Tim ONeill Studios

Mixed Media Oil & Pigment Painting release from Nebraska Artist Tim ONeill

I Miss you Daddy

This mixed media oil & pigment painting portrait is done  from an image that is near and dear to me. The original photograph was shot at the Veteran’s memorial in North Platte, NE several years ago.  The photograph I chose to work with ended up being a spot color. That is, everything was black and white except the main point of interest, the small boy. The silver gelatin print has sold well but I really wanted an oil painting so I decided to create one.  I had seen several stunning images from the famous memorial in DC and was hoping to shoot some stills that I could use for painting.  As the memorial in North Platte sits facing north, that gave me two prime opportunities each day to grab the lighting I was hoping for, in this case cross-lighting so the texture of the sculptures would show nicely. So, sunrise and sunset were my choices which is often the case. I chose to go down at dusk. Noah, my youngest son was 7 at the time and wanted to hang with Dad so we happily schlepped out to the site which is on the south side of I80 in North Platte.

As I was shooting around the site Noah was checking out the relief sculpture carved in brick. It is a beautiful piece and Noah was really taken with it. Like seven year old’s will do he was asking a bunch of questions. Most of them garnered the normal uh-huh, yea and so forth answer that a distracted father would give. Then he asked, “Where are there kids?” …that got my attention. Other questions came up as we talked about soldiers, war and the sacrifice the men, women and families in the military make for us. The question that came up that stuck with me was, “Daddy, are they gone? “  as his hands delicately touched the hard cold brink. I stood back watching and shooting a few frames as I answered his question by telling him that yes these soldiers, these hero’s were gone from this earth and were being watched after by Angels just as the soldiers had watched over us. With a huge sigh he put his head on his arms and crying softly said, “I would miss you Daddy”.  I admit it, I am a softy, I cried.

That became the title and is perfectly fitting. I had not given much thought to what my family might be thinking about me being a combat photographer and going back in during a time of conflict. Noahs words stayed with me.

While the original will stay in our private collection oil reproductions and giclee prints on canvas are available. The oils are 875.00 and the prints on canvas are 375.00 for a gallery wrap. The finished size is 24×30 but larger sizes are also available.

Lakota Pride A Mixed Media Portrait

I love living in the Great Plains region of the United States. One of the hidden benefits of this area is an ample opportunity to paint mixed media portraits. The folks who live here are hardworking, generous and extremely independent. That means a huge variety of individuals who all look and act differently…prime real estate for unique personalities to paint. I am sure all areas may have some of that but people are very approachable here.

Lakota Pride came about from a Pow Wow that was hosted by a local business. Native American Dancers from all over came to compete for prize money and titles. I love to watch dance competition in general and Native American dance is truly fascinating. The regalia that dancers wear is impressive and most times the pieces were made by the members of the dancers family. It also is a huge family gathering and great food, awesome music, children’s giggles and even belly laughs permeate the atmosphere at these events. What more could a visual artist want?

There are many opportunities to capture the essence of beautiful people. As I was watching the young women dance I noticed this particular dancer. What caught my eye was the intensity with which she took to her task. She was very focused and seemed to have a poise that the other dancers lacked. After the dance that I was watching ended, I went to talk with her parents to see if I could paint her. They gave me the okay and we grabbed a few images to use as photo reference.

It was months later that I came back to her reference images. I was working on another mixed media portrait in the Western Genre and came across her again. I took a closer look at her and again I was struck by the poise of this young women. Not only was she an accomplished dancer and seamstress (she made her own regalia) but she was a competitor and an athlete. At the time of her painting she was 15.

I thought that there was much wisdom and pride in the way she looked at people so I named the image Lakota Pride. It is a 24×30 mixed media on canvas.

Original is SOLD, 4,200.00 Private collection in GA.

Children’s Portrait of Noah’s Time Out

Children's Portrait by Nebraska Artist Tim ONeill

This painted portrait of Noah is another mixed media painting created using photo reference.  This particular piece is of my son when we were on a vacation a few years back. Noah is a very active boy and he loves to run, jump, squeal, antagonize his younger sister, or anything else that will bring some small amount of amusement to him. Getting him to sit for a children’s portrait is almost out of the question.

Children and car rides lasting more than a few minutes is generally a “asking for” combination anyway. We had been in the car for several hours when we finally arrived at our destination. Upon stopping Noah burst from the car like carbonated soda after a thorough shaking. Ten minutes of running did not exhaust the pent up energy of Noah but it had already tried the patience of mom and dad. Several verbal warnings had been sanctimoniously ignored so a more severe discipline was needed to capture Noah’s attention. Enter the time out.

Time outs are particularly effective for Noah given his personality and overt energy. As we were trying to get to a restraunt for dinner I choose to carry out our discipline in this alley away from as much distraction as possible.  When he finally began to relax and accept his position he laid his head down in on his knees.  I initially believed this was the signal of truce and submission. After a few moments of watching him I walked to the opposite side I was on and noticed that he had not surrendered at all.  Hidden from my view  was  a small stick that Noah had found. He had already carved some nice dirt drawings and made a game of smacking a piece of crumpled paper that was nearby.

His stubbornness even while sitting with his head in his knees made me laugh. I wanted to remember it so I snapped a quick image before I stold the stick and stood over him for a few minutes of actual time out. Later I decided I wanted to paint it and “Noah’s Time Out” was born. It is not the type of childrens portrait that one would normally set out to commission however it is a rare gem. The story with the strong compositional elements and simplicity of the painting  makes it  a family heirloom. As an artist I am always looking for glimpse of  “personality” with each commission, it is a delight when one comes shinning through with your own kids.

While the original is in our private collection, limited edition giclee prints are available.