Ed Trask

It took being in NYC to remember I never posted this Brooklyn bridge study I did for a lovely family . This was fun . 36/36 canvas

I'm sometime late to the game with posts and stuff. I suppose it came from my mother teaching me to wait till the day after Valentine's Day to get the stuff half off. Regardless , It hit me today how much this family loves @kellytraskrva and how her strength, grit, intelligence, empathy and light keep this family glued together . Man how lucky are we! (Yep I knocked on wood darlin) Love you Kelly Maguire Trask

Buzzing through broken ford speakers Ben's busted vocals appear to be mixed entirely too loud , "Smoking cigarettes more than I should, my hands won't stop shaking and that can't be good " Shit! , I'm awake! I automatically start singing like I'm calling back to @benlucero74 "I would forget you if I only could". It's 3am at a gas station in the middle of nowhere , it's not the Midwest and it's not the desert , I'm not quite sure what it is. Vanarky is idling between gas pumps as @davidboisineau appears to be washing the whole van with a busted up windshield cleaner, I'm guessing he's doing what he can to stay awake. I've learned to disregard his actions and the pain in my back from sleeping crammed between two seats on the van floor. Everybody else is asleep, Gwomp is snoring, and I figure I have just enough time to dump the trash before "nights like these " plays next. David got me hooked to Lucero , he got half of Richmond hooked. Warped tour was a kind of a mobile punk rock summer camp , most bands were in busses. Avail was in a van with David doing extremely long night drives after loading equipment in and out of a trailer and enforcing the stage when things got a bit testy. To this day I'm not real sure how he did it , though I'm thankful. Later on tour I'm sitting up front with David going zero miles an hour on an interstate that has become a parking lot behind a wreck. The one radio station we can tune in plays a long block of Led Zeppelin songs , it's glorious , I declare to David , "when I get back I'm getting a Led Zeppelin tattoo" then , without a thought he immediately declares , "ok me to" Home from tour weeks later David calls " when you coming to get your Zeppelin tattoo"? You see David is a great tattoo and multi faceted artist. He's one of the few genuine folks that will tell you what he actually thinks and will have your back regardless. The Bonham circles take a few minutes to tattoo on my arm, clean up ,then I'm told it's my turn to do his Zeppelin tattoo(swan song logo). Um I've never tattooed anyone and that didn't matter to him. It was a mess.I suppose the best tattoos sometimes are the shittiest ones. I'm thankful!

Painting studies from this week . I have two 36"/24" northbank trail light investigations on canvas . They will seriously bring some light to your existence . Have a great weekend y'all. Get on the trails , get in the river ..

Days when I'm lost, spinning ,and somewhat forlorn, I can look at what @eleanortrask_ is making and feel purpose , I can feel love, strength . Love , tethered to the aspirations of a family and talented friends that want to tell a story of hope and change. Strength, empowerment by the rejection of a norm, tornados of influences shaped and curated into an indespensible reflection of where our culture sits today. This generation of artists will pull us out of this omnipresent despondency , only if we are willing to experience the art they are making .

I love running North Bank trail in the summer time. Starting it from Maymont and heading downtown you hit pockets of overgrowth cooled by heavy leafed canopies and branches that compress and pull you in. Then , you explode through the shadows into a cacophony of light and color. It's that moment right before the explosion of sun and color that I love so much . This weeks study is up for sale. "Leaving the shadows of North Bank" 20/24 canvas . Get on the trails , get in the river , give thanks to what we have in Richmond , and give thanks to the crews that keep our trails beautiful.

Spring is here ! Let's add some color and light into your house . Let me know if you would like to see any of these in person . Cheers y'all !

The first time I saw the quilts made from Gee's Bend Alabama's quilt makers I was blown away . Eleanor and I stumbled into a show in Charleston SC and were captivated by the complex compositions that are built with basic symbolic shapes and perfect color work necessitated by the scraps of cloth available and the need to stay warm. The @vmfamuseum acquired one and had it shown with others in multiple shows . Mary Lee Bendolph's quilt became the inspiration for this mural. The idea of taking a small blown up section of the quilt , taking the fabric markings off the image and having it painted onto the elevator shaft of a building seemed perfect . The juxtaposition of a seemingly autonomous abstract painting residing on new construction , informed by quilt makers , made me happy. The historical significance of these quilt makers and the significance of the area where this building is located were not lost on me . I am humbled by it . I have so much to learn, we all do. Thanks for the help on this section , @craftstudioservices , @caesarsopenstudio

Another commission I forgot to post . Real excited to have this painting in such a lovely , well thought out home . It's Fun to take three different river perspectives , starting from around the river bowl , and throw them together . 36/48

I just realized I never posted this from a while ago . @rebecca.angus.dds has a fantastic collection of artists I truly admire. When she reached out with an idea for a 4 by 10 foot tall painted commission I jumped at the opportunity. We talked about how the taller trees, as elders, build a musical structure to the chaos of speckled sun and blue sky shooting between the leaves . We talked about the compression and expansion of space through light and our love for the Richmond trail system. Rebecca runs these trails , rain , snow or blazing heat, she's pretty burly! I am thankful and a very lucky person to get these commissions and to be able to do what I love. Oh and also lucky to have @mattlively as a friend , who is always there to bail me out of a transportation problem. I have some really cool commissions close to completion , can't wait to show them to y'all . Thanks for letting me be a part of your collection. Rebecca

I have some paintings looking for new homes , message me if you want to take a look.

2 panels 36/48