Ode to Vincent
Most people possessing any familiarity with the world of art have seen reproductions of Starry Night and know that its painter led an unsettled existence.  People with this basic knowledge about Vincent van Gogh also most likely have read or heard about the artist cutting off his ear.  We'll never know the facts behind the event.  Some scholars say the tortured artist only severed an earlobe.  Others might attribute the self-injurious act to guilt, arguing Vincent committed the mutilation because he was ashamed of threatening his closest friend, painter Paul Gauguin, with a barber's razor earlier the same evening.  Ode to Vincent was completed early in ¡Ojo!'s career.  The painting began taking form in an art class where students were required to render figures and portraits using live models.  Concerning the experience, the artist says, "The model that day was a nondescript young blonde guy, a rocker with long hair, whose ruddy complexion told me he had done a good amount of drinking before coming in to model for us." ¡Ojo! couldn't accurately depict the model's facial features, so the artist moved his easel close enough to hear the presumed rocker's breathing and started painting his ear. Considering the painting's significance today, ¡Ojo! states, "It means lots of things.  It's my visual song commemorating the legend who first inspired me to paint.  Did he hear voices and believe chopping off his ear would relieve him of this common symptom of schizophrenia?  Or is the ear, that looks like an upside-down embryo if you take a close look, represent how important the sense of hearing is to all of us?  In the womb, before we see anything, we're aware of sounds - ambient noise, our parents' voices, but most importantly music.  Ode to Vincent could be considered a eulogy to the sense of hearing that we acquire before being able to see."    

Self-Portrait Quoting Kahlo
¡Ojo! began this painting in 1994 in his Berkeley studio, finishing it the following year in Mexico City where his mother and sister were attempting to resettle.  Originally, the artist depicted himself with blue skin, long hair and a demonic visage, but feeling he was being haunted by the "genius" of Mexico's most renowned painter, the final portrait depicts ¡Ojo! in superbly-rendered skin tones, wearing an expression that is subdued, with a trace of apprehension in the left eye. Of the work the artist says, "Although some of Frida's portraits are amazing, I don't think I could've dedicated a life to painting my face, like she did.  It's either enormously vain and indicates a lack of creativity, or it requires the kind of disciplined consistency I don't think I could ever have as a painter. But I'm grateful her spirit inspired me to paint 'Self-Portrait quoting Kahlo.'  As long as emulating artists of different genders doesn't lead to identity disturbances, there's nothing wrong with channeling their creative energy."

Dream Mare
A rearing horse dominates the composition, placed slightly off-center yet filling the frame so the body forms a dynamic S-curve. Diagonals of the raised forelegs and arched neck drive the eye upward, while the tail and cast shadow anchor the figure to the ground plane. The horizon band sits low, flattening space and emphasizing the sculptural silhouette against a large field of negative space. The palette is a vigorous clash of warm reds, oranges, and russets for the horse against cool greens and teals in the background, with a cobalt-blue shadow as a counterpoint. Yellow-ochre highlights flicker along the contours, heightening contrast and giving the form a heated, metallic or wooden sheen. The complementary red–green scheme pushes the subject forward and imparts visual vibration. Mood is exuberant and slightly feral—energetic, theatrical, and tense. The rearing pose suggests defiance or spirited motion, while the saturated warms convey heat and vitality; the cool, softly modulated background calms but also isolates the figure like a stage set. Technique appears expressionistic: broad, gestural brushwork with visible strokes, scumbled layers, and sketch-like outlining that leaves underdrawing and pentimenti apparent. Planes are simplified into faceted masses, and striated marks in the mane and limbs evoke the texture of carved wood or a carousel horse. Edges alternate between hard and smoky, with modeling achieved more by temperature shifts than by meticulous blending.

Green Chair
"The Green Chair" celebrates the upcycled life.  The chair in the painting was purchased at a Salvation Army in downtown Oakland.  At the time,¡Ojo! was a not only a graduate student in UC Berkeley's anthropology department, he was also manager for an apartment building a few blocks from campus.  To stretch the fellowship checks he received as a National Science Foundation scholar, ¡Ojo! made a habit of buying second hand goods - vintage threads at Wasteland, CDs at Amoeba Music, books at Moe's and household items at the Berkeley flea market, where he was also a vendor of his family's discarded clothing, often brand-name apparel he'd occasionally transport back to Berkeley from Orange County in a Toyota pick-up he purchased for precisely that purpose. Like the green chair in the painting, anything can be upcycled if context allows.  When asked about this piece's message, the artist says, "Matisse painted his 'Green Line,' I painted a green chair.  With the right clout and connections, a banana affixed to a wall with duct tape can sell for millions.  With creative inspiration, determination, and a proper investment of time and energy, a forty dollar piece of furniture can become an artwork worth a lot more."       

