The above piece is part of the WISH NYC benefit taking place tonight at Lavo to support the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

I’m very enthusiastic to be part of this worthy cause.

Join in on the fun, and help make dreams come true.

You can make donations here at any time.

EVENT DETAILS

Location: Lavo, 39 East 58th Street, New York, NY 10022

Date: Thursday, November 17th, 2011

Organization: The Make-A-Wish Foundation

Tickets: $150

Event Site: Toast To Wishes

+ - | ink on paper | 18 x 24 | inches | 2008

Click for larger image.

On July 14th the reception for Clipped, a group show featuring the work of Andrew Matsumoto, Michael Serafino, Jeremy Penn, Flip Skip, Ari Lankin and Borbay was held at Le Salon d’ Art.  Orignally scheduled from 7-10pm this party didn’t end until about 1am.  This is what happens when you get a great group of people together and a very large quantity of refreshments that kept being replenished by the many happy guests.  We would like to thank all of our loyal fans and the many new ones that came out for great art, conversation, and NYC style revelry.  We’ll see if the streak continues and anyone gets married from meeting each other at this show.  Sparks were flying, art was consumed, and drinks were flowing.

All of the photos (except the first two and the last) are by the very talented  Tessa Beligue Photography. When you are finished with these take a minute to check out more of Tessa’s photos.  I particularly like her portraits, night shots, unique perspectives, and intense use of color.

Relive the glory, or experience if for the first time…

Ari Lankin, Jason Borbay, and Jeremy Penn pose for a picture a few minutes before the show starts with the always early art/entertainment guru G (in green).  Photo courtesy of according2G.com, check out the link for his really cool blog.  He is everywhere and sees everything.

Penn and Borbay lounging in the plush salon chairs before the doors open.  Photo courtesy of according2G.com

Michael Serafino hanging out by Borbay’s home base.

Matsumoto, Victoria, Lankin, and Serafino pause for a moment.  A camera in a photo, so real, surreal.

The ever alert Serafino, nothing gets by him.  The lovely Ms. Wells and Penn chat it up in the background.

Sanpaku eyes gaze through the crowd as the party starts to pop.  People getting locked and loaded.

Now thats how you carry a cell phone.

Matsumoto!

Lankin and Shiva Krishna in the middle of a formal discussion.

The vibe.

The view from behind the bar.  Borbay’s Marilyn holding strong.  Read more about his painting here.

Reflections, people reflecting, don’t blink, or rather blink twice and move along.

The Deception of William Murphy by Jeremy Penn.

Paparazzi started to get out of hand.  Two photographer’s passing in the night.

Borbay’s work including his newly finished Old Bay painting hang above the mirrors.

James Serafino, a handsome fella, a good bartender, but a much better illustrator.

Full house.

Who could resist that smile? RED

Where’s Courtney?

More vibin’

Lankin and the always interesting Ms. Dubash discuss the art of staying young at heart forever.

Penn, Lankin, and Serafino. One for the ages.

Ed. Nuff said.

Just having fun.

A Penn, Victoria, Lankin sandwich. Hold the cheese.

Gallery/Salon owner Hans Kerremans and his spectacular wife Grace.

V is for Vogue.

Borbay, Jon-O, Ms. Grignon, and Lankin take a moment even Mr. Kodak would be proud of.

Shiva supports Borbay as he gives a rousing impromptu speech to the masses.  Artist Paul Zepeda in the background.

How many speeches end with people high fiving?

Newly hitched husband and wife. Congratulations!

Chessa and Matsumoto.  She is clearly overwhelmed, but rises to the challenge, with how to pose alongside the artist.

Stunning portrait of Christina.  I love Tessa’s portraits.  That’s why we hired her to cover our show.

Fedora, Shades, and Sanpaku.

Vibin’ continued….

A couple of rad fashionistas, Christina and Nigella.

Has anyone seen Edvard Munch?  I demand answers!  L, Z, and C hold a tribunal in the background.

