Wandering

Here's a newer piece of a guy seeming to not have a care in the world as he wanders around in the swamp. This piece is loosely based on an old friend and some of my own treks into a nearby marsh. This is a water based paint on paper by Michael Quirk dated 2018.

It's been a while since I posted here. This is a recent sketch done on a magazine cover dated October 2015. Does anyone know which magazine? As always, click on the image to enlarge.

Marketing and Promotion V

Yet another screwed up promotional piece from our marketing people. Trying to get a foothold somewhere in the Middle East, we found a cheap rent not far from the British Embassy in downtown Tehran. Confused and angered by our new saying, "The Fastest Growing Art Museum in Town" a group of students attacked our building and looted the place. They even hung some of our paintings upside down. We may have to relocate to Tripoli.

Quirk Museum sticker promo

One of our Quirk Museum bumper stickers was spotted somewhere in NYC. We have no idea how this ended up there but want to thank one of our fans for bringing it to our attention. Remember people, always ask permission before applying your stickers.

Marketing and Promotion II

Here's a more recent example from our marketing people using signage in a crowded area. Is that Egypt? There are a few problems here. The font and font color are all wrong and the guy is holding the sign backwards. At least the spelling was correct.

Marketing and Promotion

As with many museums and galleries the Quirk Museum has worked to promote our brand through various advertising and marketing campaigns. We have worked with a few different agencies over the years and some of the promotions have been pretty successful. Some have not worked out so well.

Here is an example of one of our early attempts at building the brand in a cost effective way.

More Booze Bottles

Here's another still life painting of some little booze bottles that I collected along the shores of the Housatonic River. These were lined up on a window ledge catching the late afternoon sun.

For more trashy art, visit my other blog: http://quirktrash.blogspot.com/

Still Life with Sunflowers

Time to get back to some painting. This is a painting of some dying sunflowers sitting in my grandparents old honey jar. I started it about 5 years ago but it remained unfinished. I decided to revisit the painting and lighten the background which was a big improvement. A few more touch ups and my signature and it will be done. Click image to enlarge.

New Color Sketch - Some Trees in Orange

I thought I should put a little bit of color in with the other drawings. This marker and color pencil sketch of trees is loosely based on a scene I photographed near a farm in Orange. The mountains and colors are pure fantasy. Click for a larger view.

Charles Burchfield watercolors at DC Moore Gallery

I went down to the city to see the Charles Burchfield watercolors at the DC Moore Gallery on 5th Avenue. I've admired his work for years, but never saw any in person. Amazing work, larger than expected with the artists' hand seen in the pencil and charcoal lines. The gallery was a little hard to find, but turned out to be a nice friendly place to visit. From there, I headed downtown to the Morgan Library and Museum for the 'New at the Morgan: Acquisitions Since 2004' show. Another place I've been trying to get to in NYC. An excellent show in a really nice venue - no photography though. The library itself is an awesome piece of work - thanks Mr Morgan. Check out this review from the NY Times.

Painting of Tulips

I painted this about a month or two ago. Mother's Day flowers. This was one of the first paintings I did, using my new and expensive tube of cadmium red. As any painter will tell you, there's nothing like high quality pigment.

Another Still Life at the Museum

Did another small still life of one of my existing paintings. The original, titled Apples and Oranges, is 9 x 12 inches and the miniature is 2.5 x 3.5 inches. Another painting -a-day type project for me. Painting this small is a great exercise and allows me to look at the original with a new perspective. I should probably be going in the opposite direction by working small first and then larger. When I paint about 20 or 30 of them, I'll have a "Major Mini" art exhibition at the Quirk Museum.

First Post!

Here we go - first post for The Quirk Museum.

In the closing days of 2007, I finally figured that I might actually have the time to keep a blog going and hopefully have something worthwhile to say. We'll see about that.

The goal of this blog is to give people a little insight into the creative process and to promote the Quirk Museum web site. The goal of the museum is to launch my sputtering career as an artist into the stratosphere, so that I can quit my day job and have more time for art, music, photography, movies, etc...