World Views Blog
How to Appreciate Art
Steve Anthony Cefalo created some great tips for appreciating artwork, with which I agree whole heartedly. This is not anti-intellectual dribble (heaven forbid). It’s a way to expand your intuition and use your lifetime of experience to enter a work of art. The...
One Man’s Trauma
We refer to life's obstacles as “formative experiences” or “trials” when we’re mature enough to process the challenges they present. We may succeed or fail but we are emotionally prepared to accept the consequences. And when we are not emotionally prepared to deal...
Dare to Paint Badly
You have the choice. It’s just paint. No one will get hurt if you lay down paint where you choose to put it.
Picture Lights
A Circus Barker: See the video on FB. Heres's the transcript: Folks, ya simply won’t believe how you've managed to live without picture lights. The light reflected by an original oil painting into a room is at least 375 times richer and warmer than any fancy lamp...
A Vortex of Hoplessness
This is a very difficult subject and I'm probably out of my league discussing, because I'm a member of white middle class by birth. But maybe, that is what makes me the most qualified. I have lived the entitlements heaped upon my demographic. Yes, I have struggled,...
My Shatner Experience
For those of you who are aware of the depths of my admiration for a man whom my son and I may or may not have met last Saturday . . . I have a recurring dream where Shatner is a main character and we are just hanging out like brothers. His Captain Kirk has not only...
Shatner in Space – the poem
William Shatner in Space by Robert Maniscalco Consider the young and the old Shatner, both, who, in the understatement of any century, I deeply admire. But I don't go to Star Trek conventions because I am not a joiner. That’s because of my emulation, often to a...
Tactically Necessity
Remember Affirmative Action? Every generation has their name for the effort to create true equality. And as always, there are many who will cry "no fair." That's just "reverse discrimination," another buzzword from the recent past. Its three steps forward, two steps...
Boundless
I took the family to see BOUNDLESS last night, a new musical written by Mary Fishburne and Directed by Thomas Keating. Five years in the making, against impossible odds, my friend (well I’m more of an admirer) Mary knocks it out of the park. Her music is tuneful and...
News Now
I was delighted to be a guest on Fox 24 News Now once again. Leyla Gulen is an outstanding host and I think we got a lot of information into the segment. Air date 2-2-23. They really do a #fantastic job showcasing local #talent. #Thanks for having me on again! Leyla...
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“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
"Reflections on Nothingness" #existentialism This #painting is not a design choice; it’s a commitment to keep looking into the #mystery rather than numbing out. “Reflections on Nothingness” is a #meditation on the space between presence and absence—the quiet, unsettling recognition that everything we cling to is, in the end, temporary. This piece is for collectors who are not afraid to sit with the bigger questions: mortality, consciousness, and the strange beauty of existing at all. Hung in a study, retreat space, or #contemplative corner, it becomes less a decoration and more a companion for the long, honest conversations you have with yourself. Let me know if you'd like to the whole painting ... See MoreSee Less
A lot goes into making a #oilportrait. Hands, drapery, leather chairs. I am going beyond #likeness; I make every element as true and deep as possible, without them taking away from the main event, which is soul of the sitter. That's the #art of #portraiture. Let me know if you want to see the entire #portrait are interested in creating your legacy ... See MoreSee Less
“Light” is a #painting about the moment before everything changes—the quiet split-second when intention becomes action. Set against a swirling, cosmic backdrop, the hands of God (or man?) hold earth or another planet to the flame of destruction (or enlightenment?). The painting invites you to consider both the beauty and the weight of what we choose to ignite in our lives. It holds the tension between our power to create and our responsibility to care. #Light is for those who think deeply about #purpose, #stewardship, and the mystery of #existence, “Light” becomes more than an artwork. It’s a daily reminder that even the smallest spark—an idea, a conversation, a decision—can shape entire worlds. There’s a moment—right before we act—when everything is still possible.
“Light” was painted for the people who feel that weight: the therapists, teachers, spiritual guides, scientists, and quiet leaders who know their choices ripple out farther than they can see. If you’ve ever looked at our fragile little planet and felt both awe and responsibility, this piece is meant to live in your space. A reminder that what you choose to ignite today matters. Where in your life are you ready to strike the match? ... See MoreSee Less