Closing down the shop almost 3 hours after scheduled ending time.  You know how we roll.

The End.

Thank you to everyone for coming out.

Watch the video in high definition.

Everything On The Inside, Out | oil on canvas | 18 x 24 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin

A major body of my work begins without any preconceived image.  They start with the action of painting.

I hesitate to put abstract pieces into words because they are activated by what the viewer brings to the experience of viewing.

With that said I am willing to discuss some of my feelings and thoughts while making this painting.

Non-objective-hallucinatory-relative-flow……. let’s go….

The first image was taken after two sessions with the painting.  I liked the way it looked and almost considered it finished for awhile.

I took another look at the painting and laughed at myself for feeling content with it’s current state and decided to explore further. First thing was to get rid of the red because it contrasted the central form too abruptly.

The red is gone and now its time to expand the central form.  Line, mass, point and color are the main ingredients.  Personal mark making and colors rule supreme.

The forms felt congested so I excavated some unnecessary verbiage.  Now its airy.

Back to the red, this time a little lighter.  I’m letting the exterior permeate the interior.  These two things are essentially the same thing to me.

Now that I’m feeling the inner structure it’s time to let it breath within the frame of the canvas, thank you orange/peach color.

I love my pinks and blues.  Boy meets girl, girl meets boy, we meet world.  Dance into the fire.

At this point i’m starting to construct elements that relate to one another in more simpler terms.  Total cohesion.

Cobalt blue creates new temptations all over the canvas.

What kind of space is this?

Mind, body, eye, palette, flight

Creation in motion by destruction. Invisible mirror.

Potentially kinetic-kinetically potential.

Everything On The Inside, Out | oil on canvas | 18 x 24 inches | 2011 | Ari Lankin

A lot of my work is about growth and exploration.  The nature of painting.

Paintings that allow us to live in the space.

I was born and raised in the same town where my parents still live.  I have a strong feeling of a home base, and at the same time have a lust for exploring the new.

Viewing this work allows me to break through to realms of fresh thought and at the same time keeps an air of familiarity.  Experience and memory.

Release, flow, decay, structure, grow, color, life force….

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New York, NY - June 23, 2011 – The group exhibition: CLIPPED — “Appropriated Material From The Streets of New York,” will take place during July at Le Salon d’ Art Gallery. Running the entire month of July, this group exhibition will showcase six New York artists, including: Andrew Matsumoto, Michael Serafino, Jeremy Penn, Flip Skip, Ari Lankin and Borbay.

“CLIPPED” refers to the link these artists share using printed paper as their most common found material.  These works embody and perpetuate our fractured reality by literally fracturing it even further. Materials, words, and images are clipped from their original context and reborn in new situations. The end result enables the viewer to slip into an infinite realm of the past, the present, and the future.

Artist Reception: July 14th, 2011, 7 – 10 PM

Show Duration: July 1 – July 31, 2011

Location: Le Salon d’ Art | 90 Stanton Street | Manhattan

More About the Show and Preview Images:

JEREMY PENN

MICHAEL SERAFINO

ANDREW MATSUMOTO

ARI LANKIN

FLIP SKIP

BORBAY

Press Inquires

Please direct all press inquiries to Borbay — 646.469.6496

A steel and glass pyramid stands tall in Nevada. A beam of light shoots out from its apex.  For our last painting we decided on the most recognizable hotel on the strip.  Our home base for 9 nights, the Luxor Hotel and Casino.  Old is new, and new is old, the space time continuum quivers.

Per my modus operandi, I zoned out listening to the same album on repeat.  I listened to Mac Miller’s K.I.D.S. on repeat for the first 7 hours of this painting.  You can download K.I.D.S. here for free. Mac Miller is a very talented 19-year-old rapper from Pittsburgh.

Let me take you through the development…

After deciding on a head-on composition I dove in with yellow.

Feeling out where to place the pyramid… a little more up and to the left, a little more, perfect.  Framing the main subject with the obelisk on the right edge of the canvas.  Now there are essentially two edges on the right side.

