Sacramento murals & projects
Since returning to Sacramento in 1984, I’ve created over 44 publicly placed mural and sculpture projects in the region (around 24 exterior). Some no longer exist.
“Jack London,” now gone, was on the east side of Beer’s Books, on “S” Street. His face is a combination of about three different portraits- a portrayal of Jack as I see him. The text is from four different original manuscripts, as he wrote them, compliments of the Jack London Collection at the Huntington Library, San Marino. In the original concept, the text didn’t cover his face. But as I was painting, the text was so beautiful that I had to include it all. This is my second London mural. The first was created in 1997 at Jack London Square. See Jack London project for details, and the author has been a 24-year obsession ever since.
Bread Store Mural, now gone, one of the oldest murals in Sacramento, at 29.5 years. I painted this during the Gulf War, in the winter, with freezing hands, tears streaming down my face as I listened to war news. The mural lasted 29.5 years. The Bread Store is gone, the building has sold, and is currently transforming into a new business. My son, Greg, shown on the bike, was eight then, now 38, an architect with a lovely wife, also an architect, and two children. My daughter, Lauren, in the sunglasses, is also in architecture, married with five fabulous children.
Wide Open Walls, 2019: painted out to make way for a new mural, for , with my permission. Link to press event.
“Dance,” a tribute to the Cunningham’s 30-year commitment to dance for the Sacramento Ballet. Wide Open Walls, 2019. Link to press. 
Del Paso Mural has survived two iterations. However, a huge storm did destroy the 4′ high ornamentation I added when the mural panels were repaired and reinstalled. Locals and my family and friends are portrayed.
A note about the transient nature of art that’s placed in public spaces: I’ve lost count of the number of murals, both exterior and interior, for both large and small clients, since painting my first mural in 1977. It saddens me when my work is destroyed, and sometimes, when I believe that a client should have “known better,” I’ve sued. There are federal and state laws to protect artist’s rights. Some in Sacramento, for example, have been up so long that they’re slowly disappearing. I’ve learned to let go. No wait, there’s always a bit of lingering regret, if I tell the truth.
A partial list of exterior projects: Beer’s Books, Birdcage Mall, Bread Store, Kadema Hall, CADA, Crocker, Railroad Museum, Del Paso Theater, “Delta Wind Machine,” “Diablo del Paso,” Hallmark Inn, “Michelangelo,” “Friends,” Lyon Village, Raley Field, Sac Zoo, Scott’s “Big Fish,” Fremont Park vessels, Regional Transit. And some interior projects.