Immaculate Conception
During his graduate school years, ¡Ojo! was the romantic companion of the woman depicted here, at the time a UC Berkeley undergraduate. While the relationship unraveled due to the onset of the artist’s mental illness, he remembers their years together brought them a sense of adventure and unbounded potential. After the artist was released from prison, the painting was damaged then restored. Although ¡Ojo! considers it his best painting in terms of color, composition and subject matter, he destroyed the work in a fit of concern for his former girlfriend. “I was under the spell of a fearful belief that interaction with the image of real person could lead to the harm of that person,” says the artist. "After the regret of not having treated this woman better, destroying her painting is one the biggest regrets I have felt as an artist."

A Quaint Haunt
A depiction of the apartment in Berkeley, California where ¡Ojo! rendered his first paintings "A Quaint Haunt" portrays just that - an abode at once cozy and haunted by something mysterious.  This is the room where the artist filled his head with theory and philosophy he read in oodles of new and second-hand books.  A room where he watched movies by Scorsese, Hitchcock and foreign directors on VHS tapes from a local video rental business.  This room witnessed its inhabitant grow as a scholar and deal with the stress, joys and perplexities of being an apartment building manager.  Unit nine in a complex that had its share of Melrose Place romantic drama is where the fledgling painter played the role of Casanova and felt the tender devastation of heartbreak.  ¡Ojo!'s artistry took root in this residential space, where his waking nightmares hang on the walls and the spinning ceiling fan dissipates stale air and heat, the fan's cord oscillating like a double-helix of DNA.    

Kings' Point
This painting was modeled after a charcoal drawing the artist rendered while at a popular tourist destination in Marin County, California. The painting then served as a study for creating "Solar Days," ¡Ojo!’s diurnal homage to Vincent van Gogh's most famous picture. About this practice piece the artist states, "What I remember most about that day on the peninsula is not plunging into the ocean after a knockout-beautiful Cajun girl wearing a Bay Watch-red bathing suit. I don't have too many regrets in life, but 'Kings' Point' commemorates one, with the hope that as long as it doesn't land me in institutional confinement again, I'll never hesitate to follow-up an urge for well-intentioned actions ever again."

First Selfie - Looking Up
When ¡Ojo! painted this self-portrait in 1994, cell phones were still a rarity. Devices allowing for both telecommunication and photographs were relegated to the imaginations of technology visionaries or to science fiction. The artist named this painting decades after he rendered it using a portable mirror he held up with his right hand while painting with his left. The unconventional perspective of the portrait was duplicated by cell phone users everywhere after the "selfie" became popular. ¡Ojo! doesn't know what drove him not to use a regular, stationary mirror to create the portrait, but there are psychological implications in the picture's perspective. The image in the suspended mirror, similar to those in the cell phones of many people taking pictures of themselves today, occupies a higher place than the artist, who is looking up into his reflection. This self-portrait is a commentary on the way images of oneself can make a person appear different than they really are based on formal features like color, expression and, perhaps most importantly, perspective. ¡Ojo! states, "In a selfie, the image is the ideal that literally and figuratively "looks down" on the person who is taking the photograph and "looking up" or admiring the ideal they wish they were. I guess you can say that while I was painting First Selfie the image of me up in the mirror was judging the real flesh-and-blood me down below." The artist arrives at similar conclusions as some theorists who consider the psychodynamics of photography and claim reality can never live up to the demands created by an image. First Selfie reminds us that images have long occupied the privileged place of gods. The painting also points to - and denounces - the fashionable and egomaniacal 21st trend of self-worship cell phone technology has made possible.

Still Life with Decoy

Sad Skin

Black Word

Concerning Rooster

'Scuse Me, There's a Scream in Sky

Coffee Pot with Orange
This painting's subject matter is reminiscent of a Cezanne still-life and marks a transition in ¡Ojo!'s brushwork. It is also one of two pieces he signed with his birth name initials, a trait he adopted from New York painter Joseph Solman. ¡Ojo! admires Solman for merging modern subjects - the portrait, urbanscape, and still life - with a technique that is arguably expressionistic. Of Coffee Pot with Orange, the artist says, "I first experienced a caffeine buzz in 1988 after drinking a potent latte at Cafe Milano across the street from the UC Berkeley campus. That buzz led to a life-long habit I've abandoned because I was concerned not only for my own health and life, but for the well being of other people who struggle with cravings for addictive substances."

Signature Light
Every location under the sun is not the same. Each has its own unique luminosity. But sunlight in Southern California has similarities to that in the south of France where van Gogh painted his last pictures. This plein air painting is one of several ¡Ojo! completed during a three-month stay in coastal Orange County where he alternated living between his parents' homes after being temporarily released from the Department of State Hospitals. The depiction of the patio was finished quickly, with the artist trying to capture the signature light of early afternoon. "I was unconsciously emulating mad Vincent's Arles work when I painted this," the artist says, reflecting on this troubled but productive period in his life. There's a certain serene disequilibrium to the piece. The colors accurately reflect the subject, but the perspective of the open door to the left of the canvas is not correct. The palm tree and structure to the right lean awry. When asked about the painting’s formal flaws, ¡Ojo! replies, "The whole thing's off kilter and reflects the way I was feeling when I was released from Metropolitan - at loose ends - motivated to paint, but not determined to make anything of my life. Thinking back, that open door was the hospital's, just waiting for me to mess up, so I could step right back in...and not knowing any better, I did."