I decided to lay down gold for the sky and silver for the pyramid.  Here comes magenta to create some depth in the image.

More color and more depth.  It’s time to add the details now that the general composition is solidified. I put down a dark color for the pyramid, but decided to revert back to the silver.

An action shot with my subject in the background.  Headphone in the right ear.

Starting to carve out the form of the sphinx by adding shadows and blue on the headdress.

Jerry Shawback painting hard in the trenches of a vacant hotel lot across the street from the Luxor.

Another action shot now turned directly towards The Luxor.

It was hot out there and apparently my pockets got a little steamy.  I decided to put in the trees and was instantly happy with this executive decision. Time to darken the pyramid for real this time.

A quick visit to the other end of the block to say what’s up to Borbay.  Check out his Luxor painting.

Dramatic silhoutte photo opportunity on the way back to my easel.

Is that beam of light from the top of the pyramid visible from space? Apparently. Let me note for the record, even with this scientific miracle we had no wi-fi access in our room.

Everything is solidifying quite nicely.  A big jump at this time with: highlights and shadows on the trees,  reflections on the pyramid, the monorail track, and details on the sphinx.

The blue sky brings out the sphinx’s eyes, and here comes the monorail in the lower left.

Old Is New and New Is Old, The Luxor | 20 x 20 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011

Fin.

View my other Las Vegas paintings:

Welcome To Las Vegas Sign

Welcome to Las Vegas | 24 x 24 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

The Sahara Hotel & Casino

End Of An Era, The Sahara | 20 x 20 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

El Cortez Hotel & Casino

El Cortez Hotel, 600 Fremont St | 24 x 24 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

Broadway Bare: 2 Hot, Live Painting

Bares Cares, acrylic and ribbon on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, 2011.

Check out this great time lapse video of Las Vegas that includes us painting, by Allan Gange.

Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas from Allan Gange on Vimeo.

I love helping a worthwhile cause and I love painting in front of an audience.  On the night of the highly anticipated Broadway Bares: Las Vegas 2 Hot performance at Planet Hollywood, Borbay and I painted live in front of 1,000 people.

Here’s how we got involved…

I met Sheila at the sign back on day one. She and her friend Veronica came over to see what I was working on and then requested a painted tattoo.    She was friendly so I gladly offered my skills.  While I was finishing her  “I <3 NV” tattoo Sheila invited us to Broadway Bares.  A one night all-star charity event she was choreographing and performing in.  Very cool.  Even better, I offered our painting services. The next day we received a call from organizer and performer Paula Caselton. She saw our work online and wanted  us to join the show.

24 hours after the call it we started with a viewing of Peepshow at the CHI Showroom after a long day of painting in front of the El Cortez Hotel.  A lot of classy T & A (it will change your life) and crazy dancing ignited a new Vegas inspiration not found on the streets.  After midnight in the same theater as Peepshow we sipped a double and started slinging paint. We hovered in the dual realm of painter and live performer.  Holly Madison introduced us halfway through the 75 minutes to cheers from the crowd. The paintings were auctioned off after the show for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.  Great show, great cause, great times, and great people.  Thank you Jerry Mitchell.

Here is how it all went down…

Chance(?) encounter with Sheila at the Welcome to Las Vegas Sign.  Don’t think so.

Setting up before the show.  Buddha Peep hovers under the light. Double in hand. Gin and soda.

This shot is a classic.  Borbay locked and loaded, finger on the trigger.

We both started with key hole imagery.  It was the most prominant set on the stage.  15 shows in less than an hour and a half = dancing-sexy-madness.

The acts change and the canvas comes alive with moments of each show.

Sheila in her second performance of the night!

Look, step back, clean brush, dip, look, dive in.

The shows over so that means the painting is over.  Final touch of the red ribbon and my John Hancock.

Everything about this show was hot.  Las Vegas is haht, haht fire.

Veronica and Sheila.

Post show highness.

Take 2.

Our paintings meet for the first time moments before the auction.  We were set up on opposite sides of the theater.

