishing quality printing that was available. He also invited me to put my art on his website. The journey had begun. It's an amazing time and the avenues of distribution are unparalleled.

BLUE NUDE

Aloha

It has been one of those days. The rain has fallen from the heavens and the tropical jungle that surrounds me is enjoying the refreshment. Since moving to the islands it has been my choice to live mostly in the rain forests. The magical balance of rain and sun create the most lush setting. Unlike other tropical areas we have no real predictors. There are the wild pigs that wander the terrain and some deer and wild turkeys that avid sportsmen brought over along with some ring necked pheasant. No snakes or other venomous creatures. The jungle is a place to wander and enjoy. There are the mosquitoes, but if you live here long enough you acquire an immunity to their bites, no swelling or itching, quite amazing actually. The bothersome buzzing in you ear perhaps the only annoyance. Surprisingly here on the Big Island where I have settled they are found in the thick jungle but the nights are void of them. I had previously thought I'd acquire a net to eliminate that sound at night while in bed, but no need. I have screened doors but most often don't bother to use the screens so my dog can just go for a jaunt at will. Oh it is lovely and magical. How I remember those awful hot summers on the mainland where the mosquitoes attacked with vengeance and and one itched forever. Paradise does exist for some of us.

GONE BANANAS

Aloha,
It is yet another tropical morning here on the Bis island, and the birds are chirping their messages from aloft the Ohia trees that stand straight and tall in the ring of Hawaiian jungle that insulates my living environment. It is peaceful and serene. The universe has rewarded me greatly. When I reflect on my Bronx beginnings with the el trains rumbling by, a hundred feet or so behind our tenement. Magic does happen if you dream it. I still do dream, but not in the rushed way of the city mind. Now those dreams are full of color, the sorted grays of city days gone. I see it in my paintings, slightly abstract, but soft. I hope that your day is as fresh and soothing as mine.

KOOLAU TREES

Aloha,
It has been several days now since I've spent any time here. Was busy with finishing my plumbing on my new house. The building process in time consuming especially when you are dealing with a skill that you normally don't do. I did make a couple of mistakes and had to retrace my footsteps. That though is not a bad thing. Every time you goof you learn. My uncle was a plumber. He had his own business on Long Island. He was my mother's brother, and my uncle, but beyond that he was my friend and protector. He saw in me this rebellious but translucent kid that he sort to lift up to a new level. He did have the addiction to alcohol that seemed to permeate the males in the Fritz family. This guy could drink a whole bottle of scotch at dinner. That was followed by many beers and shots at the neighborhood bar, while running the pool table, walking away with everyone's money. I sat in amazement watching this Dean Martin look alike show me what real men did, at least I thought so. We would stand there in his back yard watching the sun rise. Uncle Ray was a hell of a guy. He died of White Lung, a disease associated with those who worked around asbestos. His flask of scoth was holstered to his oxygen tank....a Long Island cowboy. I raise my glass of red wine to him. Rest in peace my friend. Order another round on me at the heavenly bar you sit at now. When I got out of the Navy he gave me his Buick convertible. They were a different breed. My cousins, his sons are my great friends these days and they drink me under the table. We do sit at a table called family however, and it spins in one direction, that of love. Trees grow in the most incredible places.

PALMS AT DAWN

Awakening
Finding
My way
Slowly moving
Into another day
Cup of coffee
Kona
All is well
I know
Many more surprises
I will find
Along the way.