Hummingbird Speaks
Hummingbird Speaks evokes feelings of relaxation and peacefulness, likely resonating with viewers who appreciate nature or have fond memories of similar environments. For a moment, as ¡Ojo! painted this piece, a hummingbird hovered near him as if observing the artist at work and trilled in approval. The bright, clear sky, together with the play of sunlight and shadow in the painting encourages positivity and uplifts the mood. There is a sense of serenity, as no human figures are present, inviting contemplation and immersion into the pleasure of making a connection with a nature-spirit's life.

When Walls Speak
This work depicts another residence that never became a home for ¡Ojo!. While usually translated as "uncanny," the German word "Unheimlich" literally means "un-home-like." To what extent are the spaces we inhabit haunted by the lives of previous residents? Do lingering poltergeists influence the behaviors of flesh and blood beings? Can the possibility that household hauntings are real partially explain the American obsession with relocating, remodeling and flipping homes? The artist has long sensed the rooms where we eat, sleep, and practice daily living absorb the energies of their occupants' actions and desires. Long after residents abandon a dwelling. these energies can continue to "do-well" or "do-unwell" Repulsion, the first film of Roman Polanski's "Trilogy of Accursed Apartments" contains a scene where the walls of the protagonist's abode tear asunder into jagged, gaping cracks. Thinking back, ¡Ojo! believes the scene's symbolism reflects a very specific form of sexual violence terrorizing the female character's conscience. Did a similar specter inhabit the space depicted in When Walls Speak? Is that why the artist and his mother chose not to move in? These beliefs make ¡Ojo! contemplate past behaviors in the many spaces he has called "home." To what extent are they affecting current occupants? The artist maintains that if actions survive as ghostly forces, we need to proceed with care when living in domestic places that also become abodes for the traces left by our desiring spirits and carnal souls.

Santa Ana Dreamin'
This painting presents a vibrant and lively suburban scene, rendered in a style that suggests elements of expressionism and post-impressionism. The composition is dense, with an array of houses crowded together, and bold palm trees rising high in the foreground, creating layers and a strong sense of depth. The diagonal lines of the roofs direct the viewer’s gaze through the entire canvas, inviting exploration of each colorful corner. The color palette is exuberant and saturated, dominated by rich reds, yellows, and blues, contrasted with lush greens and touches of purple. These bold hues are applied in thick, textured strokes, likely with a palette knife or heavy brushwork, enhancing the sense of energy and spontaneity. Shadows and highlights are exaggerated, often with unconventional colors, imbuing the scene with a dreamlike, almost whimsical quality. The overall mood of the artwork is joyous and energetic, evoking the warmth and vitality of a sunny day in a lively neighborhood. The somewhat abstracted representation of houses and foliage, combined with the expressive use of color, imbues the painting with emotional resonance rather than a strict adherence to realism. Artistic techniques such as impasto, strong outlines, and the use of complementary colors to build contrast and visual interest are evident. The forms are loosely defined, allowing the viewer’s imagination to fill in details, which adds to the painting’s playful atmosphere, and the expressive brushwork and vivid palette are reminiscent of artists like Georg Baselitz or, possibly, Fauvist painters. Overall, this piece celebrates color, light, and the vibrancy of everyday life through an exuberant handling of paint, but ¡Ojo! states this work has become about "White flight, Brown pride and the conquest of suburbia." The mini-mansion depicted in the painting is located in a gated community in Newport Beach, California. When he obtained conditional release from psychiatric confinement in 2008, the artist would spend time there with his mother, who made a habit of buying houses only to flip them within a year's time. You may ask, "If the picture is a representation of Newport Beach, why's it titled 'Santa Ana Dreamin?'" Santa Ana is a predominantly left-leaning, Mexican-identifying city several miles north of the conservative coastal community where the artist's family moved in 1986. According to ¡Ojo!, the painting simply tells the tale of a city inhabited by a minority who, although labeled "privileged," is slowly succumbing to conquest by populations who may not be conscious of recessive genes' vulnerability. ¡Ojo! states, "Go to most Southern California beaches these days and you'll see a handful of White sunseekers in an ocean of Brown bodies. You won't hear that White minority protesting against genocide because ironically, and tragically, enough, if they did, they would get labeled 'racist' or even 'white supremacist' by cultural groups who have been conditioned to react that way by media and political elites. "Santa Ana Dreamin'" is an artist's pledge to turn this tide by igniting truthful conversations about the way aggressive promotion of "cultural diversity" is contributing to the endangerment of phenotypic diversity.