Bares Cares, acrylic and ribbon on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, 2011.

Some of my favorite acts during the show:  Edie the sassy-classy host, high heels, Sheila’s badass bar stool routine, high heels, the amazing man machine duo, heels, a shoutout to the 2 Hot crew, and is that a Peep i see tattooed on her ass? Nahhhh playboy, that’s just a bunny.

acrylic on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, 2011.

Borbay’s Broadway Bares: 2 Hot Las Vegas painting.

View my other Las Vegas paintings:

Welcome To Las Vegas Sign

Welcome to Las Vegas, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

The Sahara Hotel & Casino

End Of An Era, The Sahara | 20 x 20 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

El Cortez Hotel & Casino

El Cortez Hotel, 600 Fremont St, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

Check out this great time lapse video of Las Vegas that includes us painting, by Allan Gange.

The locals said it was beautiful, but warned us not to go a block past the uncovered part because it gets kind of sketchy.  After walking up and down the street three times we decided on a view focused on the legendary El Cortez Hotel & Casino.  It is precariously located two blocks passed the covered portion right on the edge of town.   A peaceful Saturday morning on the streets, but this tranquility did not last for long.

We set up our easels across the street from the El Cortez.  The security crew came out to ask us the normal questions.  Their presence was appreciated on this one.  We quickly saw why locals warned us.  After eleven o’clock the characters began to emerge from the shadows.  Unpredictability hung in the air.   While I painted I had several impromptu Las Vegas history lessons involving The El Cortez.  While i’m sure they weren’t as thorough and accurate as wikipedia, they were a lot more entertaining and peppered with personal accounts.

To set the scene on day 1:  It was hot and dry.  We had a cooler of ice.  A street festival was starting a block away featuring a concert with the Kottonmouth Kings and Everlast.  The line to get into the stage area took place behind us for about 45 minutes during the middle of the day.  We watched many malt liquor drinks infused with caffeine get consumed.  A general festive energy was in the air.  The passersby were some of the most colorful people I have ever met.  From our position the music was three hours of noise.

This is the birth of the El Cortez Hotel, 600 Fremont Street painting…

While checking my phone in the morning before leaving for Fremont I came across this photo of Prince from his concert the night before in Los Angeles.  It reminded me of my studio in NYC where I have the Purple Rain record hanging on the wall.

On location and laying a primary red to anchor the composition towards the bottom of the canvas.

Realizing just how complicated the composition is I decide to lay down a quick proportional sketch.  The El Cortez view beat out the Golden Nugget and a view with a giant neon martini glass.

Time to rock and roll with some more primary colors.

Filling up the sky and adding a dash of one of my favorite colors, pink.

I’m liking the way the Silver Slipper looms overhead in the composition, balanced by a more dainty bikini clad woman neon sign on the left side.

An action shot of me in front of Mamita’s.  I’m in the zone listening to a live stream of a Flyers playoff game.  I started yelling and jumping around during big moments.  I managed to startle some of the regular loiterers.  I explained to them that everything was cool and I was just listening to a playoff game.  Who knew my second Vegas initiation would be inspired by the Flyers.

Adding some of the features of the ranch-themed facade and starting to add some of the letters on the marquee.

Adding the pole on the left side.  By this time, we had spent most of the day getting to know the locals who seemed to love art and artist’s.  Shout out to all the lovers on Fremont Street.

More signage as I cover the entire canvas.  The painting is starting to have a life of its own now.  A paintings life source helps guide me to know when a painting is finished.

Towards the end of the day a security guard was surprised that we were still out there.  We asked “Why, because of the heat?” he replied, “No, because the locals haven’t taken your stuff.”

A parting shot with the lights on.  What a crazy day on location!

Evening festivities were highlighted by Borbay winning big on the slots.

A few minutes later the machine is still counting up his winnings.

Everyone passed out, but I needed a haircut.  So after a slice of pizza I went to work.

