inside my head

 I think about drawing, painting, and tattooing more than I spend time doing it,, and I'm somewhat  embarrassed to say that to the world. Their is no room for error or lack of expression on this planet, people are judgemental and unforgiving. I think my paychecks are far too small for the amount of time and energy I put in, and yes, we would all like to have more value to our function. I think the ocean is the only place that I can go to and feel nothing and everything at the same time. I need more time to do things with my family, they need me and no matter what I do or say, or how much time I spend, I will always feel like a slacker and I'm letting them down. My wife is the most amazing person I've had the grace of loving, and she deserves better than I will ever be able to give her. I feel myself sinking into a depression over the fact that I am still paying my bills by construction, my trade is valuable none-the-less, but taxing on the body, and no matter how well something is made, people choose to find the single flaw. Isn't it nice to see something a man made as opposed to your IKEA pressed fit, snap together trash that wont even burn because it is packed full of recycled plastic and rat killer. I force myself to grow as fast as possible as an artist, and know I want to do things with art that can change the way people think about their life, so I sleep very little and when I try to sleep, I cant. I havent been able to sleep my entire life, I remember telling my mother when I was very young, and the years of adulthood have compounded my spinning mind. I have massive goals for myself that I force myself to reach, only to realize I've ruined my goal in the first place, because all I wanted was to have fun, and love, and give, and nothing in this world is that simple. Sometimes I think I belong on a boat, with my wife and kids next to me, completely free of communication with the outside world for the rest of my life. I couldnt put up with myself for that long, but you get my drift...... I want to be normal, but what the fuck is normal. I am, and you are, and we are all in this shit together. I remember what I wanted when I was a boy, to be an artist, a musician, anything to do with art. I remember my grandpas tattoos on his arms from when he was in the service, I thought he was the coolest man ever, just because he had those tattoos. So now I am those things, and battling every god damn second to be better at them. Life, in itself is all of this for me, it is my blessing, and my curse. thats it.

3 new paintings! Art Show Next Month at Nautical Bean! Check It out!!!

Hello everybody! I have two spankin' new paintings for you to check out here. I also finished the snake with peonies. I am pleased to announce that for the entire month of November, you can view or purchase my paintings at Nautical Bean on Los Osos Valley road in SLO. Along with my paintings, RC Kelly, Keith Duggan, Danny Derrick, and Gary Ellsworth will all have AMAZING paintings up, for sale and for viewing. Please make it a point to stop by, get a cup of jo' and give everything a look! I'm super excited to be a part of it, and cant wait to see how it turns out. Thankyou all for stopping by!

So here she is..... havent figured out a background for it yet, and still have a few very small things to finish on it, just wanted to get it out there. this one was alot of fun and learned alot here too. the art show that Myself and other artists I work with will for the entire month of November at the Nautical Bean coffee house in SLO on Los Osos Valley road. So be sure to swing by with your pockets stacked, get some coffee, and buy some one of a kind art! Be well, and thankyou for paying mind.

New Painting line art. MUCH EXCITE!

So after being re-drawn 6-7 times I have finalized and transferred to watercolor board, my new painting. We are now doing painting night at the shop every other monday, so I will be working on it there and home as well. This painting will be available to view in the near future at the nautical bean coffee house in slo along a few others I've done, and other artists in my shop and area will have stuff up there too. I dont have an exact date yet, but i will post as soon as I know. Well, thats it for now!! be well!

A few new little paintings and a brief update

I have been spending alot of time drawing a huge painting lately which I have re-worked about 3 or 4 times with the help of my mentor Sawdust at sink or swim tattoo. All of my nights have been taken up by all the little paintings that I want to do that I dont have time for at the shop anymore, I posted a few of them here for you to have a peek. The little robot skull was a gift to a new friend I made the other day. I am pretty stoked on the "down with the Ship' painting, although I did it very fast and am making an effort to slow down again. I got a new drafting table to work off of at the house, so I'm pretty pumped on that. the flower did indeed get given to the Mrs's, who deserves much more than that for putting up with me painting all fuckin night. Oh, and we got a dog. A little english bulldog pup that is just the coolest thing since sliced bread, I'll throw up a pic of her next time. thanks for stopping by.

New painting

Just stopping by real quick to load up a new painting I just did. been drawing lots of snakes at the shop lately. been building some pretty cool stuff too. let me know what you think eh? thanks for checking out my blog!

Sunday the 22nd of May

So I had quite a busy weekend. I spent all day saturday at the shop drawing pin-up girls. They are frustrating but quite fun. I convinced my lovely lady to pose for me so that I can draw from a real life refferrence, which really seemed to make dealing with proportions alot easier. I also started another painting which I haven't finished yet, so I wont bother putting it up. I did however find sometime to paint today, and finished this lil' sugar skull. Ive been reading quite a bit about color theory and contrast, and am hoping that at some point in my life, it will actually sink in. My beautiful women had her bridal shower today, so many girls came out to show her love and give her things. It was really awesome to see her so happy when she came home. A nice smile with a hug and a kiss, made me feel all brand new again. Whilst this was going on, I afforded myself the task of going surfing with my step-son tyler, whom forgot to tie his leash to his board properly. I spent a considerable amount of time getting his board off the rocks, and managed to not get smashed into them at the same time. Me and Haily watched " kangaroo Jack," which was really quite hilarious considering the fact that they put Christopher Walken in a children's comedy. Spent a little time on the rope swing in the backyard as well. Well,, I just wanted to throw up a painting.. Time to wind down and get ready for another long week

Life as I know it..............

Where to start....... My name is Wes Kephart. I am 28 years old next week. I was raised in nipomo California, which is odd because now it is apparently one of the most desired places to live in the world, but when I was growing up there it was a one gas station town, and not much has really changed in my opinion. We never had anything to do so my old man taught me how to build things and cars, I was pretty much on a motorcycle by the time I could walk. Dad used to take me to race circle track quads, which I was never any good at. I still remember sitting in the passenger seat of his car, doing burnouts down the street, and going to watch him race his drag boat........... Pretty cool way to grow up now that I look back on it. I started out doing finish carpentry for a living right out of high school. Ive worked on almost every street,, I can literally drive up and down this whole coast area and stop and say, " I helped build that." Its a cool feeling. Ive always been very into art, and about a year and a half ago I set out to apprentice for tattooing, and Ive never looked back since. I walked away from a 3 bed room house that I owned for it. Bert Krak said in an interview I read, ' If you love it, fuck it, give everything up for it. I did." which is the saying that sometimes keeps me going... Sink or Swim tattoo is where I hang my hat, come in and get a tattoo from one of the guys, and soon by me. So,,, this is what brought me to my blogging, my art, my life, my family. I am engaged to be married this July, and I can honestly tell anyone that reads this, I am with the woman of my dreams, working in the shop of my dreams, and pursuing my dreams. My lady is a 5'7!!!!!! bombshell beauty that is just as smart as she is beautiful. She can take my most fucked up day and put a smile in me quicker than zap! I've never met a person more well rounded than her, and I knew I wanted her the first time I met her. 3 years later and many late night conversations about life, and the fact that it shouldnt be taken advantage of, we are absolute best friends, lovers, and partners in piracy. She can take a whole room full of people and make them all smile as she walks by. She is pure magic. I've loaded up a few pictures of paintings and my wife for you to see, please enjoy. From here on out my blogs will be much more short and to the point, I will be using this sight to load paintings, drawings, pictures of what makes me tick with small explanations, mindless garble really. If you enjoy it please let me know and I will make the next one better. thankyou for stopping by. If you would like to have something painted please email me here, and we can work it out.