Before the Deluge
What happens when a community changes? Is it for better or worse? Who decides what "better" or "worse" mean? This vivid depiction of a coastal neighborhood from the vantage point of a roof top, questions whether development in the name of higher real estate prices contributes to a sense of community or injures traditional values. The painting was completed in 2008 when ¡Ojo!'s father lived on Marguerite Street in Corona del Mar, California. At the time, the artist resided in a board and care half an hour's drive away. Discouraged by living conditions at the boarding home, ¡Ojo! made bus trips to his separated parents' homes as frequently as possible to paint. He became dependent on nicotine as well as caffeine, and blames these stimulants for eventually making him decide to stop taking court-mandated medication. After having thoughts of walking into moving traffic and informing a county psychologist he had not been taking his meds, the psychologist had ¡Ojo! recommitted to Metropolitan State Hospital. About this work the artist says, "Those residences on the street below are beach bungalows. Some date back to the 60s. So many of them have been destroyed and replaced by structures of a different scale, changing the neighborhood's look and vibe." When asked about the application of colors resembling neon conflagrations in the painting, ¡Ojo! states, "They might represent dreams of developers who wouldn't mind if the community went up in flames as long as they could wring every last Benjamin from mini-mansions with more square feet and more amenities at the cost of traditional values and less potential for suburban sustainability." But as an artist who believes there is always a brighter side, ¡Ojo! adds, "The vivid colors could also stand for the resilience of bungalow owners who manage to keep conservatism alive by refusing to sell out to the flood of big real estate money." The artist regards this painting as "white magic," a visual spell cast to help preserve endangered middle-class communities in the state of California and other parts of the country coping with the contending scourges of urban blight and gentrification.

Tartaria
Completed in 2008, “Tartaria” is a piece derived from a Los Angeles Times front page photograph of an Oakland fire’s aftermath. First exhibited in 2025 at the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art, the painting’s name derives from a theory claiming that a technologically-advanced civilization once spanned the globe. Although the design of Tartaria’s flawlessly masoned cities enabled them to generate free energy, a catastrophic “mud flood” devastated the cities of the Tartarians, but, according to the theory, their traces are still evident in pre-modern architectural design utilizing intricate masonry as well as in more recent brickwork buildings. Today, mud floods sometimes occur after torrential rains fall on areas where fires have already left behind devastation. Given the environmental hazards caused by climate change, “Tartaria” calls for communities like those in California recently devastated by wild fires to be designed and built with sustainability in mind. The painting also advocates for commentators whose unconventional explanations of factors causing environmental distress are often ignored or ridiculed by official media and science. ¡Ojo! states, “Outliers to the world of science often make contributions to that world in ways which can cause scientific paradigms to shift and altogether new truth to be revealed.” The artist hopes that someday even a theory which claims environmental change may have socio-linguistic roots can lead to a remedy for global warming.

What If I Were to Blow Up?
About this piece ¡Ojo! says, "When I was eight years old, I compulsively watched "The Incredible Hulk" TV series. It scared the shit out of me whenever skinny, pale Bill Bixby would transform into yoked-out, shamrock-green Lou Ferrigno." This painting depicts the artist stressed out about the possible prison sentence he’d face if he acted out on rebellious impulses. Today it has acquired the additional significance of anguish about the possibility of 'hulking out' in the art world. "You hear the stories of what fame does to people, but I've discovered success is what you make of it. Sometimes, like Bruce Banner, you can become what you fear, but not everyone has to go out crazed and penniless like van Gogh. Also, you don't have to beat yourself up when you get a share of the spotlight." What If I Were to Blow Up? is a reminder that fear of artistic success is a monster all its own, a beast that will get the best of an artist unwilling to tame it. When the artist asked Visionati what the image said about an artist’s fears of becoming an outlaw to achieve success, the app responded with the following text: “The hunched figure with face covered suggests anxiety and shame: the artist wrestles privately with what they may have to do to be seen. - The doubled, shadow-like body behind implies a split self or an “outlaw” persona trailing the real one—success demanding a second, more transgressive identity. - The throne-like chair evokes institutions and gatekeepers; the small, fragile stool under the knees feels like a pedestal that is also a cage, hinting that notoriety can both elevate and trap. - The violent, saturated colors create a noisy, sensational atmosphere—the spectacle the art world often rewards—while the central figure withdraws, overwhelmed. - The blue-red clash reads as inner conflict: authenticity versus the pressure to break rules for visibility. Together, the image suggests that the myth of the “outlaw artist” is less liberation than burden. The pressure to court transgression for success fractures the self, produces shame and paralysis, and turns visibility into a kind of confinement.”