To set the scene on day 2:  It was hot and dry.  We had a cooler of ice.  It’s Easter Sunday and people were dressed to impress.  Mamita’s decided it would be a good idea to play the same 5 Santana songs from Supernatural on repeat for 6 hours.  This is what I imagine waterboarding to be like.  The active bike police were eager to see our paintings progress.  No crazy concert goers, but a lot of repeat visitors who were eager to be heard.  I will never forget the woman in the pink nightgown who came up close to the canvas and spoke in tongue.

On day two I started with the shoe.  When the lights turn on at night the shoe rotates.  Notice in the next picture the shoe has been redone in its current position.  An unforeseen difficulty of painting on location in a foreign place.

Working on the shadows of the facade and adding the palms to the second tree.

Painting action shot.  I had an extra sock and a pair of underwear I was using as a rag tied around my legs.  Two different girls stopped to compliment me on my outfit.  First girl approximately 18 years old, “Nice hat, nice glasses, nice look!…. you must be a real artist.”  Second girl approximately 25, “Man, you doing it, you rocking that gear. It’s like you don’t care what you look like, but you don’t care what people think, that’s hot!”

Burn shot, hence the leg gear.

Borbay in the zone blocking out the letters of his painting.

Lightening up the front of the building, getting that sandy color.  An elderly gentleman who was immaculately dressed in clothes from the 70′s walked by and said, “those paintings are good, and I should know, I’m a millionaire.”  So that’s the secret to being a good art critic.

There were some big fluffy clouds that I couldn’t pass up including as they drifted by.

Everything is coming into focus.  One stopped to tell me she was the last person to win a $50,000 slot jackpot at the Stardust.  She looked like she hadn’t left a casino since that night.

Some work on the signs adds that Las Vegas sparkle.

It was too windy to add the lightbulbs outside, so I snapped this pic as a visual reference.

El Cortez Hotel, 600 Fremont St, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

And that wraps up one of the most memorable location paintings to date.  Now that I survived I can say it was a great experience hanging out on the streets of uncovered Fremont.  If you go there, make sure you walk past the covered portion and check out The El Cortez Hotel.  Great memories.  To relive the magic cross the street towards Mamita’s, buy yourself a cold one, and just hang out on the street for about twenty hours.

Below is Borbay’s eye catching El Cortez painting, follow this link for the full recap.

The El Cortez Hotel, Fremont Street, Las Vegas, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic and collage on canvas, 2011.

View my other Las Vegas paintings: 

Welcome To Las Vegas Sign

Welcome to Las Vegas, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

The Sahara Hotel & Casino

End Of An Era, The Sahara | 20 x 20 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

Broadway Bare: 2 Hot, Live Painting

Bares Cares, acrylic and ribbon on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, 2011.

After 58 years the Las Vegas icon took its final bets today.

Two weeks ago we decided to paint The Sahara before it shut down.

Let’s celebrate with a recap…

Another dry sunny day in the desert.  Great weather for never having to urinate while painting on location.  It was particularly hot this morning.  We set up on the edge of the property with a fence to our back supplying some welcomed shade.

I sit down for a moment to put on my leg protection.

We set up far away from casino operations.  A security guard came out to see what we were doing and went on his way.

I decide on a bold composition that includes The Stratosphere.  I block in the main forms with yellow.  The proportions are off so I add some dark lines to fix the yellow.

Focusing on The Stratosphere, giving it volume.  I add some green to the sky to shake things up.  Perhaps inspired by the sounds of the rattling roller coaster and screaming riders.

Time to add the letters.  The font is pretty cool.  I like how they use the “S” as handles for the doors.

A few hours in to our new painting, the security guards changed shifts.  The new crew forced us to leave the property.  This is a parting shot of the first vantage point.

A cool view from inside the canopy as we went inside to try to talk to someone that could help us stay in the original location.  Of course the referred person was no where to be found.  Time to give up on the first location.

Once home to TV legend Dean Martin, now their claim to fame is a 6lb burrito.”It’s child size, literally.”  In 2009 the burrito had 275 wins and 4 losses.  I decided not to give it a shot.

Getting going in the new location across the street.  The wind starts to pick up.  At times I find myself holding the canvas securely while I paint.  For a few minutes I walk behind me to see what Borbay is doing.  As we are looking at his canvas I jokingly say “The wind is going to blow our easels over any second.”  Less than a minute later a big gust comes and knocks both our easels over.  Our other painting partner Jerry Shawback ends up with a painting covered in sand.

I have a breakthrough moment in the painting and decide to include aspects of both vantage points.

A few touches of detail in the highlights and shadows to wrap it up.  That’s Jerry on the left.

End Of An Era, The Sahara | 20 x 20 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

The imagery conjures up memories of driving down the strip looking up at the casinos.   The bold colors and improvised juxtaposition give the painting a dream like quality.  The Sahara may not stand much longer, but it will remain a pillar of Las Vegas history.

This is truly the end of an era.  The Sahara is gone, but not forgotten.

Borbay’s Sahara painting and recap:

See You, Sahara, Las Vegas | 20″X20″ | 2011 | Available | Acrylic and Collage on Canvas

View other paintings from the Las Vegas trip:

Welcome To Las Vegas Sign

Welcome to Las Vegas, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

El Cortez Hotel & Casino

El Cortez Hotel, 600 Fremont St, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

Broadway Bares: 2 Hot, Las Vegas Live Painting

Bares Cares, acrylic and ribbon on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, 2011.

Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas from Allan Gange on Vimeo.

You can view this video in crisp HD on the Vimeo Web Site.

It is my great pleasure to feature this great time lapse video of the Las Vegas strip by Allan Gange.  The film features beautiful day and night shots all around Las Vegas.  Allan filmed Borbay and I during our second day of painting The Welcome To Las Vegas Sign.

Here is how Allan describes the movie:

Day scenes, night scenes, time lapse and people studies. Filmed during my last trip to Las Vegas April 2011. Thanks to Ari Lankin (arilankin.com) and Borbay (borbay.com) who let me film them working. Music is Nightmare by Artie Shaw. I didn’t have a nightmare but thought the music suited the night scenes especially and the transition from day to night.

A quick anecdote about the filming:

Allan introduced himself, asked us if he could film, and then set up his camera.  While he was filming me I could hear someone breathing behind me.  I took a half step back and there was a giant camera in my face.  I turned and said to the guy “Hey, how are you doing? You could at least say hello.”  I wasn’t rude, but I wasn’t overly friendly.  I’ve had people photographing and videotaping me all day, but this guy was up in my space.  I felt his gut with my elbow, and he didnt even say hello.    I instantly returned to painting without giving him much thought.  He kept filming for a few more minutes over my shoulder.  When he left Borbay says to me,  ”You’re overly friendly to every person except for the camera guy working for NBC.”  Oops.

Allan has other videos posted on his Vimeo account, and I can’t wait to see more, they keep getting better.

Great job Allan, this video is fire!

View Borbay’s finished painting.

Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, The Sign Painting | 24″X24″ | 2011 | Acrylic and Collage on Canvas |

View Lankin’s finished painting.

Welcome to Las Vegas, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

We started our mission to paint Vegas with one definite painting, the Welcome to Las Vegas Sign. We encountered menacing painting conditions and a circus of visitors.  Let me take you there…

The dry heat, blazing sun, and multidirectional dust filled wind was fierce, so I started with a quick compositional sketch.

Time to dive in with the paint.  These were the quickest drying paint conditions I’ve ever experienced.  Sometimes the paint would dry on the brush before I could put it on the canvas.

First major compositional decision to move the sign higher.

Our first Elvis visit.  Borbay’s canvas is on the right.

Starting to really get rolling with most of the canvas touched.

This woman came to the sign to take a picture with her baby bump.  I took a quick break to show my support.

Now that the composition is mapped out its time to start adding the details.

Time to add some palm trees, which always reminds me of this painting.  At this point I’m starting to feel the painting really come alive.

