I finally finished my sculpture sequel to my police car- I’m really proud of it. I wanted to make a sculpture that articulated and condensed the overwhelming problem of how to deal with all these blighted houses.

I mean, it’s more than that- but that feeling of being overwhelmed turned into a joke was sort of the core idea.

I modeled the truck off of the truck across the street. Truthfully, there are some minor changes I still want to make – the undercarriage of the truck still needs some attention.

It was a joy to do the last run of this. Painting often feels like a grind, and heaven knows my confidence goes in a circle. When I’m at my low ebb of feeling good about being an artist and you add serious grind, and can lead to a bad time in my basement. Conversely, after doing projects for other people, it felt great to make a crazy sculpture for…I guess myself? Or the world? The world was asking! And I delivered!

Knowing what art I want to make, being able to picture it, and then being able to execute feels amazing. Even five years ago, it was like trying to hit a target with a shotgun from far away. I’d be happy for any evidence of having hit it at all. Now, I can make the stuff in my head real. Regardless of whether people buy this painting, or if people come to the show, it’s a personal victory.

Here are some of the extra photos of the process: