I’m still grinding out new pieces of art in the after-hours, and I’ve been focusing on “My Favorite Tequilas” for some time now. I’m trying to get to a dozen or more to have a good selection for those who have the same affinity that I do for the bottles and the stories many of them tell. (Not to mention the wonderful juice that lives inside!) My goal is to improve my technique with every painting, and the details and working with acrylics are an obsession for me. I still love painting glass, and reflections.

The Cohiba cigar in my latest piece “1942” was great fun to paint, and the smoke was a first time adventure. This is the first painting I’ve done in a LONG while that did not come from a staged still-life photo, but rather from a group of about five or six different photos: one of the bottle and the glass, one of the Dos Equis bottle, one of the cigar and ashtray, and several of cigar ashes and smoke that I used as reference. Of course I altered all of the objects to fit what I had in my head to paint, and it came out pretty much as I had pictured it in my mind.

My cousin Linda gave me the inspiration of a totally black background and foreground, which gives 1942 a dark but dramatic look, that this tequila deserves. And the 24″ x 36″ size makes everything “larger than life.” I hope you enjoy it as much as I did painting it.

Check out my Acrylic Gallery to see more samples of my work. I welcome commission work, so if there is anything you’d like me to paint for you, let me know. Most pieces take 4-6 weeks to complete.

My oldest son told me he thought I was good at painting shiny things. I started working on painting glass, liquid, and the amazing labels on tequila bottles, and voilà, the series “My Favorite Tequilas” was born!

Tequila bottles are art in themselves. Some of the labels relate the company’s history. The lettering and details can get intricate and can be a challenge to paint. That’s when I “get lost” in the work. Glass can be difficult to make “believable” and reflections of light and objects around it are fun to create. Acrylic is a great medium for that.

Check out my Acrylic Gallery to see more samples of my work. I welcome commission work, so if there is anything you’d like me to paint for you, let me know. Most pieces take 4-6 weeks to complete, so if you are thinking about something for the holidays, keep that in mind.