la femme

la femme

this nghts dream
just dreaming

IT'S ONLY ROCK N ROLL

ALOHA FROM PAHOA, HAWAII

It is another fine day here on the Big Island. Just finished working on my studio here. Besides creating my digital art pieces, I build my own homes. I think this is probably my last. I did a lot of thinking about this one. It is smaller then the past projects. Less is more for me now. I really dig architecture. Art is art after all, and I am an artist. Right now I am listening to my collection of early Rock N Roll, the era that I sprung from. For me it started with Elvis, The accapella groups of the East Coast, and the gospel that played on my transistor radio, hidden under my pillow on those late Sunday nights. We were tat generation that wandered off int uncharted waters. White kids turning on their soul. The sounds were great. The beat made you wanna dance. And dance we did. Still do love dancing. For me that also is art. Passionate art, designed for lovers. As the fifties became the sixties, I grew my hair. In fact seeking a job that would allow for flamboyance, I chose hair styling as an avenue where I could create. Sassoon arrived on that scene and that is where I played.It was the English beat riding the wave of upscale Madison Avenue. It was and remains art. We were the rock stars of the hair world. Colored leather pants.high heeled boots, crushed velvet jackets, hand embroidery on the back,silk tee shirts. All those beautiful women. My dream was a reality. Strutting by day, throwing great , precise geometric sculptures onto the runways or into the limousines. The music played and I rocked. The partying after the work day was even more outrageous. We were playing with the artists musicians, the freewheeling druggies. All sorts of experimentation was here, there, and everywhere. Jumping in was fine with me. So the piece you see above is a representation of that spirit. Aloha for today.......peace.

SUNSET REFLECTION

ALOHA ONCE AGAIN
I recall that great moment in time when my grandfather, Frederick Charles Fritz, awarded me with my very own set of brushes. His studio was a small room in his five room apartment, on the fifth floor of the building addressed 117 Walton Avenue, Bronx, New York. We, meaning my mother, brother and he the master and grandmother lived there together. The building was a walk up apartment building. The constant climbing of those stairs three, four times and more a day kept all of us quite fit. But it was that tiny room that smelled of turpentine and oils that held out it's magic to me. In there he would sit at his easel and paint landscapes and animals. On weekends he and I and they pet bull terrier would walk the five or so miles to The Bronx Zoo, where he would sketch. All of this inspired me to become an artist as well. My first paintings were in fact copies of his art. I applied his lion to the back of my leather jacket. Those brushes he handed me were his invitation to follow the artist's path. It has been a full and exciting adventure. It's all about reflections now as I grow older.

TROPICAL COVE

BAMBOO NIGHT
Aloha from The Big Island, Hawaii,
It is what is starting out to be an overcast and still Hawaiian Sunday morning. The trade winds haven't arrived as yet, making for a warmer then usual day. But the heat is not like that of the east coast where I was raised. I still remember the humid scorching summers there in the Bronx. As a kid, I'd sit there on the steps of our apartment building and daydream of an escape route,out of that concrete jungle. It was The Arther Godfrey TV program that introduced Hawaii to me. Thank you Arther. Funny how it actually happened. We are powerful that way, creating our dreams. The same applies to my art. Images falling from my mind to the computer screen and on the hard copy. We live in amazing times, all of us. My tropical studio is light years away from my childhood neighborhood. My art also, light years away from the traditional formats. Enjoy your day and seek your dreams.

BAMBOO WINDOW

Aloha from Pahoa, Hawaii
It is another magnificent day here in paradise. The ground is wet from the night rain and the sky is blue, morning light filtering through the topical jungle surrounding my studio/home. The pure magic of this island inspires a great deal of m art. Every day I see something else that brings me to my Wacom Tablet where I set my inspiration to the computer screen. I am truly in love with digital format. It allows the artist to fly in such before unknown areas of application. I am very comfortable with my techniques. Having been primarily a water color artist in my past life, I choose to work with tints rather then the opaque. Therein I find the ability to add a sense of depth to otherwise two dimensional art. Some might say that the computer generated image is cheating, with the use of sophisticated software. I disagree and see these as brushes now there to use for creation. Every age defines new avenues to walk down. We are here in a world where communications flies through space landing at precise locations with the push at the send button. Here in the digital format I can now push the envelope and share it with the rest of the world instantaneously. What a wonderful place to be. Enjoy your day. Create and share as you know. Give, and love. Look forward to hearing from anyone.

circle of love

Aloha
I am just here to show you my images. I want feedback. If you have any questions how I create these images just ask. If you hate them tell me. It is an extension of my soul. I love the human form and depict it faceless. The reason is simple. I want it to be non specific. We are members of the who;le. Nothing is dissimilar. Together we are one.
'

circle of love

ALOHA

ALOHA FROM THE BIG ISLAND, PAHOA, HAWAII. This one example of my digital art.I create these images freehand, using tints. I have been producing these images for some 15 years now. My art has been in juried exhibitions here in Hawaii. I sell my art in many different formats including large one of a kind pieces as well as limited editions and greeting card format. I would like to communicate with other digital artists to exchange ideas and techniques. Hoping all of you are having a great day.