Palm Court

When I went to school, the center of the universe was a stand of palm trees.

In the center of the New College of Florida campus is a courtyard with 24 enormous royal palms where you could sit and watch the world go by or dance the night away at a party. We used to have these Palm Court Parties - PCPs (now called Center of the Universe Parties - COUPs) which involved days and days of preparation, with themes, costumes and artists (like me) painting murals, with music so loud that my ears are still ringing (literally).

I'd sit on the low wall around the plaza watching the days go by.

I have many fond memories of daydreaming in Palm Court, dancing at walls (the smaller Palm Court parties), running into friends. I danced with my wife there - damn, she's a good dancer - and made a mural comparing Popeye's Chicken to God. 

I kinda love royal palms.

These trees look like some amalgam of concrete pillars and nature. It's really crazy that they can actually survive.

And I enjoy painting them.

What's great about a palm tree is how expressive the fronds are. They bend elegantly with the wind and look at any time like they might fall to the ground. 

This painting is a homage to New College

New College was this crazy tiny innovative liberal arts school that is part of the Florida public university system. As a student, you used to be able to choose every element of your program and, more importantly (at least for me), you set your own standards. 

Lately, it's been taken over by the Republican administration of Florida, and they're slowly destroying everything that made New College great. I guess all good things, no matter how safe and secure they seem, are ephemeral, and we have to take the pleasures we can before they get destroyed.

The actual print is beautiful.

I am so excited about the quality of these prints. It's uncanny how they capture all the nuance and subtle coloration of the original. People who have seen these prints cannot believe that they are not looking at an original. It's not a poster, but rather a full representation of my vision.

I use a top-of-the-line Epson printer with pigment ink that is tested to last 200 years. I print on Hahnemühle German Etching all-cotton archival 310 g/mA Paper.

Each print is numbered and signed by me.