Holy Shit. It's 2004 already? I guess I should get off my ass, and update this page, huh?
A lot has happened, and a lot has changed, in the last few years since I did anything to this page.

Give me a break, ok?! I have a life :)

Let my story begin.......

Like so many other modellers, I began building kits as a kid. My first few kits were some rather pathetic looking hot-rods. I was a kid....what did I know about technique?! I just grabbed a tube of Testor's glue, some Testor's paint and a paintbrush, and went nuts. If you would have asked me at the time what an airbrush was, I would have just stared at you with that childhood look of innocence that basically said, 'Huh?' Eventually, I got sick of cars, and switched to planes, with pretty much the same result. Kits that were built rather well, save for the odd blob of dried glue here and there, but were pretty lame as far as the paint job went. I was happy with them though, and like I said, I was just a dumb-assed kid who didn't know any better.

Then high school came along, then college. I didn't touch a single kit over those eight years! I was way too busy doing what every eager high school and college student loves to do. Drinking, partying, getting laid, toking. You get the idea. I actually think I spent more time partying in the "Arnie" than I did in class most weeks :) Hey, I had to follow in my big bro's footsteps ;)

Btw, a big shout-out to Mr. Burroughs. Thanks for not narking on me(read: us!) when I(read: we!) was(read: were!) high in your class! :) Got to face it, man. You were B-O-R-I-N-G. Being high was the ONLY way we could cope! Remember Pete? Steve? James? Gail? Cathy? Lisa? I think you get the picture. :) I am not even bother geting into into Mr. Devlin. Great teacher, but did you ever see 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off?' He puts that teacher to shame.

Oh yeah. Last I heard, the aforementioned Mr. Burroughs was the dean of my old alma-matta. Way to go Dave! :)

Yes, I admit freely. I did alot of drugs in college, and ALOT of drinking. I survived, so who cares.

Anyways, I digress.

When I finally decided to get back into modeling after a failed attempt to pursue a career in what I earned a college degree for, I walked into the local hobby shop one day with all intentions of buying a plane kit. For some unknown reason, I went to the magazine rack, and picked up Shep Paine's 'How to Build Dioramas.' I had never built an armor kit before, but was instantly hooked! Why? Who knows. Anyways, that book became my modeling 'bible.' My first few attempts at armor building were less than successful, but I kept plugging away at it until I thought I was pretty good. I made a few dioramas that turned out pretty decent, then, for some reason I still don't know to this day, I stopped building models altogether. Don't know why for sure, but maybe a combination of work, relationships with some pretty psycho women, and just basically life in general I guess.

Bored yet?!

Fast-forward to 1993. Injured my back badly at work, and found myself off on compensation for five months. Also found myself pretty bored during the day too. All my friends, and my crazy girlfriend at the time, all worked during the day. So, aside from two hours of therapy every morning, I found myself with alot of time to do alot of nothing. So, guess what I did? You guessed it! I dug-out all of my modeling stuff, and gave it another shot. This time, however, I had a little ammunition in my arsenal. I purchased Shep's other two books, 'Building and Painting Scale Figures,' and 'Modeling Tanks and Military Vehicles,' and 'How to Paint Realistic Military Figures' by Lynn Kessler and Don Winar. I also picked-up as many of Verlinden's magazines and How to's that I could find. Military Modeling and Fine Scale Modeler also came in pretty handy.

One other thing I did, and some of you may think I was nuts, but I took all my old dioramas and tanks, and pretty much threw them out. With all the new-found information I had, I realized that everything I had built up to that point pretty much sucked! I wanted to start from the beginning again, and after some time, the first 'new' kit I built...a Tiger I...turned out a hell of alot better than anything I had built before. I started to realize that I had to take what I learned from the books and magazines, and use it only as a guide. I had to develop my own styles, techniques, my own personal way of building a model or painting a figure. You cannot go out and blatantly copy someone else's style. It won't work. Every single person who builds models, paints figures, whatever, has his/her own little secrets, no matter how subtle, or outright noticeable, they are. And, that is something that you can never copy. I guess it can be said that there are as many ways to build a model, or paint a figure, as there are people doing it.

Entered my first show in 1995, and won first with one of my dioramas. Pretty amazing achievement, considering I never thought I would be good enough to win anything. I also painted my first large-scale figure that year, and sure, it didn't turn out that great, but I kept getting better with each figure I did. I refined my style, learned new techniques which I played around with to make my own, and just basically tried to do the best damn job I could do. Over the last several years, I think I have come a long way. I look at the last figure I painted, and compare it to the first, and it looks like they were painted by two different people. Goes to show ya....the more you do, the better you get!

Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to have become good friends with some of the finest figure painters and sculptors in the world: Mike Hall, Jon Harbuck, Mike Stelzel, Bob Langenberg, Jon Cheeseman, Alan Ball, and his beautiful and VERY talented wife Marion Ebensberger, Bob Sarnowski, Pat Vess, Pete Culos, John Borneo, Francesca DiSimone, Russ Nail, John Long, Dave Hoffman, Roger Claeps, Kreston Peckham, Lou Masses, Randy Myers, Steve Lennon, Antony McMullen, Vince Wai, Pete Hererra, and so many others. Thru these guys, not only have great friendships grown, but so have my painting skills. They have put up with my stupid questions, and my often smart-assed opinions for so long I thought they would have been sick of me by now! But, they have endured! :--) I have learned a great deal from these guys and gals. With their help and advice, I have become the painter I am today. And, the painter I will be tomorrow.

Advice time...and like I am one to give advice!! Here it is anyways. For anyone out there..like anyone is actually going to visit this site!..who is starting out as a figure painter, model builder, whatever, take your time, and practice. Don't get all pissed off that your first few attempts don't turn out the way you want them to. The more you practice, the better you get. Even the best figure painters in the world had to start somewhere once. It doesn't matter how great of a figure painter, or model builder you are today, you were a rookie once too! Do you honestly think that the very first figure a Shep Paine, a Raul Garcia LaTorre, a Doug Cohen, or a Bill Horan, ever painted was a masterpiece? I doubt it. Look at them now. They are some of the finest figure painters/sculptors in the world today.

Buy the modeling magazines, go to shows ask questions, get to know people. Get to know the painters whose work you have seen in magazines, on the 'net, or wherever. Get on the 'net, and find websites that are dedicated to figure painting. If they are available in your area, take a modeling class, or join a club.

Take what you learn, and make it work for you. Learn from the best, but don't copy from them. It won't work. Try and develop your own style, your own techniques. Paint the way you feel most comfortable. Remember, there is no absolute carved-in-stone one way to paint anything. You are the artist, it's your figure, and as long as you are happy with the results, that's all that matters as far as I am concerned. Spend those extra few dollars and buy the best quality brushes, paints, whatever, that you can find. It might add up, but it is worth it in the long-run. Like I said, take your time, and practice. I have been painting for a long time, and although I am not that bad of a figure painter, I still have a very long way to go.

The most important thing to remember? Just have fun! Don't take this shit too seriously. It's just a hobby.

Okay, you can wake up now. I'm done. :--)