Action shot of a happy Borbay showing off his dirty fingers.  Stay tuned for his finished painting.

I loved the purple mountains in the background so I decided to feature them on the right side of the composition instead of a bunch of mismatched buildings.  It was at this point that I realized this painting would incorporate my interest in the relationship of man, nature and technology.  I’ll explain more at the end.

I started to add shadows in the last image, but painted over them when I decided to not capture the scene at that time of the day.  And thats a wrap for our first day painting in the desert.

Before going to sleep I realized I lost paint that fell out of my easel on the walk home to the hotel.  I knew I lost at least four tubes of paint.  I decided it was worth  a solo walk to look for the paint.  Here are two night shots I took of the sign.  On my night mission I found one tube.  The next morning on our way to the sign Borbay found another tube.  2 of 4 tubes recovered, Hooker’s Green and Violet.

The beginning of day two started with the text in the sign and deciding to get rid of Mandalay Bay in the middle of the background.

Taking a moment to step back and look at my painting from a distance.  I also wanted show you guys another Elvis.

Working on the grass, the path, and the road.  I selected a composition that invites the viewer into the landscape.  I talk more about this at the end.

Time to lock in the time of the day and add shadows again.

A picture of Borbay taking a quick break on the astroturf.  See my hat to his left?  I had just gotten up from laying down myself.  It felt so good.  See the canvas in the lower right hand side?  That is of our local painter friend Jerry Shawback.  We met  Jerry on our first day when he came by to see what was going on and ask if he could join us.  We met up with him early morning on day two.  He turned out to be a great guy and painted with us for the rest of our trip.

It took little time for us to enmesh ourselves with the tourists and local people that frequent this must-see destination. Colorful 4/20 weddings, a preggers chick with “Vegas Baby” painted to match the sign on her belly, a consortium of Elvis’ and conversations with a dope photographer by the name of Gilbert fueled us as we painted.  Gilbert showed up towards the end of our second day of painting.  He came by to tell me he found paint we left yesterday and stashed it by the bus stop.  Ten minutes later he returned with my other two missing tubes.  4 of 4 recovered.  Thanks G-man!

I met Sheila and Veronica when Sheila asked me to paint her a tattoo.  I was in the zone, but at least she didn’t ask me if I would do a caricature.  It turns out Sheila and Veronica are very cool.  They will rejoin us later in the week in a much sexier setting, stay tuned for the Broadway Bares painting update.

Sheila and Veronica posing under the sign after the tattoo.

Welcome to Las Vegas, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

And here is the finished painting.

The iconic sign from 1959 signifies you are entering this man made oasis in the middle of the desert.  An oasis that continues to grow with each resort trumping the next.  As I painted the sign I realized how beautiful the natural surroundings were.  I decided to eliminate all of the resorts in the composition.  A vintage throwback image of Vegas.  There are three ways of entering the image. The grass on the left is a soft resting spot, the dirt in the middle weaves back and forth, and the hard cement on the right zips right into the background.  We may be getting “there” faster, but what are we missing along the way? Which path are you on?  Which path is American society on?

Painting on location is a beautiful experience.  It’s a race against time as the light is continually changing. Being anchored in one spot all day, often days, allows you to learn things about a foreign location that you don’t even know about the street you live on.  The location becomes a living entity.  One thing for sure is this location was alive in full Vegas glory.

Here is Borbay’s finished painting.  Learn more about his painting and his process by visiting his blog.

View my other Las Vegas paintings:

The Sahara Hotel & Casino

End Of An Era, The Sahara | 20 x 20 inches | acrylic on canvas | 2011.

El Cortez Hotel & Casino

El Cortez Hotel, 600 Fremont St, 24 x 24 inches, acrylic on canvas, 2011.

Broadway Bares: 2 Hot, Las Vegas Live Painting

Bares Cares, acrylic and ribbon on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, 2011.

Check out this great time lapse video of Las Vegas that includes us painting, by Allan Gange.