Idol Hand I

Idol Hand II

Idol Hand III

Idol Hand IV

Idol Hand V

Idol Hand VI

Idol Hand VII

Idol Hand VIII

Idol Hand IX

Terror Panda
This artwork is a vibrant and expressive painting of a panda, rendered with bold, lively brushstrokes and a thick impasto technique. The composition is centered on the panda, which is seated amid bamboo stalks, creating a strong focal point. The panda’s face is abstracted but clearly recognizable through the iconic black-and-white mask marking, giving the image an immediate sense of whimsy and personality. The color palette is particularly striking: a powerful, textured red dominates the background, setting off the dark black and creamy white of the panda’s fur. This fiery red contrasts with the cooler, natural green-yellow hues of bamboo on the left, and scattered dabs of blues and other bright colors throughout the background add energy and a sense of playful chaos. The mood of the painting is dynamic and lively, with a hint of surrealism due to the exaggerated, almost sculptural brushstrokes and the loosely defined setting. The panda's charming expression, along with the colorful, almost child-like environment, evokes feelings of joy and a dream-like state, perhaps aiming to capture the innocence and wonder associated with wildlife. Artistically, the painter employs a very tactile, expressive technique, layering paint in thick swaths and blending colors directly on the canvas rather than using precise outlines. The background is abstract, with patches of color and overlapping shapes suggesting vegetation without realistic detail. This lends the entire piece a sense of movement and vibrancy. The work draws on elements of both impressionism and modern expressionism, focusing on the emotional and visual impact rather than photorealistic detail. The recognizable figure here is the panda, set in a bamboo-rich environment that could be reminiscent of Asian landscapes, but no particular place or landmark is overtly depicted. Before becoming ¡Ojo!, the artist completed a dissertation manuscript on the ways communications know-how and technology were used to conduct what became known as "cold war" against the Soviet Union. During this primarily psychological conflict, "hot" battles did not disappear from the global arena and many governments did what they could to stop the proliferation of atomic armaments developed at the end of World War II. With nuclear detente, communication became important both as a means for prolonging peace, but also as a means of social subterfuge. Partial truths and disinformation were deployed as weapons to weaken adversarial nations. The USIA taught Afghani jihadists to document Soviet "atrocities" with guerilla news tactics. Ronald Reagan misrepresented the Star Wars defense system, leading Mikhail Gorbachev to believe communist countries could no longer afford to militarily compete with nations espousing democracy. Commenting on the meaning of "Terror Panda," ¡Ojo! declares, "We've arrived at a moment in history where culture conflict has become just as consequential as conventional and psychological battles. When I started the painting, I was reproducing a newspaper image of a terrorist attack on a train in Spain - lamentably cruel but, for some, an undeniably "hot" form of waging war. But then the panda emerged and literally "covered up" the act of terrorism with a soft, fuzzy, heart-warming critter. I knew pandas were and continue to be China's totemic animals, like eagles are ours." What the artist never expected was that China, a country he was fascinated by and that continues to fascinate him, would become such a potent influencer of global culture. ¡Ojo! comments, "The United States and Soviet Union were the first modern superpowers to wage war in a mediatized cultural sense. Today, the Chinese invest in U.S. entertainment and education, they own the Oscars and substantially fund Ivy League and other top-notch universities that produce forms of knowledge that I think are undeniably politicized. Terror Panda is a statement of peace, a call to stop weaponizing culture, especially considering how high the stakes have become for populations not traditionally considered cultural minorities."

Dog Lowdown
Discover the vibrant energy and expressive power of this stunning abstract animal painting, reminiscent of the bold palettes of Vincent van Gogh and the emotive brushwork of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Bursting with electrifying colors—fiery oranges, electric blues, and radiant yellows—this artwork transforms its subject into a dazzling centerpiece that commands attention. The rich texture and dynamic technique evoke the creativity seen at The Museum of Modern Art in New York or the Tate Modern in London. Perfect for art lovers who appreciate originality, this piece will elevate any space, offering a unique conversation starter akin to collectible works by Jackson Pollock or Frida Kahlo. Bring home this masterpiece and infuse your surroundings with boundless inspiration and contemporary style! (Description by Visionati).

