Just Like That

Most of my paintings are inspired by visitors in my studio, and this one is an amalgamation of a whole bunch of people I’ve encountered. A lot of times I’ll ask somebody if this is their first time visiting my studio and they’ll say “Oh, it’s my first time in L.A.!” and then then their friend will say “I brought them here!” And we all get really excited because somebody’s being helpful and somebody’s getting a grand tour and I’m all happy because they came to see me. In this painting I see an exuberant person teaching a not-as-confident person how to dance… “just like that!” Coming to L.A. for the first time is a little bit like a dance, and it’s good to have a dance partner who already knows the moves. The title of this piece is a line from a song called “Harder than You Think”, by Public Enemy. You can find the song on youtube. They’re not from L.A., but to me the flavor of the song is VERY L.A. Haha, if you know them, I made a little pun there, sort of. 🙂

This painting is still available in my studio