Portraiture Blog
Control
People first approaching the arts often assume that total freedom is achieved through the abandonment of structure or giving into complete chaos. Seasoned artists know that true freedom is the result of structured chaos. On the other hand, the idea that we can...
Enlightenment
In every story there are pieces of the problem that cry out for resolution. There is often confusion and pain. We wish things were not what they seemed to us to be. But present also in every problem, are pieces of the solution which will eventually lead to...
Dorothy Lee Barnett Courtroom sketch
Dorothy Lee Barnett Arraignment Aside from the historical significance of this notorious, unsolved mystery finally being resolved, another piece of Charleston history was made on Monday, September 29, 2014. So far as I know, I was the first court sketch artist to...
Judgment vs Discernment
Distinguishing between Judgment vs discernment is the first step in the creative process. Observational drawing is not about pleasing myself; it is about pleasing God. rm I've written extensively about how ego is the main saboteur in our creative process. That's why...
Shapes – A Lesson in Drawing
The Best Realists Deal with Shapes as Abstractions. In over 30 years of teaching I have noticed the people who are interested in drawing and painting realistically, make the worst realists. Why? Because they are so ardent in their desire to recreate the thing they...
Quench Project is Moving Forward
Again, a huge thank you to those of you who contributed to The Quench Project. Here's our video thank you. The project is getting bigger all the time. The big news, I am going to Haiti from November 3-12! While there, I am going to be working with a school in Port...
The Quench Project Gets Funding
Renown Charleston artist, Robert Maniscalco, has received funding to create an exhibition of paintings, expressing hope and renewal from a Vision Trip to Haiti, in partnership with Water Missions International. The first phase of The Quench Project is now complete....
Down to the Wire Pool Party
The ideas and inspiration are coming to me from everywhere, even before I have made my mission trip to Haiti. Thanks again to all who have contributed! All the support is very heartwarming. We are over 2/3 to our goal with 5 days left. We are down to the wire; if we...
We have moved passed the half way point with only 13 days to go!
We are at 31 backers, and have $1,810 in pledges, more than half our goal for our Kickstarter Campaign. But we only have 13 days left. That means we have to work quickly if we want to see The Quench Project succeed. Remember if we don't make our goal of $3,500 by...
Almost Half Way There
Silly me. I'm so new to this crowd funding concept that I only just discovered I can send updates to my backers. So here's the first update: For those of you who have supported this Kickstarter campaign, who have responded with even a small contribution, a piece of...
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The figures in "A Walk in the Park" are the inner cast you carry everywhere—the fool who leaps, the doubter who drags his feet, the dreamer who stares past the horizon, the judge with crossed arms, the child who still believes. They bicker, whisper, revolt and reconcile, but together they make the one you call “I.” We are all onstage at once, caught in the thin light between meaning and emptiness—a reminder that your chaos is not a flaw, but the chorus through which your true voice finally emerges. ... See MoreSee Less
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted."Identity and Self"
Opening Reception and Exhibition at
Park Circle Art Gallery
4820 Jenkins Ave.
North Charleston, SC 29405
The Exhibition runs through April 26
Gallery Hours: W-F 10:30-5:30, Sat 12-4
The collection will center on how identity interferes with our true self, our true freedom, which is a central value for an artist, as well as any self-actualized individual. For instance, when I draw my idea of a thing, rather than opening myself up to the full potential contained in the thing itself, I am limiting my creative potential.
So, who are we at our core, after we strip away the names we call ourselves, the parties with whom we affiliate, the causes for which we are fighting? After all, these are all inventions of the ego, which separate us from God and the infinite. Existence consists of light on form. Light is my medium as an artist. I am a painter of the self. I am looking always for something deeper than the surface representations in my subjects. It is the true self I am looking for when I paint, whether it is an orange, a sky or a judge. ... See MoreSee Less
“The Fantasy” oil on canvas 36" x 48", invites you into that lucid dream space where imagination feels more vivid than reality. In this oil painting, a solitary figure drifts through a dreamlike landscape of softened edges and impossible light. But the story is not fixed—you’re handed a doorway.
This piece lives in the uncertainty between escape and awakening. At first glance, it feels like a beautiful dream: rich color, fluid forms, and a sense of effortless drift. But stay with it, and you begin to notice the undercurrent—a quiet question about what we run toward, and what we’re trying to leave behind.
For the thoughtful collector, “The Fantasy” becomes a mirror for their own inner world. It speaks to anyone who has ever built a private refuge in their mind: the daydreamer, the creative, the survivor, the seeker who knows that fantasies can be both sanctuary and trap. The painting doesn’t judge that impulse; it honors it, and gently asks what new possibilities might emerge when we begin to bring those inner visions into the light of our real lives.
Hung in a living room, bedroom, or reading space, “The Fantasy” doesn’t just decorate a wall—it opens a conversation. With its layered symbolism and emotional depth, it’s the kind of work people return to, again and again, discovering new details and meanings as their own story evolves. ... See MoreSee Less
"Three Little Buds" is a framed #oilpainting looking for a new home. “Three Little Buds” captures a tender moment of becoming: three rosebuds held in that brief, luminous stage before they open. The dew on their petals hints at fresh beginnings and quiet resilience after the rain. This piece speaks to anyone who feels on the edge of a new chapter—honoring both the vulnerability and the promise of what is about to bloom.
“Three Little Buds" is about beginnings and the quiet power of what hasn’t fully unfolded yet. I painted them at that in-between moment—still closed, but clearly full of life and color, with the dew clinging to them after a fresh start.
For me, the three buds might suggest three children / three important relationships / three versions of ourselves at different times, held together in the same space of light and nurtured by potential energy. The droplets are a reminder that renewal often comes right after the storm; there’s a softness and resilience there.
It’s a painting for someone who connects with the idea of growth, protection, and the beauty of what’s just about to bloom or has bloomed in their own life. ... See MoreSee Less
Here's the entire portrait. I love judicial portraits. What do you think of this portrait? Know anyone who wants a portrait legacy created? A portrait is how people know us when we're gone. ... See MoreSee Less