Becoming Becca
This painting features a close-up portrait of the artist's sister, centered in the composition and presented with direct, unsmiling eye contact. ¡Ojo! employs an expressive, impasto technique, using thick, visible brushstrokes that add texture and energy to the surface. The color palette is dominated by earthy tones for the skin—muted pinks, purples, whites, and greens—contrasted sharply against a vibrant yellow background. The background is loosely worked, almost abstract, allowing the figure to stand out prominently. ¡Ojo! has not aimed for photorealism; instead, the portrait is stylized, with exaggerated features outlined in dark, confident brushstrokes that define the contours of the face and shoulders. The use of contrasting undertones—cool colors in the shadows and warm hues in the highlights—creates depth and brings a sculptural quality to the face. The mood conveyed is introspective and intense, with the subject’s direct gaze suggesting a sense of confrontation or deep thought. The artist’s approach reveals an interest in psychological depth, focusing more on emotional expression than perfect anatomical accuracy. The rough, spontaneous application of paint gives the work a raw, visceral quality. No specific figures, landmarks, or identifiers are present, and the artist’s identity is not discernible from the image alone. The overall style is reminiscent of post-expressionist or modern figurative painting, where emotional impact and painterly technique take precedence over realism. When ¡Ojo! was a student at university, most of his close acquaintances either had Semitic origins or were what he calls "Jew lovers." At the time, the artist considered himself, in the best of possible senses, one of the latter. Years later, after being institutionalized for what he terms "a crime against passion," intimate conversations ¡Ojo! had with his mother about her maternal grandparents made the artist strongly suspect his own roots could be traced back to the tribes of Israel. While at Metropolitan State Hospital, the artist began openly claiming mixed Italian-Jewish identity. After being transferred to Patton State Hospital, he celebrated Sadr with the visiting rabbi and shared his views concerning the mythological aspects of Christianity's messiah narrative. Despite the possible risks of identifying as Jewish in a maximum security environment housing former Neo-Nazis and Muslim Black Nationalists, ¡Ojo! continued to claim Hebraic heritage at New Folsom Prison where he spent the last three years of his forensic mental health sentence. About Becoming Becca ¡Ojo! says, "I think me and my sister have a deep-seeded belief that we're at least half-Jewish thanks to our mother. Privileged American women of Jewish ancestry were once referred to as JAPs. Today, a Jewish-American Princess might be called 'Becky' if she is insensitive to adversities experienced by Blacks. ¡Ojo! believes the term has acquired more widespread misogynistic and even racist connotations and says, "I made this painting perhaps sensing a future when my own sister might get treated like a 'Becky.' If she has, I hope she'll find strength to become a 'Becca' instead."

The Doldrums

Verboten
This piece echoes German Expressionism, Fauvism, and early Cubist portraiture, prioritizing emotion over realism. ¡Ojo! commenced this work-in-progress after he was released from a term of psychiatric confinement. He hoped he could sell the painting to the owner of a restaurant situated in a neighborhood where he often painted in a cramped studio located at the top of a stairwell. The restaurant's name derived from the story of a religious martyr from England who was allegedly decapitated then carried her own head to a local church. Though the image of Saint Juthwara had no significance for the artist when he started the painting, ¡Ojo! asserts he detected meaning in the work years later. Before he was institutionalized in 2003, the artist had a long-term relationship with a younger woman who identified as Greek but had a German surname. ¡Ojo! was enamored of the girl, who called herself "Persephone" and reciprocated his affection, but he troubled her due to increasing mental health difficulties. During the romance, ¡Ojo! perceived plenty of opportunities for dalliance, but resisted temptation - often to his frustration. "I'm a better person for never having cheated on her," says the artist, "but my crazed mind was seeing possibilities everywhere." The painting captures the almost universal predicament lovers often find themselves in when a prospective sexual partner might be ready and willing to casually surrender themselves, but a sense of commitment that simultaneously satisfies and disappoints tells the potential Casanova or Don Juana an affair is "απαγορευμένος" - "forbidden," for those of us who can't read Greek, or Verboten in German.

Camel

Solar Day

Still Life - Pitchers, Lemons, Onions, What?

Toro and Toreador

Houses We Build
Domestic structures are a common theme in ¡Ojo!’s work. "I took three years of architectural drafting in high school," says the artist. "By the end of the year, students were expected to enter their maquettes in a competition organized by a somewhat local chapter of the BIA. My first model was of a post-modern home, the second a curving high-rise, the last, some sort of Brutalist museum. I even considered a career in architecture. My drafting teacher, encouraged me, but I wasn't from a yuppie family that could provide the kind of support necessary to make their hormonally-driven and rock 'n roll-obsessed kid into the next Frank Lloyd Wright or László Tóth." Instead, many years later, the artist found himself locked-up in rebar and concrete institutions meant for mentally ill criminals. Houses We Build is an admission of the artist's simultaneous culpability and innocence for the turn his life took. ¡Ojo! places the blame squarely on himself as well as on destiny's titanic shoulders. Like the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, ¡Ojo! senses the universe recurs eternally and that his struggles with mental health, spirituality, and making a living could not have been otherwise. Of the work, the artist states, "I painted this in 2021, during a particularly low point when I was seriously contemplating 'giving up the ghost' That's New Testament-speak for 'kicking the bucket,' 'croaking.' I was out of a job, compulsively shoplifting and getting arrested for pretty serious shit over and over again. As a Ph.D. drop-out who had gone down the rabbit hole, I identified with King Solomon, who applied himself to knowledge and learning, to madness and folly, discovering, in the end, that both pursuits are in vain." ¡Ojo! believes academia, religion, and counseling can't provide practical advice for people with serious mental health issues unless they are ready to change. "I heard it all, but I was a diagnosed schizo and had undiagnosed borderline personality disorder. I wasn't willing to listen to anything anyone with their head on straight was telling me," the artist says. "I felt like a crucified bum, a frustrated angel, an old Yid asking himself why he isn't rich. Compared to what I was going through back then, my life today is like a Virginia Slims ad. I can proudly say, 'Yeah, I built that house, but thanks to folks who give a crap and the mysteriously predictable patterns of the cosmos, I've come a long way, baby.'"

Cold Hand of Madness, Cool Hand of Reason
This painting displays a striking use of composition and color to communicate a sense of tension and surrealism. The principal figures are two wooden artist’s mannequins placed within a sharply geometric interior space divided into multiple color zones. The left mannequin stands upright, its pose slightly tense, while the other appears to be seated or broken, forming an ambiguous counterpoint. Both are connected by a series of looping cords or strings, which add a dynamic line movement and connect the otherwise isolated forms, visually binding them together atop a tangled knot on the floor. The color palette consists of vivid pinks, cool blues, muted greens, and warm ochres, applied in short, block-like strokes that evoke an impressionistic or abstract expressionist background. This lively backdrop contrasts with the structured, almost clinical rendering of the mannequins, whose woody browns are subtly highlighted and shadowed. The ground is rendered in a gradient of purples and blues, reinforcing the otherworldly mood. Mood-wise, the painting evokes a sense of entanglement, struggle, or complex relationship—perhaps emotional or existential—with the cords acting as both barriers and connectors. There’s a palpable sense of isolation and communication fraught with difficulty. Artistic techniques include strong contouring, visible brushwork, and a playful yet deliberate use of both cubist and impressionist stylistic elements. The setting is undefined, with blocks of color standing in for walls—further dislocating the figures from a specific reality. The artist's formerly used signature "MP" in the lower right does not detract the viewer's attention from the allegorical interaction between the mannequins. (Description by Visionati).

See Light
This artwork presents a dynamic and expressive composition centered on a carved wooden horse dramatically rearing on a tabletop. The perspective is unusual, with a pronounced tilt that adds energy and gives a sense of motion, as if the horse has been brought to life by the flickering candle beside it. The candle, which burns brightly in a simple, rustic holder, casts animated shadows across the table, further emphasizing the sense of movement and animation. The color palette is dominated by vibrant and contrasting hues: the horse is painted in bold pinks and reds, set against a background of cool greens and blue-violets that make it pop. The thick, visible brushstrokes and the loose, almost Fauvist handling of color and form add emotional intensity and an expressive, whimsical quality. The background suggests a tiled or wooden surface receding at a sharp angle, enhancing the sense of depth and drama. Mood-wise, the painting is both playful and mysterious. The toy horse’s exaggerated, almost startled expression and highly stylized form inject a surreal, dreamlike quality, while the lone candle flame introduces a sense of intimacy and perhaps nostalgia, evoking memories or stories from childhood. Light and shadow are used not only to enhance realism but also to heighten drama, drawing attention to the horse as the focal point. The artist’s technique emphasizes intuition and gesture over precise realism, with rough, painterly outlines and layered colors creating a tactile, lively surface. The composition is carefully structured with a strong diagonal, guiding the viewer’s eye from the candle to the horse and back again, creating ongoing movement within the painting.

Jubu Djanx in Mobster Hat
This painting, displayed at Orange County Center for Contemporary Art's "Fashionista" exhibit, depicts ¡Ojo! as the alter ego he contended with for five years after being released from a maximum-security prison. In a personal narrative the artist published in WALL Literary Journal he writes, "Jubu Djanx. That’s the handle that I picked up, or, perhaps, that picked me, during my stay in New Folsom... Since I was released from my commitment to forensic hospitalization and psychiatric imprisonment, I’ve spent sleepless nights tracing the contours of those syllables with my tongue, wondering if the essence of who I am is locked within them." To prevail as ¡Ojo!, the artist had to expose this shadow to the light of reason and discipline, but he still wonders what could have been had Jubu Djanx gotten the upper hand of his personality, "I hit rock bottom sitting in a Manhattan holding cell after smashing a plate glass window at an artsy hotel on the Lower East Side. If it hadn't been for the caring staff and judges at Midtown Community Justice Center, my dreams of making it as an artist would've been further delayed, or might've come to an end." Thankfully, ¡Ojo! promises art aficionados, "I've got a lifetime of productivity left. My best work has yet to be seen."

At Peace with Hunger

Furget Mindful Sleep

Bueno Malo

Stop Judging Me

Narrative Painting

Don't Ask Dr. Sigmund

Don't Turn Your Back

Authentic Reproductions

Mother Marry

Automaton

At Risk
This image is a vibrant, mixed-media artwork that effectively integrates visual elements to create a narrative about natural science and interconnectedness, as well as foster a concern for biological endangerment. The subject matter weaves together themes of biology, pollination, genetics, and human curiosity. The hummingbird and bee are classic pollinators, while the hand suggests human engagement with the natural world—whether as observer, manipulator, or scientist. The plant below (which resembles aloe) connects with these ideas of life and growth. Mathematical symbols and DNA imagery ground the piece firmly in the realm of science; their playful style keeps the work accessible. The image radiates curiosity and celebration of life’s interconnected systems. The bold use of color and animated linework convey a sense of excitement and wonder. The viewer is drawn into a dance between plants, animals, and scientific discovery, evoking admiration for the complexity and beauty of nature. (Description generated by Visionati).

