Tuesday, December 30, 2014




Sometimes... Sometimes you have to do watercolors of your girlfriend's bulldog for Christmas 

Monday, December 29, 2014



for an upcoming play called hsmb at the Cherry Lane I'm thinking about including a trophy cabinet that's exploded

Saturday, December 27, 2014





rough sketches for a play called hsmb at the Cherry Lane in March

Thursday, December 25, 2014


Christmas present for a dog lover

Wednesday, December 24, 2014



Show curtain and first act look for SIDE SHOW set design by David Rockwell

Sunday, December 21, 2014


Jim Noone's design for A CHRISTMAS MEMORY at the Irish Rep. This sketch was done on some magazine pages. Tomorrow I'm interviewing to design a play in this space in April 2015.



Half and hour to kill in Penn Station.

Saturday, December 20, 2014


Walt Spangler's set design for DYING FOR IT at Atlantic Theater Company. I always love Walt's work.

Jim Noone's design for THE LOVE POTION as seen in the NYTimes


Marianna Sanchez's design for WAR as seen at the Yale Rep. Marianna was my design assistant on my Yale Rep production of STONES IN HIS POCKETS and I am so happy to see her work on this stage after three long years in New Haven.

Friday, December 19, 2014


A preliminary idea for a production of CHICAGO I'm designing for Connecticut College. I get lots of strange looks while working on a watercolor on the F train.

Thursday, December 18, 2014


Factory outside Bridgeport, CT as seen from Metro North.
Marianna sanchez's set design for WAR at the Yale Rep. I sketched this on a magazine page. The set didn't have the texture underlay in this drawing. The production of WAR was directed by Lileanna Blain-Cruz, lights by Yi Zhao, clothes by Montana Blanco. 

Friday, December 12, 2014




Today I'm on a layover in Chicago and using time to design a very strange table for a Play called WYOMING

Wednesday, December 10, 2014


This is part of a set designed by Douglas McCullough for SLEEPING BEAUTY at Interlochen center for the arts. I saw it tonight in Corson auditorium. I'm at Interlochen to have meetings for a new production of NUTCRACKER I'm designing for them

Sunday, December 7, 2014


quick quick drafting on Metro North in a 4"x8" notebook. Strangely enough this rough drawing has most of the information we'll need to build the set. It's for a play called WYOMING that opens in January. 

Wednesday, December 3, 2014


Good composition in the film MR. TURNER. from a magazine ad for the film. I absolutely cannot cannot wait to see this film.

Tuesday, December 2, 2014







how many portals can you draw in 50 minutes on a crowded subway car? The answer is seven. I'm trying to figure out the portal for my Nutcracker. Rest assured I'll be using none of the above designs. Drawing on the subway is good for loose sketches-- not so good for rectilinear architecture.

Wednesday, November 26, 2014


sketches to communicate to a lighting designer and technical director how to make a tree grow for Nutcracker

Monday, November 24, 2014

 This sketch of an Armenian church in the Tarlabasi neighborhood of Istanbul is probably my favorite sketch of the year. It started raining while I was sketching, and the drops created a fantastic texture in the watercolor.
collapsing apartment building near the entrance to the Tarlabasi market. These are the very last of my sketches from Istanbul back in October. 

Sunday, November 23, 2014

The painting is 'On the Yacht "Namouna", Venice' 1890. By Julius L. Stewart. I just loved the angle, perspective and poses represented. I did this sketch in the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford back in September.

Thursday, November 20, 2014



More sketches for THE MISS FIRECRACKER CONTEST

Sunday, November 16, 2014


another sketch for my Nutcracker at Interlochen Center for the Arts. Act 2.


Friday, November 14, 2014


from the April 2014 archives. These are two preliminary sketches for The Beautiful Dark that went up in May and June of this year at The Barrow Group.

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Gary Decker's design for Dead Man Walking at the Power Center for the performing arts. Gary was a professor of mine at University of Michigan, and it's been great to catch up with him while I'm in town to tech Caroline, or Change.

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

This building is across from the police station in the Karikoy neighborhood in Istanbul. My brother lives nearby. After passing it for a couple days I noticed there was always a 1950s Chevy parked outside, so I had to draw it.

The Taxim to Tunel tram on Istiklal Caddesi in Istanbul.

Turkish Airlines plane at the gate. I keep finding more drawings from my trip to Istanbul in October.

Monday, November 10, 2014

the final sketch for my design of Caroline, or Change by Tony Kushner, music by Jeanine Tesori, directed by Mark Madama at University of Michigan. I fly to Detroit today for tech.