Annus Equus
Why did the abstract horse get promoted? Because it thinks outside the stable! A colorful, abstract painting of a rearing horse with exaggerated, stylized features, including a large smiling mouth and expressive eye. The horse is painted in warm tones of red, orange, and brown, with bold outlines and visible brushstrokes, giving it a wooden or carved appearance. The background consists of flat, geometric patches of green, blue, yellow, and purple, creating a playful, modern, and energetic atmosphere. The horse casts a blue shadow on the ground, adding depth to the composition.

Ivory Cat

Scaredy Cat

Ebony Cat

Pink Elephant

Befor 1969

Lil' Green Chair
The composition of this image is thoughtfully arranged, with the central focus on the green chair. The chair is placed slightly off-center, which creates visual interest and draws the viewer’s eye into the scene. The inclusion of the broom and partial view of the rug and floorboards further grounds the setting, providing context without overwhelming the main subject. The vertical and diagonal lines in the background and floor guide the viewer’s gaze, enhancing the sense of space and depth. The artist employs visible brushstrokes and bold outlines, giving the image a painterly, illustrative quality. The white contour line around the chair and broom separates them from the background, emphasizing their forms and lending a slight sense of the surreal or graphic novel style. The color palette is vibrant yet harmonious, with warm yellows and greens dominating the scene and cooler blues and purples providing accent and definition. The use of light and shadow is handled loosely but effectively, suggesting form without strict realism. The subject matter is domestic and familiar—a wooden chair and broom in a sunlit room—yet the execution elevates it beyond simple observation. The seemingly mundane becomes visually compelling through the artist’s bold stylistic choices. The partial rug under the chair adds pattern and color, hinting at a lived-in space. The overall emotional impact of the piece is one of warmth and nostalgia. The bright yellow background and gentle, homey subject evoke a sense of comfort and quiet. The exaggerated outlines add a playful, almost whimsical undertone, making the scene feel lively despite its stillness. There is a subtle tension between the ordinariness of the objects and the energized way they are depicted. This image uses a combination of strong composition, expressive technique, and familiar subject matter to create a scene that feels both intimate and dynamic. The technique—particularly the outlining and color palette—imbues the piece with energy and charm, making ordinary objects feel noteworthy. Overall, it is an engaging visual that demonstrates strong control of composition and a unique artistic voice. (This description was generated by Visionati.)

Down with SAMO!
This artwork presents an imaginative, anatomical figure rendered in a stylized, illustrative manner. The composition centers on a single figure depicted in full frontal view, with one arm raised above its head and the other extending outward toward the viewer. The internal anatomy—including bones, organs, and musculature—is exposed, rendered with bold, simplified shapes and vibrant, natural colors. The color palette is dominated by deep reds, purples, and flesh tones for the figure, contrasted against a cool, textured background of teal and green. White and black accents are used to define the feathers of a headdress, which radiates around the head in a manner evocative of indigenous regalia or a symbolic halo. The skeletal face shows teeth in a wide, unsettling grin, with expressive, staring eyes that add to the surreal and slightly macabre tone. The brushwork in Down with SAMO! is loose and expressive, particularly in the background and in the depiction of anatomical forms, lending a sense of energy and movement. Edges are often softened with dry-brushing or visible strokes, enhancing the painting's organic feel. Mood-wise, the image oscillates between playful and eerie. The anatomical exposure invites interpretation regarding themes of mortality, identity, and the interplay between inner and outer realities. About the work, ¡Ojo! states, "This painting was revealed at the 58th annual Newport Beach Art Exhibition. The figure, who I call "the chief" holds one arm raised in salute to empire, nation, or tribe. The other arm is a modified greeting, the fist extending outward toward the viewer, waiting to be bumped, or gently cupped in acknowledgement." The artist made this artwork in response to several things: internal voices telling him it would mark a transition in his artistic career as well as perceptions and statistics suggesting some populations today are more genetically at risk than others. The painting's title has two meanings. According to ¡Ojo!, it pays respect to Jean Michel Basquiat, who was given an anatomy book by his mother after the New York City artist was hospitalized as a child. Down with SAMO! also is a call for struggling artists to cease resorting to substance abuse for purposes of finding artistic inspiration. The artist adds, "Basquiat's graffiti handle was 'SAMO,' an acronym for 'same old BS.' If you have to resort, like Jean Michel did, to heroin to stay inspired or keep producing artwork, you're better off finding another path in life," says ¡Ojo!, who recently found the strength to abstain from drugs and alcohol. He adds, "Although I think some people can use casually and not go down a rabbit hole, for me, substance abuse just added fuel to my madness. If you're really committed to individual and social recovery, perpetuating a 27-club, rock-star artist stereotype only to destroy yourself and hurt those around you is an expression of contempt for the body and mind you were given by your Higher Power as well as the world you were born into." ¡Ojo! hopes the painting will inspire those endangered by substance abuse to regard their lives as worthy as well as sacred.

SoCali Kurt

Two Swans, One Heart